Maxwell 29: You Can Leave Your Vest On, Second Verse Same as the First

[IReallyAmHopewell]

1 hour ago, LilMissMetaphor said:

Yeah, the obsession with things "running smoothly" is over the top.  Do you suppose the Maxwells would ever go white-water rafting? I doubt it.  Things might not run smoothly! There might be a curve in the river or some unruly waves they might have to deal with.

White-water rafting. YES, I think they would. It would prove their reliance upon God's protection. And, yes, the girls would be in skirts!  Hopefully, they'd still wear lifejackets.

[JermajestyDuggar]

I’ll be slightly annoyed if the new baby doesn’t have a C name. 

Boy: 

1st: Caleb

2nd: Charles

3rd: Christian

Girl:

1st: Catherine

2nd: Charity

3rd: Chloe

Middle name for a girl will probably be Grace since they always give their daughters virtue middle names. 

I have no idea for a boy middle name. Their oldest has Nathan’s middle name and their second son has Steve’s name as a middle name. I don’t know the name of Melanie’s father but that would be my only guess. Whatever his first name is, might be this baby’s middle name. 

[Dru]

4 hours ago, bluelady said:

Her "cheese" wouldn't melt no matter how hard we tried).

?

26 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I’ll be slightly annoyed if the new baby doesn’t have a C name. 

Boy: 

1st: Caleb

2nd: Charles

3rd: Christian

Girl:

1st: Catherine

2nd: Charity

3rd: Chloe

Middle name for a girl will probably be Grace since they always give their daughters virtue middle names. 

I have no idea for a boy middle name. Their oldest has Nathan’s middle name and their second son has Steve’s name as a middle name. I don’t know the name of Melanie’s father but that would be my only guess. Whatever his first name is, might be this baby’s middle name. 

They already have Christina so a girl will likely be a D name.

Mel's father is Roger Thomas Maher.

[nausicaa]

On 3/31/2019 at 10:30 AM, knitwit said:

I also rolled my eyes at the smug "I eat healthier than most Americans!" in that post.  We've seen your family's recipes, Steve, no you don't.  Not when so much of it is made from processed food.  

Unpopular Maxwell hot take: I do think they eat better than the typical American.

I think we're underestimating just how terribly the average American eats (and how little exercise the average American gets). The Maxwells don't smoke or drink alcohol, don't eat fast food, certainly don't overeat, they do limit their sugar intake, and they are all a healthy weight (obesity isn't the reason for all health issues, but it certainly leads to plenty).

They're probably within the top 15% of Americans in terms of diet. I'm not sure that's really a defense of the Maxwells, so much as a statement on how abysmal our general health is in the U.S.

[JermajestyDuggar]

27 minutes ago, Dru said:

?

They already have Christina so a girl will likely be a D name.

Mel's father is Roger Thomas Maher.

Maybe Thomas as a middle name since it’s biblical. I think they could still go with a C name if they have a girl. So their living children are ABCABC.

[nausicaa]

On 4/1/2019 at 6:23 AM, Lisafer said:

Teri sounds very old-school "fat is bad" to me. Her limited info may be about thirty years behind the times.

In this area as in many others, it's like the Maxwells froze in time at about 1990.

Oh, 100%. You can see it in their workouts too, where the girls still can't do real push ups despite probably spending more time working out each week than I do.

Which is so frustrating, because it's not a case of them being too busy or uninterested. They find the time to cook, meal prep, and exercise. They are just so lost in their little Maxwell world they refuse to take in new information or consider a more efficient way to do things. So they're still making cream soup casseroles (bought the low-fat can!) and doing their stupid swinging arm circles for hours each week to no real avail. 

[Foudeb]

34 minutes ago, nausicaa said:

Unpopular Maxwell hot take: I do think they eat better than the typical American.

I think we're underestimating just how terribly the average American eats (and how little exercise the average American gets). The Maxwells don't smoke or drink alcohol, don't eat fast food, certainly don't overeat, they do limit their sugar intake, and they are all a healthy weight (obesity isn't the reason for all health issues, but it certainly leads to plenty).

They're probably within the top 15% of Americans in terms of diet. I'm not sure that's really a defense of the Maxwells, so much as a statement on how abysmal our general health is in the U.S.

I think the disconnect comes from how much time they spend homemaking, how loudly they crow about being better at it than everyone else, and how poor the end results are. 

The average person might have McDonald's once a week but they also hold down a job that's not part-time unpaid labour for a family member (or benefitting from said unpaid labour) and raise kids without the help of a bunch of bored kidults from across the street. And said average person might be well aware that McDonalds is unhealthy and might balance it with plenty of fresh veg the rest of the week, which the maxwells don't as they're so convinced their cream of crap diet in strictly controlled portions is the best ever. 

Equally I wouldn't be so critical of them in this particular respect if they practiced what they preached and had married off their daughters at the age of twenty. With dozens more grandchildren to help look after and hardly any unpaid labour available any more, sticking to their current diet would actually be an achievement. But I don't think they would - back when the eight were young they lived on frozen pizzas, not on their current fare of assorted salmonella casseroles. 

TL;DR: it's the hypocrisy that gets me snarky more than the actual content of their plates. 

[usmcmom]

My first thought about Melanie's exasperating ear infection? If the doctor said it was a "9," she let that go for quite a while. Ear infections are very painful (I get them a lot) and I wonder if she let it go because of their what-some-might-call insurance. 

[Dru]

1 hour ago, usmcmom said:

My first thought about Melanie's exasperating ear infection? If the doctor said it was a "9," she let that go for quite a while. Ear infections are very painful (I get them a lot) and I wonder if she let it go because of their what-some-might-call insurance. 

My dumb ass dealt with a middle ear infection until it actually ruptured my ear drum, and I had legit insurance at the time. I just really don't like going to the doctor.

[anjulibai]

I think Caleb Thomas for a boy is likely.

No idea for a girl. I suspect they'll go for a D name, but who knows. 

[Jana814]

2 hours ago, usmcmom said:

 I wonder if she let it go because of their what-some-might-call insurance. 

I was think the same thing. 

[Burpies]

3 hours ago, usmcmom said:

My first thought about Melanie's exasperating ear infection? If the doctor said it was a "9," she let that go for quite a while. Ear infections are very painful (I get them a lot) and I wonder if she let it go because of their what-some-might-call insurance. 

I get ear infections a lot, I've even lost hearing in my right ear because of the frequency of my ear infections, and one of the worst ear infections I ever had occurred over a day. One day, as far as I could tell I was fine, after dinner I sat down on the couch and my ear was full and painful, and then perforated overnight. I'm not saying this is what happened, but it is possible.

 

 

[anjulibai]

I feel like we're going to get an NR Anna pregnancy announcement soon. They've done this before, I think, give an update on a currently pregnant daughter-in-law and then shortly afterward they announce someone else is pregnant. NR Anna is definitely due for a pregnancy. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

10 minutes ago, anjulibai said:

I feel like we're going to get an NR Anna pregnancy announcement soon. They've done this before, I think, give an update on a currently pregnant daughter-in-law and then shortly afterward they announce someone else is pregnant. NR Anna is definitely due for a pregnancy. 

Let’s hope they are finally slowing down a bit. Most fundies do. Most fundies aren’t like Kelly and Michelle. 

[IReallyAmHopewell]

29 minutes ago, anjulibai said:

I feel like we're going to get an NR Anna pregnancy announcement soon. They've done this before, I think, give an update on a currently pregnant daughter-in-law and then shortly afterward they announce someone else is pregnant. NR Anna is definitely due for a pregnancy. 

It wouldn't surprise me if she approaches Kelly and Michelle's output--after all there are 3 Maxwell daughters who likely won't get to reproduce so she'll have extra for them.

And, on the names--it's a D for the girl, C for the boy. I didn't catch on till someone here pointed out it's A-Z by gindyr. So Abbey, Bethany/Betsy/Betty/Bolivia (whatever's her name is) and Christina/Tina. Since Drew came next it's confusing. But he's really Andrew, so then Benjamin makes sense.

[Dru]

3 hours ago, IReallyAmHopewell said:

And, on the names--it's a D for the girl, C for the boy. I didn't catch on till someone here pointed out it's A-Z by gindyr. So Abbey, Bethany/Betsy/Betty/Bolivia (whatever's her name is) and Christina/Tina. Since Drew came next it's confusing. But he's really Andrew, so then Benjamin makes sense.

I thought naming the first boy Andrew and calling him Drew to hit both A for the first boy and D for the fourth (surviving) child was fairly clever. Maybe I'm just easily impressed. Lol

[fundiefan]

On 4/1/2019 at 6:01 PM, lilith said:

Thank goodness Melanie’s sainted schedule allowed things to run smoothly for Mary. Without every 15 minute time block accounted for for each family member Mary would have panicked and the whole house would have descended into chaos!

No kidding. I spent some time this weekend with my cousin. She & her husband are watching their 2 & 5 year old grandkids because baby #3 is making life hard for the mom & they're in the hospital, most likely delivering several weeks early. The mom had an OB appointment last Friday and they sent her right to L & D. No time to plan or anything. A couple of phone calls & the grandparents were on the road picking up the kids and from there, they're winging it. My cousin even had to do the packing for the kids. No notes, no schedule to follow, no plan, no nothing.

Somehow, every member of the family is surviving & thriving & the 5 year old has made it to school. 

If these people had any clue that life can be lived without a depression induced 15 minute schedule for everything from going pee to reading to your grandkids, they'd combust. Emergencies/unexpected events can happen and life can get flipped around a bit and hectic, but you know what - everyone survives. They have forever and will continue to do so. Being a competent adult means being able to adjust to the unplanned and get on with life. 

[anjulibai]

4 minutes ago, Dru said:

I thought naming the first boy Andrew and calling him Drew to hit both A for the first boy and D for the fourth (surviving) child was fairly clever. Maybe I'm just easily impressed. Lol

I thought it was clever, too. I wish they'd done something similar with Benjamin's name. 

[lilith]

14 hours ago, LilMissMetaphor said:

Yeah, the obsession with things "running smoothly" is over the top.  Do you suppose the Maxwells would ever go white-water rafting? I doubt it.  Things might not run smoothly! There might be a curve in the river or some unruly waves they might have to deal with.

I know you’re joking, but they do actually kayak on extremely calm waters......

8 hours ago, anjulibai said:

I think Caleb Thomas for a boy is likely.

No idea for a girl. I suspect they'll go for a D name, but who knows. 

Even their names are on a schedule! 

[luv2laugh]

Does anyone know if the Maxwell family regularly sticks to their insanely strict schedule?

I can't imagine living my entire life as if it was a 24/7 school-system scheduled day.

Edit: 
Did Steve had a heart attack? I read his updates but I don't see any mention of what type of heart issue he has?

[Foudeb]

6 hours ago, anjulibai said:

I thought it was clever, too. I wish they'd done something similar with Benjamin's name. 

I was hoping for a little Ebenezer - Ben for short. 

[lilith]

2 hours ago, Foudeb said:

I was hoping for a little Ebenezer - Ben for short. 

I’ve been trying to think of B names with E nicknames, but Benjamin (which they went with) with Enjie as the nickname was the closest I could think of, and that’s pretty dodgy.

[meee]

1 hour ago, lilith said:

I’ve been trying to think of B names with E nicknames, but Benjamin (which they went with) with Enjie as the nickname was the closest I could think of, and that’s pretty dodgy.

Yeah. After they did "A with a D nickname" for An(drew), I thought they might do D (to stick with Abby/Bethany/Christina) with an E (for Abby/Bethany/Christina/Drew) nickname, if Benjamin had been a girl. I was thinking Delilah nicknamed Ellie or...like...Deborah nicknamed Ebbie instead of Debbie LOL. 

[daisyjane1234]

There's a new post up about "Holly Homemaker".  It really annoyed me, and I usually just roll my eyes at Maxwell posts.  I went off and read the five Holly Homemaker posts from 2011.  That is ten minutes of my life I will never get back.  I then typed the response below and was going to post to the Blog.  But of course such a dissenting opinion would never be approved. So I am posting here since I know Steve reads here.  

"I think your Holly Homemaker comments miss the point.  Many of us 'professional' women agree that children should have chores and share responsibility within the home.  Many of us also value our time at home, and would agree that women's work is de-valued. Some of us remained at home for years.  Where our concerns often lie is when young girls are raised in such a way that no choices beyond the home are viewed as reasonable.  Are young girls wearing chore packs allowed to have dreams that extend beyond the home to include roles such as scientist, lawyer, teacher, and so on?

I am a college professor who remained at home for almost two decades to care for my children and family, and valued every minute.  I returned to teaching once my youngest began college.  The key difference, however, is that I wasn't groomed from birth to be a homemaker simply because I am a woman. I was encouraged to explore a range of interests and pursue advanced education, and yes, to intentionally seek both God and God's calling both within the home and beyond - opportunities that are often denied young girls and women who are raised with exclusive goal of homemaker.  So, for me, both my time at home, and my time beyond the home, have been choices that were made very intentionally and prayerfully.  

You state in your post that you hope your daughters choose to be homemakers.  Is it truly a choice if they have been raised with no other option?  Or if any other option such as employment beyond the home and/or family business have been so clearly denigrated, such as by your blog post(s). 

I would also suggest that comments where you claim you were able to love your children more fully because you were at home (second post) are inflammatory, unfair, and most certainly un-Christian."

[catlady]

And our esteemed authoress is at it again:  

“Mom wrote an excellent series about Holly Homemaker which is a five part series.  I encourage you to read it as you have time if you haven’t already.”  

Let me help you, Sarah. 

“Eight years ago, Mom wrote an excellent five-part series on Holly Homemaker.  If it’s new to you, I encourage you to take a look as your time permits.”