Recap: 'Counting On' Part 1

Jill & Jessa: Counting On "A New Chapter"...

• As the show opens, the producer asks the following question: “How would you describe the last four months of your life?” 
• Jill: it has been “different than what I had expected.” 
• Jessa: “We have endured a lot. It’s been really difficult.” 
• Derick agrees that it has been very emotional, and Ben says the journey has been tough but that it has helped strengthen his marriage. 
• Jana: It has been “really difficult.” Joy: “We’re getting through it.” 
• Josiah: “I was not sure how it would influence our daily lives.” He says that some people were standoffish but that most shared encouraging words. 
• One month after Israel was born, Derick had his palette surgically expanded. Two months later, Jill and Derick headed down to Central America for the entire month of July. “We’re not naive to the risk we’re taking [in] taking our infant son down there, but we do want to be true to our calling,” says Derick. 
• The Dillards returned to Arkansas later in the summer to take care of a few things. 
• At 35 weeks, Jessa says her pregnancy has been “pretty typical.” As most fans know, the Seewalds kept the gender of their baby a secret until the birth. 
• “It was really, really frustrating,” says Jessa, of the release of the records that revealed to the world that Josh had inappropriately touched five girls, including four of his sisters, as a young teenager. 
• “For this to be released…was really, really hard,” agrees Jill. 
• Jill and Jessa say that they had already chosen to forgive their brother long ago. It had taken time for the Duggars to rebuilt their trust in Josh, but Jessa says that their relationships with him had eventually been restored. 
• A judge ended up ordering for the records to be destroyed, ruling that they should never have been released, but the girls say the ordeal has still caused their family great pain. 
• Jana says it has been encouraging to see how the release of the police report has prompted others who have endured similar trials come alongside them. 
• A few months after those records were released, Josh’s name was linked to a site for people seeking extramarital affairs, and he confessed to having a pornography addiction and being unfaithful to his wife, Anna Duggar. 
• The entire Duggar family was shocked, as was the world. “As we as a family looked into this situation, you have to wonder, ‘How did this happen?’” shares Jessa. 
•  Jill and Jessa had publicly defended Josh during their interview with Megyn Kelly in June, without knowing about the secrets he had still been harboring. 
•  “I feel like, it wasn’t right for him to let us speak our words without having the full knowledge of what he was hiding,” says Jill. “We just have to understand that nobody is strong enough. That’s why it is so important to set boundaries…and be accountable and just really focus on your relationship with the Lord, and don’t be a hypocrite. You have to be real.” 
• When the news broke, Jana, Jinger, and Michelle were at a conference. Jim Bob immediately called Michelle to tell her about Josh’s confession. 
• “[My mom] sat us down there in the room to share that our brother had been living a double life and that he wasn’t who he appeared to be,” says Jana. Michelle proceeded to tell the girls about the news reports. 
• "When my mom told us about this, we were just so overwhelmed and so grieved about what had happened," shares Jinger. "And it almost seems like, this person that we knew is no longer the same person. So we just stopped and prayed and asked God to help us get through it." 
• “[Josh] was one of my role models, and I did look up to him,” explains Joy-Anna. “And it was just really hard to see that he had been making bad choices.” 
• While the Duggars have chosen once again to forgive Josh, Jana says they still have difficult days. 
•  John-David shares that he now has “a big weight” upon him to be a man that his younger siblings can look up to. “One of the toughest things I ever had to tell my older brother was, ‘I don’t want to be like you anymore,’” John shares. 
• Jessa and Jinger head out to purchase a used rocker for Baby Seewald and end up finding one that is in near perfect condition. “Jessa and I have always been super close, so now just seeing her pregnant, it’s so strange,” says Jinger, smiling. 
• Jill and Derick drop by Jessa and Ben’s house so Jill, who recently became a certified professional midwife, can check Baby Seewald’s heart rate. “Growing up, Jill always liked to pretend to be a nurse,” says Jessa. “She’s always had that in her.” 
• “It’s really cool being a dad because it’s just like a regular person, but in small form,” Derick tells Ben, while giving him fatherhood advice. 
• Jana, Jill, Jinger, and Joy purchase children’s clothing for the Dillards to take to an orphanage in Central America. The girls enjoy spending time together as sisters before Jill leaves for an extended period of time. 
• Jessa’s sisters come over for an unannounced visit, and Jana tries to read the ultrasounds to figure out Baby Seewald’s gender. The girls give the Seewalds a bag of gender neutral clothing, which includes an adorable football outfit. 
• The Duggars host a going away party for Jill, Derick, and Israel, to which they invite everyone who has supported their ministry, either financially or through prayer. 
• “We are really excited to start the next chapter of our life in Central America,” says Derick. 
• A few of the Duggars share closing comments:
• Joy-Anna: “I think that there is hope for our family. I think there is going to be a new normal.” 
• Jinger: “It’s amazing how everyone has come closer to each other through this, and I…am just so grateful.” 
• Josiah: “I think we’ll just have to stay together as a family.” 
• Jill: “There are exciting things, and I’m sure more challenges, down the road, but right now, we are just taking it one step at a time.”