Does Joy look... not joyful?

[sparrow]

Does anyone else think Joy has been looking really bummed out lately? In every picture and video, she just doesn't seem happy. And when she does smile, it looks forced, like she's not really feeling it. I saw her at a book signing over the summer, and she seemed like something was wrong then, too. I wonder what's up... She used to seem like one of the more genuinely happy kids in the bunch.

[pixydust]

I think that she looks depressed. When she was little, she was really active, it seemed like everytime she was on camera she was running, riding a bike or a scooter, etc. As she got older she is simply a mini-mommy. I don't remember the last time I saw Joy running or bike riding....I hope that she can get out.

[QAF_Rocks]

Yes, I've noticed it. I think she's having a hard time with puberty. Joy's always been a tomboy, but her parents are probably pressuring her to become more traditionally feminine and adopt more of a caretaking and homemaking role.

Of all the Duggar girls, I don't think Joy-Anna is going to fit the gender and sexuality expectations that (seem to) have come easily to her older sisters. I hope she escapes and takes Hannie and several of the other children with her.

[luckylibrarian]

Jumping in the driver's seat of the ISB...

I wonder if her unhappiness is related to tomorrow's Today show announcement. If it's about a courtship, she could be upset that she is losing a sister, meaning more work for her. If it's #20, that means more work for her, too. Either way, I don't think that poor girl has much to be happy about.

[AnnieC 305]

How old is she now?

[Guest Anonymous]

What's there to look joyful about?

[QAF_Rocks]

How old is she now?

She turned 14 on October 28th.

[AnnieC 305]

She turned 14 on October 28th.

Hmmmm, yeah, we'd still adopt her.

[ElphabaGalinda]

She hasn't looked happy for a long time. Probably since she was old enough to be the newest J'slave she's realized how miserable it is. Add to that the fact that she doesn't have sisters close in age to bond with, and that surrounded by that pack of boys, and being on the show fairly young, she was probably allowed more of a childhood than her older sisters so it must be a rough adjustment. She's the one i worry about, and the one i think will gain the most by breaking away. Hopefully her apparent closeness with Amy may mean she has a chance of being not quite as fundie some day.

[Deleted03]

Jumping in the driver's seat of the ISB...

I wonder if her unhappiness is related to tomorrow's Today show announcement. If it's about a courtship, she could be upset that she is losing a sister, meaning more work for her. If it's #20, that means more work for her, too. Either way, I don't think that poor girl has much to be happy about.

What announcement???

[galaxygirl]

She hasn't looked happy for a long time. Probably since she was old enough to be the newest J'slave she's realized how miserable it is. Add to that the fact that she doesn't have sisters close in age to bond with, and that surrounded by that pack of boys, and being on the show fairly young, she was probably allowed more of a childhood than her older sisters so it must be a rough adjustment. She's the one i worry about, and the one i think will gain the most by breaking away. Hopefully her apparent closeness with Amy may mean she has a chance of being not quite as fundie some day.

Yeah, she doesn't have anyone close to her. Surrounded in age by boys, no one to really talk to about what's happening to her body and those damn hormones. Got her purity ring and is the latest J'slave with no prospects of getting anywhere. She's smart and old enough to see that no ones hopes and dreams are coming true.

[snickerz]

I think she's been the kitchen slave for the last year or two. She's been seen making meals on several different occasions. (Tater Tot Casserole with Dan & snow ice cream are 2 episodes that come to mind). Cooking for 20 is a big job for a kid her age. A job J'Bob & J'Chelle should be doing, not her. I think once she hit 12 her childhood was over, LITERALLY. Life from here on out will be nothing but constant work, and she knows it. Run, Joy!

[terranova]

If she's a social kid, then she's probably lonely for company her own age that she's not related to. Or, alternatively, desperate for some privacy.

[Kitchen Princess]

I don't know any 14 yo girls who were happy when they were around their family. :/

[Lillybee]

I think that a lot of the howler smiles are as forced as Joy's.

[Patsy]

I'm glad, at least, that they're not forcing her to fake it to the point that nobody sees.

[emmiedahl]

I hope it is just teen angst and that there us nothing serious going on.

It's ironic her name is Joy. The, um, friendliest (?) girl at my high school was named Chastity.

[lilwriter85]

I have noticed Joy seems a bit unhappy lately. It could be puberty affecting her moods or maybe she hates her family life and is spitting out the Kool-Aid.

[CanadianHippie]

I don't know any 14 yo girls who were happy when they were around their family. :/

I was, true I would have loved to move out at 14 if I had been able too, but I also loved spending time with my family. The difference between Joy and myself being that I wasn't required to 'play' mommy for younger siblings, nor was I forced into a mold that didn't fit.

[JenniferJuniper]

It's certainly not atypical for 14 year old girls to be sullen and withdrawn. Joy Joy just has a bit more than most to be sullen about.

The only time I can remember hearing one of the kids verbally grouse even a bit about what awaits them after childhood was Josiah, probably when he was about 13. Something along the lines of "I have things pretty good right now as a kid, but very soon I'm going to be expected to start pulling my weight around here". (The occasional honest comment does tend to slip out of him. I think he's the one who admitted the kids fight a lot on one the Today show interviews before being quickly cut-off by J-slave.) Just as Joy isn't happy about being forced into her domestic duties, Josiah probably isn't thrilled about doing the types of things that John and Joseph took to naturally.

I don't buy the sunshine, lollipops and Sweet Baby Jesus crap for a second. I know what it was like growing up in household with just 5 kids and I simply don't believe that when the cameras aren't rolling, there a isn't a great deal of strive, chaos and dysfunction. Reality shows aren't really real.

[synchroswimr]

Reality shows aren't really real.

What?!? Say it ain't so! [/sarcasm] ;-)

[IReallyAmHopewell]

She and Josiah looked pissed off about 24/7--but they're the right age for that. Still, having to take care of all the howler monkey's plus the new baby isn't likely what Joy wants to do at this age. And, I don't see 'Siah as the workingman-kinda guy...

[Daenerys]

Yes, I've noticed it. I think she's having a hard time with puberty. Joy's always been a tomboy, but her parents are probably pressuring her to become more traditionally feminine and adopt more of a caretaking and homemaking role.

Of all the Duggar girls, I don't think Joy-Anna is going to fit the gender and sexuality expectations that (seem to) have come easily to her older sisters. I hope she escapes and takes Hannie and several of the other children with her.

Oh god, this.

She's just not naturally a girlie girl. I notice how she has no apparent interest in make-up or fake tan or perming her hair like the other girls. She seems like she's quite sporty, active and outdoorsy and she's being forced to sit home and look after howlers all day.

[donks]

When I watched the 'announcement' today they panned across the kids. Joy was looking very sullen until she noticed the camera on her. Que the fake smile!

She needs to be saved from her family, before it's too late.

[Kishiria]

I noticed that our namesake Jinger didn't seem too happy either. She started smiling whenever she noticed the camera was in her vicinity.