Maxwell 32: Wearing Your Vest in 15 Minute Increments

[usmcmom]

4 hours ago, Markie said:

I was reading NR Anna’s post on the Maxwell blog. I didn’t care for the content; having little kids memorize bible verses, however, I could not help but notice she is a much better writer than any of the Maxwells. 

Yes! I’d read her blog if she would write regularly; mainly because it would be an enjoyable read. It would be nice if we could follow these fundies without feeling our brains bend. But NOOOOOO-uh! They have to mix their whack-a-doo lifestyle with poor writing and torture us.  Rude!

[fundiewatch]

Anna Marie is such a better writer and is, as Terri often says, “a mother in the trenches.” Awful beliefs aside, Anna oozes contentment with her life. Why they instead choose to feature Terri’s take on motherhood which was so heavily influenced by her depression- and she’s a long ways from being “in the trenches.”

But I don’t want them to be successful, so I guess I’m glad they will be sticking with their current plan. Rinse and repeat. Cue up Christmas box shopping. 

[FloraKitty35]

10 hours ago, FloraDoraDolly said:

Based on what I am seeing now, Christopher's kids are the least likely to rebel. They won't get a chance. Abby also seems headed down the same path as her aunts. That poor kid has "I have resigned myself to my fate" written all over her face. Hopefully, this is only how she feels/behaves when in the company of Steve and Teri and there is another side to her that we don't see. Bethany, Christina, and Drew still show plenty of spunk, so my "most likely to rebel" money is on those three. Maybe they will form a pact and get out together. The rest of the Maxgrands are babies and toddlers, so it's too early to tell with them.

Nathan being the oldest saw the most and is old enough to have a clear memory what was taken away from him as a result. Even if the never totally rejects Steve's rules and dictates.  I like to think he & Melanie would allow their kids to find the loopholes around some of it or phase certain parts of it out over time (or at present there's a bit of compartmentalization).

[terranova]

Anna Marie deserves a medal for the fundie wife who does "keeping sweet" the best. She honestly looks happy 100% of the time in photos, even tho she is married to one of the creepiest fundies out there.

[NancyDrewFan1989]

@MamaJunebugYour idea is better!!! LOL. One of them did do a post on googling earlier. That is better option. I am bitter the family chose to judge the delicacy of lobster on Steve's "cooking."

[princessmahina]

1 hour ago, terranova said:

Anna Marie deserves a medal for the fundie wife who does "keeping sweet" the best. She honestly looks happy 100% of the time in photos, even tho she is married to one of the creepiest fundies out there.

If she’s not genuinely happy or on some amazing anti-depressants, then she deserves an award for acting. She seems totally thrilled and content with her life. I don’t get it at all. Being married to Christopher Maxwell sounds like literal hell. 

[FloraDoraDolly]

9 hours ago, FloraKitty35 said:

Nathan being the oldest saw the most and is old enough to have a clear memory what was taken away from him as a result. Even if the never totally rejects Steve's rules and dictates.  I like to think he & Melanie would allow their kids to find the loopholes around some of it or phase certain parts of it out over time (or at present there's a bit of compartmentalization).

Nathan's kids did get to go on an Easter egg hunt at least one time that we know about. (IIRC, one of Melanie's sisters posted some Easter pics on Facebook and the kids happened to be in some of them.)

[Giraffe]

59 minutes ago, FloraDoraDolly said:

Nathan's kids did get to go on an Easter egg hunt at least one time that we know about. (IIRC, one of Melanie's sisters posted some Easter pics on Facebook and the kids happened to be in some of them.)

I wonder how different the “extended families” (the brothers) lives are vs the image shown on the carefully curated blog. 

What the hell? Who am I kidding? ??

[anjulibai]

I was just updating my family spreadsheets and noticed that yesterday was Elissa and Joseph's 5th anniversary. 

Normally, they do an anniversary post for the married sons and their wives. I wonder why Elissa and Joseph didn't get one this year. 

Very interesting. 

[NancyDrewFan1989]

@anjulibai For some reason the Maxwells don't post much on Joseph and Elissa. There is some speculation as to why. One of them being that they don't live on the Maxwell compound, another one being Elissa didn't confirm fully to the Maxwell way of life. Some people think that Joseph and Elissa just asked not to be blogged about. 

[kmachete14]

Just here to say I always give myself free ginger breaks (mostly due to the high blood pressure caused by Lori Alexander) but when I come back I always find myself laughing out loud on the new Maxwell thread titles. Like actually laughing out loud, I am right now thinking about it !!

[anjulibai]

6 hours ago, NancyDrewFan1989 said:

@anjulibai For some reason the Maxwells don't post much on Joseph and Elissa. There is some speculation as to why. One of them being that they don't live on the Maxwell compound, another one being Elissa didn't confirm fully to the Maxwell way of life. Some people think that Joseph and Elissa just asked not to be blogged about. 

Yes, I know that, I've been following them for 10 y ears. I still think it's interesting. 

[johnhugh]

Turn that fucking Bible loop off!

[petrushka]

9 hours ago, NancyDrewFan1989 said:

@anjulibai For some reason the Maxwells don't post much on Joseph and Elissa. There is some speculation as to why. One of them being that they don't live on the Maxwell compound, another one being Elissa didn't confirm fully to the Maxwell way of life. Some people think that Joseph and Elissa just asked not to be blogged about. 

I assume it has everything to do with his business and customer base.  I think Joe knows he can't afford someone to google him and find Titus 2 linking him to Maxhell.

[zandria]

I hope it's Elissa telling Joe that no, her children are not marketing material for her crazy in-laws' business, and no, they will not be spending this week's scheduled "special family time" with them. 

Does anyone know if Joe and Elissa attend the Church of Steve at the home for the elderly? 

[Jana814]

10 minutes ago, zandria said:

Does anyone know if Joe and Elissa attend the Church of Steve at the home for the elderly? 

I think they do. Although I could be wrong about that. 

[SPHASH]

Random Life post up.  I pray to God Grandma isn't doing blanket training with Axton.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

Make it stop. So boring. That picture of brother/sister sitting together with her erupting in fake merriment. Oh my. As fakey-cringy as any Meghan Markle performance.

[Melissa1977]

Spoiler

 

Blanket training is done with a little blanket, because the baby must stay quiet. In the picture, the blanket is big, so the baby can move a lot. And there are plenty of toys. I think they have put the blanket to make sure the baby plays in a clean surface and there is not a training involved. 

Despite that, I'm sure Maxwells have practiced.all kind of trainings and punishments. They were close friends with the Pearls! Nobody would be friends to those monsters if don't agree with their ideas. Of course, there are 4 Maxwells raising kids and each family may be setting their own rules. So one may hope that not all 13 Maxwell grandkids are blanket trained or beaten. Or, at least, not at the same level that their parents, but it's difficult not to suffer for those children.

[Charliemae]

 

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, Melissa1977 said:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

Blanket training is done with a little blanket, because the baby must stay quiet. In the picture, the blanket is big, so the baby can move a lot. And there are plenty of toys. I think they have put the blanket to make sure the baby plays in a clean surface and there is not a training involved. 

Despite that, I'm sure Maxwells have practiced.all kind of trainings and punishments. They were close friends with the Pearls! Nobody would be friends to those monsters if don't agree with their ideas. Of course, there are 4 Maxwells raising kids and each family may be setting their own rules. So one may hope that not all 13 Maxwell grandkids are blanket trained or beaten. Or, at least, not at the same level that their parents, but it's difficult not to suffer for those children.

I agree with all this.  I don't think this picture is showing any blanket training, I don't think we ever see pictures of blanket trainning in action.  Blanket training would be perfectly on-brand for the Maxwells though.  And even if they don't, they do believe in all kinds of damaging child training/raising practices. 

[usedbicycle]

The picture is showing Teri's 15 minute scheduled "Grandma Playtime with Axton" on Mondays from 10:45 to 11:00 AM, along with the supplies she gathered during a different time slot on Sunday from 5:30-5:45 PM:

- 1 clear bin of 0-12 month toys (note: pick up on top left shelf in basement, bring to living room)

- 1 laundry basket with 2 blankets in case one gets puked on (note: return to laundry room when playtime is over, write a post-it note to Mary if blankets must be washed)

Chelsy is likely standing in a corner sipping on her coffee and waiting to go home. 

 

[princessmahina]

The grandchild that drew that picture of Steve nailed those giant crazy eyes. 

[SPHASH]

2 hours ago, Melissa1977 said:

  Hide contents

 

Blanket training is done with a little blanket, because the baby must stay quiet. In the picture, the blanket is big, so the baby can move a lot. And there are plenty of toys. I think they have put the blanket to make sure the baby plays in a clean surface and there is not a training involved. 

Despite that, I'm sure Maxwells have practiced.all kind of trainings and punishments. They were close friends with the Pearls! Nobody would be friends to those monsters if don't agree with their ideas. Of course, there are 4 Maxwells raising kids and each family may be setting their own rules. So one may hope that not all 13 Maxwell grandkids are blanket trained or beaten. Or, at least, not at the same level that their parents, but it's difficult not to suffer for those children.

Thank you for the explanation.  When I saw Axton on the blanket and remembering how the Maxwells were friends with the Pearls and the fact that Judgy Chelsy  grandparents are Mennonites blanket training was the first thing that popped into my head.

[Palimpsest]

4 hours ago, Melissa1977 said:

Despite that, I'm sure Maxwells have practiced.all kind of trainings and punishments. They were close friends with the Pearls! Nobody would be friends to those monsters if don't agree with their ideas.

Actually, I don't think they were ever friends.  They may have run in the same circles for a while.  They certainly overlap in the Venn diagram of Fundamentalism, but I'm don't think they were friends.

I think rivals for followers better describes it.  Pearl has taken public swipes at Maxwell for oversheltering his children (not naming Steve, but it was clear who he was talking about.) 

The Maxwells talk about consequences instead of punishment.  They advocate weeping and praying over children, depriving them of nice food (like making them eat Wheat Thins in the car instead of lunch at Taco Ball) and pleasurable activities, and isolating them in their rooms as consequences.  I don't remember them ever advocating blanket training, spanking, or beating children with plumbing line.  Steve infinitely prefers emotional abuse to physical abuse.

[anachronistic]

They talk as if whatever is ‘in store for the autumn season’ will be a surprise. No, it won’t. It will be, let’s see, praying, praying, praying, interspersed with cleaning, cooking and spending time with the grandkids. Maybe with some Bible memorization thrown in for ‘fun’.

 

The parachute activity is a great one for schools, playgroups, etc, but by age 8 kids have outgrown it. I never played sports because I didn’t like them but would it really damn those poor children’s souls to play softball or soccer or gymnastics or whatever for a season? The oldest - Abby, I think - is so bored. The next exciting thing in her life is her marriage, for goodness sakes.