Bates 31: When Will They Go Away?

[JermajestyDuggar]

4 minutes ago, CanadianMamam said:

Katie has done a few trips without Travis (Florida, Tennessee) and vice versa and Esther did a girl's weekend with her sisters. I actually think it is fairly healthy. I know it is not the same as two separate vacations but Tiffany is visiting her parents, I think she obviously didn't want to go skiing for some reason and wasn't going to sit home alone in Tennessee (which she hates)

I disagree. I think she misses California and wanted any excuse to go back. Even without Lawson. 

Edited January 23, 2023 by JermajestyDuggar

[CanadianMamam]

8 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I disagree. I think she misses California and wanted any excuse to go back. Even without Lawson. 

Oh she definitely missed California but she also like vacations. If it was somewhere shr wanted to be, she would have done that. 

[Nikedagain?]

Where is Callie? Do they still have her? 

[CanadianMamam]

3 hours ago, Nikedagain? said:

Where is Callie? Do they still have her? 

That is the million dollar question. 

Honestly, I think she hates cameras because even when she is with her older siblings with YouTubes or constant internet presence, she does her best to duck out of the shot. 

Edited January 23, 2023 by CanadianMamam

[JDuggs]

On 1/22/2023 at 6:34 PM, JermajestyDuggar said:

It really is surprising to see a fundie couple do separate vacations in the first year of marriage. That practically never happens. 

Lawson and Tiffany’s marriage is so different than most. Most couples don’t see each other for ten hours a day if one of them works outside the home. Neither of them work so they’re always together. And since they met, they’ve had a lot of vacations together: two trips to Europe, Mexico, Florida, and a lot of time together in California. If Tiffany wasn’t up for a week of skiing and Bateses, she should definitely take some time for herself. Maybe she wanted quality time with the grandparents without Lawson being bored of it. And maybe she’ll fly in and spend just a day or so in Colorado. I think their choice to not be super clingy is showing some maturity about their marriage.

[GracieLou Free Duggar]

49 minutes ago, JDuggs said:

I think their choice to not be super clingy is showing some maturity about their marriage.

Or that Lawson can only love himself, and this was purely a marriage of 'you got what I want.'
I've seriously never seen two people LESS in love, apart from my ex and myself. LOL

[Kiki03910]

On 1/23/2023 at 9:51 PM, GracieLou Free Duggar said:

Or that Lawson can only love himself, and this was purely a marriage of 'you got what I want.'
I've seriously never seen two people LESS in love, apart from my ex and myself. LOL

Longtime lurker here. I've been watching the Bates shitshow reruns after really enjoying all your takes. Just a few thoughts -- Lawson seems totally insecure to me, despite the ego show. He really doesn't seem to believe in himself at all. He always looks nervous and sweaty before performances.

I wonder what you all think about the relative power between Kelly and Gil -- she sure doesn't seem submissive to me.

The daughters all just make me (a pagan whore lol) want to cry. Brandon is a creepy headship. John seems emotionally like 10 years old.  Ditto Evan. Ditto Kelton. I guess Chad and Zach seem ... okay ... for freaks.

Anyway, just some thoughts. Thanks for all your insights and thoughts that I've enjoyed reading, and best to all of you.

[Nothing if not critical]

2 hours ago, Kiki03910 said:

Lawson seems totally insecure to me, despite the ego show. He really doesn't seem to believe in himself at all.

I get the feeling that Lawson worries a lot about not being able to conform to fundie standards of "manliness" - he got very defensive in the Q&A when someone suggested he was less handy than his brothers, he tends to keep very quiet about his asthma, plus all those hyper masculine poses with guns he's so fond of. Not suggesting anything, just to be clear, except that maybe he is scared of coming across too "soft".

2 hours ago, Kiki03910 said:

John seems emotionally like 10 years old. 

You're too kind. I'd say emotionally and mentally.

[JermajestyDuggar]

Insecurity can manifest as someone who comes off as cocky and attention seeking. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Lawson was the most insecure of all his brothers.

[Kiki03910]

20 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

Insecurity can manifest as someone who comes off as cocky and attention seeking. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Lawson was the most insecure of all his brothers.

Exactly. He makes me feel sad. Well, I guess they all do, in that tiny fucked-up world they inhabit.

21 hours ago, Nothing if not critical said:

I get the feeling that Lawson worries a lot about not being able to conform to fundie standards of "manliness" - he got very defensive in the Q&A when someone suggested he was less handy than his brothers, he tends to keep very quiet about his asthma, plus all those hyper masculine poses with guns he's so fond of. Not suggesting anything, just to be clear, except that maybe he is scared of coming across too "soft".

You're too kind. I'd say emotionally and mentally.

I mean, it's not like any of them seem super bright, except maybe in comparison to the Duggars.

[SassyPants]

Did the annual ski trip take the place of I love you day?   

[JermajestyDuggar]

3 minutes ago, SassyPants said:

Did the annual ski trip take the place of I love you day?   

I kind of doubt it. I know they don’t do the show anymore but I bet they will still do ILY day. This year’s ILY day might be smaller than usual since the show is over and 2 daughters are now in Florida. 

[Kiki03910]

I'm about to keep watching Bringing Up Bates, now well into season 5. Bear with me, my lovelies!

Edited January 28, 2023 by Kiki03910
type

[CanadianMamam]

22 hours ago, SassyPants said:

Did the annual ski trip take the place of I love you day?   

No, Katie mentioned she is hoping to drive to Tennessee for I Love You Day which seems crazy as it would be 2.5 weeks before her due date. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

Emy is 19. I really hope they don’t get engaged anytime soon. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

The Bontragers are singing at Gil’s church today. 

[rebeccawriter01]

On 1/26/2023 at 4:44 AM, JermajestyDuggar said:

Insecurity can manifest as someone who comes off as cocky and attention seeking. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Lawson was the most insecure of all his brothers.

I think the older boys (Zach, Nathan, Lawson, and Trace) have all suffered moments of insecurity and doubt. It is harder to say on the younger five, as they were normally shown collectively and not individually.

The Bates were portrayed as competitive with each other, egged on by sports fan Gil. From cleaning their room to getting dressed in the morning - everything was a contest where there were winners and losers. They were also pigeon holed into categories. Nathan was the preacher. Lawson was the money earner. Trace was the handy one but the lost one in terms of direction. Zach was the leader who could do it all. As the family changed (people got married and came into their own skillsets), Lawson's hard working schtick wasn't as important, nor was Nathan's. Both have had to carve out new identities. Doing so often manifests in self doubt because they don't even know who they are let alone how others see them. 

[Angelface]

Well, they’ve left Colorado and I don’t think that I saw them. The problem is that in ski gear it’s difficult to recognise people. There were several people gathered together on a slope but I don’t think that there were enough snow boarders so I don’t think that it was the older Bates. It might have been the younger kids but I didn’t hang around to check. It was very cold!

[CanadianMamam]

6 hours ago, Angelface said:

Well, they’ve left Colorado and I don’t think that I saw them. The problem is that in ski gear it’s difficult to recognise people. There were several people gathered together on a slope but I don’t think that there were enough snow boarders so I don’t think that it was the older Bates. It might have been the younger kids but I didn’t hang around to check. It was very cold!

I think the majority of Bates are snowboarders, I think Kelton, Josie and Lydia were amongst the few skiers in the group. I know Ellie and Judson were definitely snow boarding, not sure about Addee, Jeb or Callie. 

I guess it is a good thing you made it through your trip without a fundie encounter?

 

 

[CaptainFunderpants]

12 hours ago, CanadianMamam said:

I think the majority of Bates are snowboarders, I think Kelton, Josie and Lydia were amongst the few skiers in the group. I know Ellie and Judson were definitely snow boarding, not sure about Addee, Jeb or Callie. 

I guess it is a good thing you made it through your trip without a fundie encounter?

 

 

SKI LIFE. Miss me with those knee injuries from snowboarding.

I can snowboard, I have a snowboard, but I definitely prefer the freedom of skiing. I want to start doing the terrain park more. I was a competitive skier, but unfortunately it was in an era when you were seen as a loser if you were a skier in the terrain park.

Apparently that era only lasted through my teens (Millennial Olympic skiers have spoken about the stigma), but honestly, even as an adult there's no reason not to do the terrain park. Just gotta work on my core strength before I go 💪🏻 

[indianabones]

I recently started cross country skiing, and I love it. I don't think I'll ever learn how to downhill ski- not really worth the risk for me now that I'm in my 30's. I wish that my parents had taught us when we were kids, since they used to be big skiers.

[Jana814]

I have never skied before in my life & I have no interest in doing it. But anyone who does I give you great props in doing so. 

[JDuggs]

I think I’ve been skiing twice, once in my early 20s and once in my late 30s. It’s a lot of fun and you can stick to the bunny hills where you can’t get into too much trouble. Cross country skiing looks like so much work!

[JMO]

I love skiing but man is it expensive.  It just goes to show how far the Bates have come that they have a yearly ski trip that they all fly to and a couple of the guys appear to travel with their own boards. That big house for a week? $$$$ Lift tickets for multiple kids for a week? $$$$ plus air fare. Even if you assume that everyone over 18 pays their own way, it's a lot.

[Zebedee]

49 minutes ago, Jana814 said:

I have never skied before in my life & I have no interest in doing it. But anyone who does I give you great props in doing so. 

Haha, I am with you there. Also, as a kid in the UK, in the 80s/90s, in the pre-cheap-flight era, it was so expensive. Now, that isn't a problem, less because of the cheap flights, as I live in the very far south of Germany - basically in the Alps - and you can just hire all the stuff, but I absolutely *hate* the cold! Occasionally, I think about snow-shoeing or cross country skiing, since that is more about schnapps consumption, but it is very energetic, and I hate vigorous exercise, especially in the cold (though weirdly, in the gym, I love it. I think it is all the electronic monitoring. Plus, I don't tend to fall over in the gym, whereas me+snow/ice is a bad combination. Also, the gym is warm. And they have water aerobics in a warm thermal spring. No cold water for me either!)

 

20 minutes ago, JMO said:

That big house for a week? $$$$ Lift tickets for multiple kids for a week? $$$$ plus air fare. Even if you assume that everyone over 18 pays their own way, it's a lot.

Yep. They have come along way from "ketchup-on-bread pizza" for 19 kids, thanks to TV. Of course, *not* having 19 kids and having real pizza instead doesn't mean they would have been able to afford annual skiing holidays now - hell, most normal families can't - but clearly the lord has provided for the Bates, and they are just more blessed than everyone else. See all those "average" families, who fed their kids, and gave them attention and education didn't trust in the lord enough, and weren't blessed. And all those QF families (without a TV show) who can't afford annual family skiing trips must have some secret sins, which is why they can't feed their kids/g'kids.