Anyone ever watch 19 kids and counting?

[Tiam]

Sorry...I know some folks have odd shows that they feel strangley compelled to watch, like Toddlers and Tiaras, or whatever. Mine is this show. I'm weirdly fascinated by them. Some things they do I really like and am interested in. Others not so much. I'm not a Christian and actually their right wing Christian stance is not appealing to me, yet, still I watch. Not to hate them, as some do. But just because I really like some of the things they do. Anyway, just wondering if anyone else felt the same?

[Lainey]

I've watched the show from time to time too. I'm sure they're nice people and basically good-hearted, but I fear that the conformity required from the kids to all be mini-fundamentalist Christians is going too far.

Will be interesting to see where some of those kids are 5-10 yrs from now - will any of them bow out and decide that life is not for them, and if so, will the parents and siblings still accept that kid? Or if one of the kids declares themselves as gay, will they be kicked out of the fold? That will be the true test of their Christianity, I think.

[Tiam]

I've watched the show from time to time too. I'm sure they're nice people and basically good-hearted, but I fear that the conformity required from the kids to all be mini-fundamentalist Christians is going too far.

Will be interesting to see where some of those kids are 5-10 yrs from now - will any of them bow out and decide that life is not for them, and if so, will the parents and siblings still accept that kid? Or if one of the kids declares themselves as gay, will they be kicked out of the fold? That will be the true test of their Christianity, I think.

Those are many of the same questions I ask also. But then, I only see them through my own lens. Maybe they are happy with their lives and breaking free isn't something they think about. A lot of their courtship and other family mandates and measures are similar to the Mormons. The Osmonds are all still Mormons. (They are all I know about! LOL)

[iris lilies]

I don't watch this show yet I know that Jill is pregnant and announcing it at 8 weeks, and I've already been over to GOMI to read the reports.

I found the Duggars to be too bland, it was hard to hate-watch them. It helps that those girls are so pretty! They are really stunning!

Now Sister Wives, I can get into them. It's a nice blend of hate-watch and genuine interest for me.

I don't have cable tv and so have to watch bits here and there on my friend's tv when she's out of town, a little on You-Tube, an occasional hotel-stay. That's how I get all of my cable fixes. Being addicted to the real estate shows, I will choose one of those over Sister Wives or Dance Moms. I got over my Toddlers and Tiaras fixation a couple of years ago.

[Miss Cellane]

Okay, I'll admit I watched the early specials that they did and a season or two of the show at the beginning.

I wanted to dislike them very much.

There are things I can't stand--the home schooling so the kids get a skewed view of the real world. The heavy fundamental Christian teaching (they created their own church, basically). That the girls have to keep their hair long and not wear pants at all, even when driving tractors or building a house. The pressure for early marriage. The constant pregnancies. I suspect the parents' marriage tends towards the "surrendered wife" aspect of things, and that really bothers me on a gut level. The fact that the parents are willing to offer their children up to the public as a sideshow to make money.

But they do practice what they preach. They support the family without handouts. At one point, they were living in a three-bedroom rented house to save money until they could get a larger place. Clearly, they handle money wisely, shopping in thrift stores for clothes and other things.

However. In the first season of the show, they were building a new house, big enough to fit the entire family. All the children voluntarily chose not to have their own bedrooms, or bedrooms shared with one or two same-sex siblings, but for there to be two large bedrooms, one for all the boys, one for all the girls.

And I'll admit that gave me pause. As one of seven children, I spent a certain amount of time looking for privacy. No way in heck would I have wanted to share a room with five or six sisters, especially not with the age spread in that family. Little kids go to bed earlier than big kids, so you would not be able to use your bedroom for hours at night, but be forced into the public areas of the house. Not the best if you've got a lot of homework, or want to read quietly, say. (Oops, I forgot, the kids are homeschooled, so maybe no homework?) Not one of those kids (I think there were about 16 when the house was built) is an introvert who wants a little quiet space to him/herself?

The impression I got was that the kids knew the answer their parents wanted, and gave them that answer, regardless of their own feelings on the matter. If you watch carefully, you'll notice the kids are almost never alone. There is always a pack of kids. Why can't they have some time to themselves?

As an introvert, life in that family would be very, very hard. The house is mostly open, common space, with a bedroom for the parents, one for the boys and one for the girls. I'm guessing there must be a few other rooms, but clearly you are expected to stay with the pack and not go off by yourself.


So it's a mixed bag of feelings about the family and the show. And as a woman, I would not want to be a member of that family or whatever their religion is. Far too repressive for me. YMMV.

[Float On]

I've watched it a few times in hotels (like iris lilies, if I couldn't find a real estate show) and as a Christian it's too fundamental for me. I do watch Sister-Wives whenever a new season is put on Netflix.

[rodeosweetheart]

They seem like sweet people, really. 19 kids is a lot of kids. I could not handle more than the 3 I had--okay, maybe I could have handled 1 more, but 4 would have been my limit. Of course no one would have watched a show called 4 Kids and Not Counting, even with our heavy emphasis on occasional church going.

But I am so intrigued by their house!! Didn't they take a metal pole barn and make a house out of it? This is supposed to be very affordable and sturdy and cheap! Anyone know anything more about this aspect of things? I want to do this!

[Miss Cellane]

They seem like sweet people, really. 19 kids is a lot of kids. I could not handle more than the 3 I had--okay, maybe I could have handled 1 more, but 4 would have been my limit. Of course no one would have watched a show called 4 Kids and Not Counting, even with our heavy emphasis on occasional church going.

But I am so intrigued by their house!! Didn't they take a metal pole barn and make a house out of it? This is supposed to be very affordable and sturdy and cheap! Anyone know anything more about this aspect of things? I want to do this!

I saw the season where they built the house. It is metal, I think, but it is *two* houses, of the same design, built side by side, by the family, at least in part. They changed a lot of the design of the inside to make it work for their family. In the end, I think the producers of the show brought in outside help to finish the building.

[Float On]

This is from the Frequently Asked Questions on their blog about the house:
"The original kit that they purchased from Kodiak Steel Homes cost $82,000 but had defective I-beams. The owner of the company sent out a new set and graciously allowed the Duggars to keep the old ones. For an extra $5,000, Jim Bob was able to purchase enough supplies to use all of the beams, which resulted in a home twenty-four feet longer than the family had originally planned for--at a bargain price."

[Tiam]

I'm not sure if I have any shows I "hate watch". I'm always intrigued by what things people find issue with. Having to have long hair? That one comes up a lot. I find it an interesting thing to find fault with. It would be great to hear an "insiders" point of view.