Bontragers and Bowers 4: Dumbass Love for the Romantic Lost Cause

[Italiangirl]

See on Instagram that the family is visiting a mennonite or utherite colony (just saw it skipping by so not sure witch one) do you think any fundie how switch from that to their current protestan fundamentalism will ever made the switch back? 

[petrushka]

2 hours ago, Italiangirl said:

See on Instagram that the family is visiting a mennonite or utherite colony (just saw it skipping by so not sure witch one) do you think any fundie how switch from that to their current protestan fundamentalism will ever made the switch back? 

I'm guessing it happens at times but rarely --maybe some return to a more relaxed form of Mennonite? Old Order practices are tough to live with, I think.   Pictures of Marlin and Becky's birth families seem to indicate a range of Mennonite dress and way of life, so there might be options for those who want.  Some are plain dressers and some wear contemporary clothing and hairstyles and work a variety of jobs.  The younger generation of extended family seems pretty diverse and quite liberal in some cases--I recall reading about a Bontrager nephew challenging Becky's take on homeschooling vs. public schools on the blog a few years ago. 

That said, I would be shocked and stunned if any of these Bontragers went back into the Mennonite fold.  Can't see the girls giving up the mascara and cute clothes and certainly can't see the Bontrager guys embracing the concept of humility as emphasized in Amish/Mennonite culture.  Marlin rubbed elbows for a while with the Vision Forum crowd and I think he liked it.   I imagine he would take it very personally if one of his kids strayed from his spiritual leadership, married daughters being the exception.

[Melissa1977]

I know a lot of farmers and anyone of them leaves the fields in summer. Even those who have workers, need to stay in the farm working because summer is the busiest time of the year and also don't want to leave their animals for a long time (although others are feeding them). It's not that a farmer can't take a holiday, but travelling for weeks every year at harvest season is very strange.

It makes me wonder if Bontragers are more well-off that they seem to be and can employ a lot of people or the farm is not their main business. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

14 minutes ago, Melissa1977 said:

I know a lot of farmers and anyone of them leaves the fields in summer. Even those who have workers, need to stay in the farm working because summer is the busiest time of the year and also don't want to leave their animals for a long time (although others are feeding them). It's not that a farmer can't take a holiday, but travelling for weeks every year at harvest season is very strange.

It makes me wonder if Bontragers are more well-off that they seem to be and can employ a lot of people or the farm is not their main business. 

At least one of the grown sons has stayed for the past 4 summers. Carson was the first to stay home while everyone traveled. I think Carson does the most farm work with the help of Joshua. Mitch is in the motel. I’m thinking maybe Marlin is just more of a supervisor these days and leaves the supervisor duties to Carson now. They are also more of a dairy farm. I don’t know if they have a ton of crops. They may only have some and focus mostly on the cows. I know they have a garden for food but I imagine one of the daughters in law can help with that while they are gone. 

[HerNameIsBuffy]

2 hours ago, petrushka said:

I'm guessing it happens at times but rarely --maybe some return to a more relaxed form of Mennonite? Old Order practices are tough to live with, I think.   Pictures of Marlin and Becky's birth families seem to indicate a range of Mennonite dress and way of life, so there might be options for those who want.  Some are plain dressers and some wear contemporary clothing and hairstyles and work a variety of jobs.  The younger generation of extended family seems pretty diverse and quite liberal in some cases--I recall reading about a Bontrager nephew challenging Becky's take on homeschooling vs. public schools on the blog a few years ago. 

That said, I would be shocked and stunned if any of these Bontragers went back into the Mennonite fold.  Can't see the girls giving up the mascara and cute clothes and certainly can't see the Bontrager guys embracing the concept of humility as emphasized in Amish/Mennonite culture.  Marlin rubbed elbows for a while with the Vision Forum crowd and I think he liked it.   I imagine he would take it very personally if one of his kids strayed from his spiritual leadership, married daughters being the exception.

Honestly I think if I was fundy this is how I’d do it.  Hard core, head coverings, plain dress, shunning.

id tend toward the extreme and the modern modest of the Maxwell’s wouldn’t do it for me...if I’m going to live a life of deprivation I want a bonnet.

[Palimpsest]

1 hour ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

I’m going to live a life of deprivation I want a bonnet.

But what kind of bonnet.  You must specify.

This is a bonnet:

Quote

And so is this:

Spoiler

A rain bonnet.

Spoiler

Or these bonnets might look good as headcoverings too

Spoiler

These are kapp type bonnets.

Spoiler

So are these:

Spoiler

Or you could go for a cornette:

Spoiler

Or everyone's favorite bonnet:

Spoiler

 

Edited June 24, 2019 by Palimpsest

[Melissa1977]

2 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

At least one of the grown sons has stayed for the past 4 summers. Carson was the first to stay home while everyone traveled. I think Carson does the most farm work with the help of Joshua. Mitch is in the motel. I’m thinking maybe Marlin is just more of a supervisor these days and leaves the supervisor duties to Carson now. They are also more of a dairy farm. I don’t know if they have a ton of crops. They may only have some and focus mostly on the cows. I know they have a garden for food but I imagine one of the daughters in law can help with that while they are gone. 

That's why I think that either it's not a big business (just Carson working) or that they are rich if can afford to lose the (free) workforce of several sons, while hiring workers. 

Cows as a business and a garden to feed a big family are very hard work (long hours and heat!). Maybe they have very few cows and just a couple lettuces in their garden. But something in Bontragers smell fake to me.

 

[HerNameIsBuffy]

32 minutes ago, Palimpsest said:

But what kind of bonnet.  You must specify.

This is a bonnet:

And so is this:

  Hide contents

A rain bonnet.

  Hide contents

Or these bonnets might look good as headcoverings too

  Hide contents

These are kapp type bonnets.

  Hide contents

So are these:

  Hide contents

Or you could go for a cornette:

  Hide contents

Or everyone's favorite bonnet:

  Hide contents

 

Lololol - second to last.  Bonus for free air travel (worked for Sally Field.)

[JermajestyDuggar]

18 minutes ago, Melissa1977 said:

That's why I think that either it's not a big business (just Carson working) or that they are rich if can afford to lose the (free) workforce of several sons, while hiring workers. 

Cows as a business and a garden to feed a big family are very hard work (long hours and heat!). Maybe they have very few cows and just a couple lettuces in their garden. But something in Bontragers smell fake to me.

 

They have quite a few cows. They’ve posted pictures before. I really don’t know what’s going on with finances but it seems like they do a decent amount of planting and dairy farming along with the motel. I just assume that’s where their money mostly comes from and they come across as frugal. But Amish and Mennonite are taught to be frugal. 

Edited June 24, 2019 by JermajestyDuggar

[Palimpsest]

The Bontragers are obviously reasonably well off.  The farm did well enough for them to buy the tour bus and the hotel (more of a motel) after all.  And it supports all those children, although perhaps some money comes in from the music and CDs.  It's not just a couple of cows and a garden. 

The Bonts have always had hired seasonal staff working on the farm and used to have a farm manager when they toured.  They used to credit the farm workers for their hard labor when they got back from touring.  But that was when the whole family was in the band.

A non-family member used to run the motel, although they only bought that 4 or 5 years ago.  They mentioned o the blog that the previous manager moved on (or was fired) when Mitch took over as manager.  Allison is supposed to be the HR person for the motel, so she apparently supervises and hires and fires the housekeeping staff.  They also did not renovate the motel building all by themselves.

As the boys are getting older and marrying they seem to be taking over some aspects of the family businesses.  Carson managing the farm, Mitch doing the manure and motel, and now young Joshua spending the summer milking cows and driving tractors. I'm sure he would rather be pretending to be a writer.

I hope the former employees managed to find work.

[sixcatatty]

2 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

But what kind of bonnet.  You must specify.

This is a bonnet:

And so is this:

  Hide contents

A rain bonnet.

  Hide contents

Or these bonnets might look good as headcoverings too

  Hide contents

These are kapp type bonnets.

  Hide contents

So are these:

  Hide contents

Or you could go for a cornette:

  Hide contents

Or everyone's favorite bonnet:

  Hide contents

 

I would want the bonnet Kelly McGillis wore in Witness. Of course, I would also need Harrison Ford the way he looked in Witness. Until, like another poster, my mouth got me kicked out.

[Giraffe]

Could Alison be visiting Chelsy often to also see forgotten Jesse? 

[JermajestyDuggar]

12 minutes ago, Giraffe said:

Could Alison be visiting Chelsy often to also see forgotten Jesse? 

I always figured that if they were going to get together, they would have by now. John and Chelsy started “talking” in 2016 and began a formal relationship in the fall of 2016 and married in Dec 2017. They’ve been around one another at different times for the past 3 years and Allison seemed quite single earlier this year. It’s possible she’s currently in a relationship because she hasn’t lamented about being single in a few months. But I doubt it’s Jesse. I really think she just misses her BFF Chelsy. 

[Palimpsest]

2 hours ago, Giraffe said:

Could Alison be visiting Chelsy often to also see forgotten Jesse? 

Noooo!  I think Ally could do much better than Jesse in his present condition.

Anyway, Jesse is MINE!  I have dibs and plans for the forgotten Maxhellion.

I have been sending him telepathic messages for years.  He's going to escape Maxhell.  It will take them ages to notice that he is no longer there and his renters can forward their checks to him.

He's going to come and live in my guestroom, and do all the handyman stuff I can't do while I feed him more than 2 animal crackers.  And introduce him to social niceties that don't involve handing out tracts and asking people if they know where they will go when they die.

He has potential!   I mean he already has a servant's heart and the initiative to tidy up a woodpile.

I will help him go to a real accredited college, And Mr. P will give him many books to read ,and introduce him to Buddhism, 

And my highly educated nephew will do a Mission Trip to help Jesse pick out new glasses and buy a new wardrobe.  And ease him into the 21st century.  My nephew and his friends have much better conversational skills than Jesse.  And they dress so much better too.

When all this is accomplished (give us a couple of years) we will be taking applications from the younger members of Free Jinger to date the  New Improved Jesse.  He's going to be gorgeous. 

But Allison need not apply.  Sorry but she will set my Jesse back in his bid for freedom.

[nelliebelle1197]

On 6/21/2019 at 12:11 AM, katilac said:

They just love the drama of life being a constant battle. And, really? "God's currency is suffering." They always make God sound so awful, lol. 

What? God needs to lower his interest rates, stat.

[deborahlynn1979]

New post up from Alison. Stop calling lunches with your brothers "dates." It's so creepy. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

12 minutes ago, deborahlynn1979 said:

New post up from Alison. Stop calling lunches with your brothers "dates." It's so creepy. 

It’s not just calling them dates. The way she describes them is so messed up. If someone didn’t know Allison, they would think she’s talking about dates with her boyfriend. It sounds almost exactly like a date you would describe with a boyfriend. She needs to stop playing make believe boyfriend with her brothers. 

[Lgirlrocks]

9 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

It’s not just calling them dates. The way she describes them is so messed up. If someone didn’t know Allison, they would think she’s talking about dates with her boyfriend. It sounds almost exactly like a date you would describe with a boyfriend. She needs to stop playing make believe boyfriend with her brothers. 

I go out to eat with my brothers. It’s never a date, just hanging out. We do share food sometimes but it is usually just a bite to try it. When I was little I got dressed up and went on a “date” with my dad. I only remember it happening once. The other times I went out with him we were just hanging out. I was like 6 so I may have been the one to call it a date. Never dated my mom, grandma, friends (that are just friends won’t be anything more), or brothers. That would be weird.

[JermajestyDuggar]

1 minute ago, Lgirlrocks said:

I go out to eat with my brothers. It’s never a date, just hanging out. We do share food sometimes but it is usually just a bite to try it. When I was little I got dressed up and went on a “date” with my dad. I only remember it happening once. The other times I went out with him we were just hanging out. I was like 6 so I may have been the one to call it a date. Never dated my mom, grandma, friends (that are just friends won’t be anything more), or brothers. That would be weird.

I bet Allison secretly enjoys it when the server mistakes one of her brothers for her boyfriend. 

[Lgirlrocks]

33 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I bet Allison secretly enjoys it when the server mistakes one of her brothers for her boyfriend. 

That would be creepy but not surprising. I guess it’s a fucked up part of the purity culture. They can’t have normal relationships with the opposite sex, even if they are just friends, so they cling to their siblings. 

[HerNameIsBuffy]

On 6/27/2019 at 10:04 AM, JermajestyDuggar said:

It’s not just calling them dates. The way she describes them is so messed up. If someone didn’t know Allison, they would think she’s talking about dates with her boyfriend. It sounds almost exactly like a date you would describe with a boyfriend. She needs to stop playing make believe boyfriend with her brothers. 

If I described going to lunch with my brother that way it would not only be the last time it happened, but I’m positive it would  be quickly followed with nudging me to get professional help.  I’m not being snarky at all - my family would be freaked out by this level of unhealthy ideation.

On 6/27/2019 at 7:59 PM, Lgirlrocks said:

That would be creepy but not surprising. I guess it’s a fucked up part of the purity culture. They can’t have normal relationships with the opposite sex, even if they are just friends, so they cling to their siblings. 

Nothing horrible can come from that.  

these people should read Flowers in the Attic as a cautionary tale.

[fundiefan]

The "family" obsession of the Maxwells & Bontragers & those like them - - is disturbing.

Josh is how old, married and breeding - yet, his entire exitences depends upon the family. No leave & cleave in their wolrd. 

The other married brothers, not as visible, are doint the same - living life within their parent's world. Farming, hoteling, whatever. Not one of them has actually gone out into the world and made a life.

Chelsea was married off to a family as restrictive so it's not like there are any expectations there. She went from hanging on her brother to hanging on her husband. Pefectly tied up and neat for all the men in her world. 

I really am just fucking grateful that my family loves each other while being human. There are no rules we have to follow or expectations to fulfill. Yeah, things like that exist, but they're not the foundation of our relationships. No one cries when they don't see someone else. No one worships anyone else. 

My niece is the God-mother of my cousin's son's daughter - they are so far removed "cousin wise" - but they are people who love and respect each other and count each other as family. Entirely separate, but bound.  That same cousin's son has a wife, that wife's grandparnets live down the street from me. They went to a birthday party at that house and called me so we could meet up since they were so close. After the party they came to my little apartment, we grilled some burgers, then walked to his grandparent's house  -  my aunt & uncle - who live not quite 2 miles away. 

They worship - and put their immediate family on pedestals. Yet, I don't think a single one of them actually knows what family actually is. 

 

 

 

[HereticHick]

The Bontrager double cousins 1st birthday is about 2 weeks away--I will be shocked if a pregnancy isn't announced during the festivities

[petrushka]

1 hour ago, HereticHick said:

The Bontrager double cousins 1st birthday is about 2 weeks away--I will be shocked if a pregnancy isn't announced during the festivities

Agreed! The only other thing more surprising would be if two pregnancies were announced ?.

[JermajestyDuggar]

What annoys me about this post is that Chelsy is the oldest of the Bontrager children. But they make Mitchell out to be the leader of them all. Because he has a penis. I wonder what would have happened if the Bons had 7 girls before they had any boys.