Counting On Season 8/9/10 2: How low will they go? (CW: Miscarriage)

[libgirl2]

1 hour ago, Cheetah said:

Yes!  I noticed this as well, and she spoke up more than she has in the past without looking like she'd rather be anywhere else than right there.  So whether it's growing up a bit, spending time with Kendra, being away from her other sisters, it was a good move.

I think Kendra brings it out in people. She is so sunny. 

[tabitha2]

I am sure Jennifer and probably Jordyn are alternatively  bossed around, ignored, picked on by siblings, reprimanded for whatever.Kendra is happy soul not likely to do any of that so they can relax and open up.

[CaricatureQualities]

And while we are praising Kendra I will say that I thought she looked especially gorgeous in the talking heads in this episode. She just looked really striking.

[tabitha2]

I suspect she is the NR Anna Maxwell of the Duggar clan. Perfectly suited too this life and the embodying the ideal fundy woman just by nature.

[mollysmom]

20 hours ago, JoytotheWorld said:

My take away from this episode: I saw more smiles from Jennifer than I have in the rest of her life combined. Seems like the one on one time with Kendra agrees with her. Hope it happens regularly (assuming she gets to be the child and not aunt-mom to Garrett.)

I noticed that too! It was really nice to see!

[albanuadh_1]

I always wondered who Jennifer resembled. I sort of thought Jana ( not really but could never see who else). Then it struck me! Tyler! They look more like siblings than she does with anyone else.

[nst]

4 hours ago, wandering woman said:

It made no sense that they were making practice groom's cakes in Arkansas for an Oklahoma wedding. There is no way they would bring a cake that far.

it's called a storyline. 

your welcome

 

[Ms. Brightside]

I have to say, the more Lauren's pregnancy has been incorporated into other storylines, the more I worry she didn't have a choice in whether she wanted to share about her miscarriage or not. If TLC had already shot the entire grocery shopping/making dinner storyline, it could have been tough to edit around Lauren's announcement (especially if the camera guys were focusing on her in order to play the story that way). There just might not have been enough footage to easily cut it out and still complete the plot. When you consider the groom's cake storyline, you've now got two pretty major plot points (that made up the bulk of two entire episodes) that mention Lauren's pregnancy frequently. Yes, the alternative would be to not show either storyline at all, but with the amount of repeat footage we already have to watch, my bet is that TLC pays the bare minimum to film the Duggars, and that there just wasn't other footage to use to complete the season. Cameramen, sound guys, editors, etc. aren't free, and there may not have really been a way to film more footage in time without spending a prohibitive amount of money. If Lauren signed something to the effect of "you understand that anything you say or do on camera could be aired on television," then she may have just had to suck it up and share about the miscarriage whether she really wanted to or not. 

For her sake, I really hope she wanted to share, and everything just happened to work out this way. 

[tabitha2]

Josiah has been on TV for many years now and knows the drill. Hopefully he had the decency and basic kindness or respect to let her know that all major events life would be pretty much be fodder for The cameras  and then let her choose.

[AussieKrissy]

8 minutes ago, tabitha2 said:

Josiah has been on TV for many years now and knows the drill. Hopefully he had the decency and basic kindness or respect to let her know that all major events life would be pretty much be fodder for The cameras  and then let her choose.

or he could be like Josh...

I vaguely remember with Anna's first pregnancy, one of his first calls was to the production crew, to have them there for the reveal.

Money and fame first.... 

[Ms. Brightside]

14 minutes ago, tabitha2 said:

Josiah has been on TV for many years now and knows the drill. Hopefully he had the decency and basic kindness or respect to let her know that all major events life would be pretty much be fodder for The cameras  and then let her choose.

Unfortunately, I think it was pretty clear that Lauren really didn't believe that something like this could happen. It's much easier to agree to be filmed when you're courting/practically engaged to fundy royalty and it all seems new and glamorous and like nothing can go wrong (if you have nothing to hide). It's also easy to share the excitement of a very wanted pregnancy; it's a lot harder to imagine yourself as a young, healthy woman who did everything "right" in God's eyes having something go terribly wrong, and how you'd like to deal with it if that came to pass, when you're busy celebrating an exciting moment. Someone older, with more life experience, may have waited to share about the pregnancy in front of the cameras. Maybe Lauren did think that through and chose to share regardless. We can't know. 

Furthermore, Josiah grew up in the spotlight... I don't know that he really understands that he can say no to filming something even if he is ready to share it with his family, or that the temptation of compensation for participation is too great to say no (even if the kids aren't getting paid directly by the production company, it does seem that the kids who participate get certain favors and treatment within their own hierarchy). 

[tabitha2]

It’s very likely The clause that they must agree to storyline ,film pregnancies and births is going to be in the contracts they sign so the women can’t opt out even if they want to. TLC dosen’t give a damn about the Duggars  themselves just how they can use them as we saw from Lauren.

 

[SassyPants]

5 hours ago, Carm_88 said:

I am Jessa, I hate cooking and I doubly hate baking. So if I had to pretend like I was baking a cake, you sure as shit know that I would be making that cake look absolutely horrible in the process. I don't give a shit, I'm not going to eat it, I don't even like cake. Ben likes cooking and you can buy a cake, cupcakes, and muffins if you really want them. Jessa doesn't, because she likes ice cream. 

Great, and Jessa had ice cream at her wedding. The episode really wasn’t about Jessa and her likes/dislikes. If Jessa likes the money she gets from doing her job, she should act as if she cares about that job. That’s the reality of a having a paying job.

[tabitha2]

The dumb ass fake ass storyline was about her looking like a careless nitwit though. So she was doing her job.  

[candygirl200413]

And I'm just forever annoyed for them essentially being raised to know how to do things like cook and clean cause cult and they really still haven't learned.

[Snarkasarus Rex]

I wonder if the kidults still actually believe the show is their ‘ministry’...that they truly believe sharing their lives ‘blesses’ others?  

Or are they aware that they’re just trained monkeys and put up with it because it pays?  

[Dominionatrix]

Being known as a reliably bad cook has probably saved Jessa thousands of hours of unpaid, largely unappreciated work over the course of her life.

There's a strong disincentive to be considered good at an everyday skill in that sort of family, because then you're stuck cooking for 20 every single day or sewing the bridesmaids dresses for every wedding. 

[Carm_88]

1 hour ago, SassyPants said:

Great, and Jessa had ice cream at her wedding. The episode really wasn’t about Jessa and her likes/dislikes. If Jessa likes the money she gets from doing her job, she should act as if she cares about that job. That’s the reality of a having a paying job.

Her job as you put it is to the be the character of Jessa Duggar Seewald, which means that she has to be snarky, don't care, and cannot cook for the life of her. Her job is to appear on the show and be whatever the producers tell her to be. Her job is nothing like the rest of us. She is not saving anyone's life or doing anything that will vastly affect the lives of some unsuspecting person, she's a TV personality. It doesn't matter if she doesn't care and half asses it. The producers half ass the whole damn show, it's the same shit they have been showing for years, redone and no one cares! They'll soon show a wedding that they have already shown, with a few extra minutes. No one cares. Not the producers, not the Duggars, and I'm not even sure the leghumpers care. The whole show is a bug on it's back legs, wiggling around waiting to die. 

[AliceInFundyland]

What would have been mildly interesting would have been to have Ben make a cake. We all know he likes to cook. He likes ice cream. However I suspect he would have risen to the challenge, researched what he was doing and made an effort.

 

[CaricatureQualities]

Reality tv is a weird world. I want to see a reality show about a reality show. 

[Don'tlikekoolaid]

I did like the little planes on the cakes because, you know, John IS A PILOT!!!!!!!

Gawd I will never get that wasted hour back.    Soooo boring.   Felicity is cute.

[Glasgowghirl]

I watched the episode on YouTube and I thought TLC handled the miscarriage well compared to how MTV handled Catelynn's miscarriage, they posted on their page before the episode that she revealed she was pregnant as if she was still pregnant. TLC at least didn't do that. That being said I hope both Lauren and Josiah were comfortable discussing it and were not pressured into it. I felt terrible for them both.

[nst]

9 hours ago, AliceInFundyland said:

What would have been mildly interesting would have been to have Ben make a cake. We all know he likes to cook. He likes ice cream. However I suspect he would have risen to the challenge, researched what he was doing and made an effort.

 

which would have been to real and then Ben would be alone in a room talking to the producer....

it would have been slightly entertaining if he was wearing no shirt and just an apron

but that would never happen 

as for jessa - she won't ever conform - the fact that she still refers to herself as "us kids" and "duggar time" means she won't ever change to please us.

she is essentially is still a child just living and breathing as a pretend adult 

9 hours ago, CaricatureQualities said:

Reality tv is a weird world. I want to see a reality show about a reality show. 

watch unreal 

[front hugs > duggs]

@CaricatureQualities I second NST . UnReal is a scripted, fictional show based on The Bachelor franchises.  In fact, one of the show writers used to be a producer working for ABC/The Bachelor. I really hope that they dramatically exaggerate the worst parts of the producers (i.e. withholding anti-depressant medication from contestants) and it's just other parts that are true Insert other media (producers reminding contestants why they are "so unlovable" in order to elicit strong emotional feelings out of them in interviews).

[freshlemonade]

On 3/5/2019 at 10:22 AM, libgirl2 said:

 

JD was right about not eating the cake. I think even he knew this was  a stupid set up from TLC. He isn't gluten/sugar free, so why should a groom's cake be? 

 

The whole time I've been reading these recaps I couldn't figure out why the groom's cake was GF, SF.   I'm surprised they didn't do THs where they all tried to guess what JD's favorite cake is.  And then Abbie could look longingly up at him and say what his favorite flavor is or something cheesy like now its peach.   Unless maybe he is one of the ones who doesn't like cake.       

Also, maybe I'm wrong, but wasn't Jessa involved in at least one of the hundred episodes showing them make Grandpa Duggars favorite banana cake?   I think that used box mix though.  I'm surprised Jessa didn't buy a GF SF box mix.