Monday, February 3, 2020

Gracie's Birth Special

Grace Annette Duggar
Grace Annette Duggar

TLC just uploaded Grace Duggar's birth special to the network website. The links and our brief recap are below.

John and Abbie's Baby Part 1
John and Abbie's Baby Part 2

Recap
Before Gracie arrives, John-David films a video for his wife and daughter. He shares the story of how he and Abbie met and interviews other family members, as well.

"There's a lot of excitement, a lot of anxiousness, a lot of change," says Abbie, as she prepares to meet the new addition.

At around 4pm, Abbie begins having contractions. Michelle arrives and accompanies the couple to the hospital around 3am. Abbie is sent home to rest after being told that her labor has stalled. The following morning, John and Abbie visit the doctor for a check-up.

Abbie labors at home for a little longer, with support from her parents (Cheryl and John), John, and Michelle. After another appointment with the doctor, Abbie is 3cm dilated and admitted to the "low intervention room" at the hospital. Jana, Johannah, Jennifer, Jordyn, Josie, and Mackynzie arrive with snacks requested by the parents-to-be. Jim Bob also comes to the hospital.

After 30 hours of labor, Abbie receives Pitocin to speed things up and gets an epidural. Grace Annette Duggar arrives about six hours later. The special shows photos but does not show footage of the birth.

When the family of three returns home, the Duggars pile into their 660-square-foot house to meet Gracie.

Photo courtesy duggarfamily.com

213 comments:

  1. Wow. That was a long labor. I'm glad Abbie went to the hospital to get proper attention.

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  2. Their house is 660 sq. ft.? That's a very small house. Fine for now, but they might want to consider a room addition in the next year or two.

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    1. They live in a trailer home. I'm not sure if one can make an extension to this kind of houses, especially if it's in some trailer homes area where there is not much space between house. It would be easier to build a new house probably. All brothers can help.

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    2. So? Ever heard of the tiny house movement? They are obviously content with what they have, and they are smart enough to change it when they need to.

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    3. What happened to the house that John bought several years ago? The one he wasn’t allowed to live in because he was single.

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    4. Anon 6:15. I don't think they live in a trailer park. I live in a rural area where it's common for people to purchase land and place a trailer on it. Many of those trailer homes have room additions, some are bigger than the original trailer.

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    5. Some of the new apartments that are being built in our town are 660 sq ft, 3 bedroom ones. Those are meant for families with 3-4 kids and have space for bunk beds in all bedrooms. The floor
      plan is obviously very thought through with efficient use of every sq ft. So with only 2 adults and one baby, I'm sure they'll be fine.

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    6. Maybe, in the future, they will build their dream home while living in the smaller home.

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    7. I live alone in a 3-bedroom house which is 2,000 sqft, and it's really not a big house just for one person. Having 1/3 of it and living with another adult and a baby would be just very small.

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    8. My family lived in a almost 550 sq ft house for five years (two bedrooms, one bath, no basement or closets and etc). There were two adults and seven kids until the end when #8 was born, then we moved to a place that was not quite 1000 sq ft.

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  3. Good Girl Abbie getting the epidural. Pitocin is no joke...4x myself! Nobody gets a medal for suffering the longest. Beautiful little Gracie sure is a treasure. Congratulations.

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    1. No one chooses not to get an epidural with the mindset of “getting a medal” (or receiving extra praise) some people just don’t want to deal with the effects of an epidural, some people want to deliver at home, some people can’t receive epidurals for different reasons, etc. Don’t shout someone down because they chose something differently than you, there’s nothing wrong with either decision.

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    2. Really @3:58?? How many times have you heard women who have unmediated deliveries talk about it for EVER! Seriously their “baby” is 40 and we still get to hear about it.”I was in labor in for 3000 hours with the baby in the lotus position delivered backward with zero pain medication”! You better believe they have received their “suffering the longest” victory reward...

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    3. I never wanted an epidural because I didn't want a needle in my back. Plus, possible side effects and risks. Nobody gets a medal for making labor less painful either.

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    4. 10:16, oh so women aren’t allowed to talk about their birth experience? I’ve heard women with and without epidurals alike y’all proudly about their births, as they should. Giving birth is an amazing thing, and women deserve to be celebrated.

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    5. We, as a society, have gone way over board on the over sharing. Yes, birth is a miracle and women are strong. But, we have lost all sense of decorum. And, there is absolutely nothing modest about watching a “birth special” with a young woman moaning and updates on dialation, effacing, and knowing Abbie is in a bath. Its all to intimate especially for a family that “claims” modesty.

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    6. Maybe THAT should be the next Superbowl halftime show, if giving birth on TV is so wonderful and considered modest! LOL

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    7. 5:38. Agree completely. These birth specials have become uncomfortable. It’s like we have all become peeping Toms ( and Duggar’s have sold out for money) during what should be private moments between husband and wife. It also feels like the Duggar’s have been two-faced about modesty. I will leave the birth specials alone. I’m happy just to see a newborn baby with Mom and Dad post delivery.

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    8. 5:38, but that is just YOUR opinion, not everyone has to agree with you. There is nothing immodest about birth, it is not something that should be causing anyone to sin or think lustful thoughts, which is why the Duggars don’t have a problem sharing theirs.

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    9. 5:38- You are so right! I don't care to watch the painful play-by-play of someone else giving birth, or even hearing all the grisly details that some women seem to relish sharing.

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    10. @11:00 Nothing immodest about giving birth? In a family where Michelle's knees had to be blurred when she was on water skis and Jill's knees had to be blurred when she was sitting on a plane? Birth definitely involves "immodest" things happening left and right. Worse if you have a room full of camera people and you are going to invite the public to watch this later - yet still claim that you're totally "modest."

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    11. Amen @10:35. Common decency says you can't film how the baby came to be, so you shouldn't film how the baby arrives either. I think there should be tougher rules about privacy in hospitals, too. I would not want to be there and see a film crew roaming the halls for any reason.

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    12. @10:16 Giving birth is a big deal, it's a lifetime experience for a woman (unless she has 20 kids). So of course women talk about their deliveries and pregnancies. It's not just a cold or a flu, it is a birth of another human being whom a woman was growing inside her for 9 months! What would you talk about? Family vacation?

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    13. @5:38, birth is a birth, and there is nothing immodest in it. I personally would not want to be filmed as you'd want to look good on camera, while in reality the birth is disgusting and messy and painful, and nothing is pretty about it visually.

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    14. Then don’t watch their birth episodes, no one is making you

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    15. 5:45, those are two completely different acts, so no. And then film crews aren’t just going around “roaming the halls”.

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    16. 5:42, how else do you think the crew kills time when it's 30 or more hours of filming? You think they stay in the room the whole time, not filming anyone or anything else, not going out for meals, not trading places to sleep, nothing? It's got to be disruptive for the hospital on some level to have all those visitors there.

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  4. Jim Bob guessed right on her weight.

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  5. So much respect for John and Abbie NOT showing footage of the birth. It was an appropriate amount of letting us in without the voyeurism all the other couples display. Wishing John, Abbie and Gracie a beautiful, blessed, abundant life.

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    1. There’s nothing wrong with showing or not showing your full birth. Don’t judge the other couples because they chose to do something differently than you would.

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    2. 3:59, actually there is something wrong with it. It’s immodest. To preach modesty and then allow male photographers in the room to film the birth is wrong on many levels.

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    3. Anon 3:59 I think people have a problem with the reason these babies births are filmed because it's for money. Personally I don't think my newborn baby should be made to earn an income for my husband and I. We can work and earn money and my babies get to have a private childhood which they deserve.

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    4. There is nothing wrong with showing the delivery. However, I personally like the way they did it with the photos and music. It was actually more moving. I am not big on the birth scenes myself but I know a lot of people like them.

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    5. 9:20, everyone gets to use their own discernment to decide what is modest. Just because you believe that something is immodest doesn’t mean that you’re right.

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    6. 9:39, it’s their call to make. Personally I wouldn’t have cared if my birth had been seen by people, and my mom was the one going through labor, if she wanted to be compensated for that I would applaud her lol

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    7. I don't get the point in them filming one labor and birth after another. Most of us have had babies and been in labor, we already know how it goes. Are any of the Duggar s in ministry?, film things like that instead of this stuff, sheesh! I miss the days when they were involved in ministries.

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    8. 6:12, the point is not to educate us about labor and delivery. There's no "you've seen one baby, you've seen them all" mentality. It's celebrating each couple and each new child separately.

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    9. 5:37, so it’s immodest to show your collarbone or shoulders but not immodest for a man who isn’t your husband or doctor to see you with your legs in stirrups giving birth? Yes everyone has to discern what’s immodest for them but the hypocrisy in this case is stunning.

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    10. Anon 8:52 How is filming a person in horrible pain for all the world to see celebrating anything? It's for money they do this. It's for profit and you and I know this. If they weren't getting paid then they wouldn't be doing it.

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    11. 9:04, the Duggars whole mindset is that you shouldn’t do anything to arouse men who are not your husband. Watching a woman push a baby out of her body shouldn’t be making the camera men think lustful thoughts.

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    12. 9:04 I think you can celebrate a new child without broadcasting the labor and delivery proceedings for the whole world to see, IMO.

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    13. 9:04, what man are you talking about? The cameramen are blocked from seeing the lower half of the birthing women.

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    14. I like the honesty and truth in the birth stories. We never see a Duggar couple disagree and all couples do, we never see them talk about budget or being tired after work.....most of what we see is "pretty" making nice.....the births show us they are real people with emotions and reactions

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  6. Why do all these Duggars/Duggar wives seem to have exaggerated labors and deliveries??? I don’t believe I know more than 2 women who went through difficult labors. I can’t be simply lucky!

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    1. What was exaggerated about Abbie’s labor exactly?

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    2. It’s reality tv. Just add the proper suspenseful music and make a 2 part special. Tada! Ratings.

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    3. There babies were to big to have n was having problems passing through the birth canal..I been there n know !!!

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    4. Everything is exaggerated for tv ratings. Their births aren’t any different than most of us. The “trauma” births were self-induced through botched home births that should not have been repeated 2 and 3 times.

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    5. First time babies take a long time. I know it’s not true for all, but it is for most. With the exception of Jessa and Kendra, all the recent births they’ve shown have been first babies

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    6. Honestly, people say the most unintelligent things on this blog! Really?? Exaggerated labor? I was in labor for 17 hours with my first child and 12 of those hours was with pitocin. Firstborns almost always take a long time! Most people don't spend a lot of time talking about their labors, so you would have no idea how many have difficult labors and how many don't. I actually only know one person who had an easy time. Labor is long and painful for most people!

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    7. 8:55, no one "botched" Jessa's births; she could have had excessive bleeding in the hospital. 🙄

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    8. @1:42....and she would have.

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    9. It can not be just for TV. Jill was suffering for 50 hours at home and then 20 at the hospital the first time, and 40 hours the second time, and both times ended up with a c-section. We saw Joy really suffering, just because her midwife did not see the baby being breach and did not teach her how to turn the baby. Jessa twice needed a blood transfusion. Lauren had back labor. It's all a lot of difficulties for one family where a mother popped out 19 babies. Birth is a natural process. I remember my water broke maybe around 10 pm, and we went to the hospital, but I had no contractions. So in the morning about 4 am they gave me pitocin, and I started noticing some cramps around 5 am. And then at 7:30 am the baby just came out from one single push. The Duggar births look like they were scripted for TV.

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    10. 4:18, birth is a natural process, not a (usually) fast process. I'm sure many could tell you about their long, drawn-out births.

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  7. I'm glad she gave birth in a hospital. The Duggar home births seem unsafe, especially Jessa's with all her post-delivery bleeding and 911 calls.

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    1. That’s because they don’t use real midwives. Had they had pitocin on hand like a real midwife would’ve, Jessa would never have needed to be rushed to the hospital.

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    2. I did not realize midwives can have a pitocin.

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    3. 6:17, certified nurse midwives (CNMs) can in most areas, but the Duggar girls use certified professional midwives (CPMs) who have much less training and are at higher risk of having unsuccessful deliveries (AKA, having to be rushed to the hospital for preventable problems, or ones that should have been caught early on) They’re the ones who give midwives bad reputations sadly.

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    4. It's not for inducing labor but it's given as a shot after to help with afterbirth if things are not progressing as they should. That is also common in hospitals. Certified nurse midwives can carry it.

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  8. This is priceless!

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  9. Hope we get to see this in the UK at some point. So happy Abbie seems to have rolled with things & done exactly what was right for her & baby. Having intervention by way of medication to speed up contractions as she had laboured a long time & then having the epidural too. Assuming it worked well for Abbie it probably helped her recoup her strength & rest to some degree before the final stages. I really would love to see this birth as Abbie can send out the message that not all Duggar’s are adverse to hospital delivery, intervention by way of oxytocin & pain relief by way of epidural is perfectly acceptable & I hope this helps other women from the same kind of environment that you don’t have to suffer endlessly at home & it’s ok to accept help. Ultimately the only result that’s important is that mother & baby are healthy & well. Abbie & John will make lovely parents, I see them having a few more children but I doubt they will have more than 3/4.

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  10. Michelle would have driven me crazy talking through me contractions like that. Abbie as breathing very well, there was no reason for the over coaching.

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    1. The camera was rolling so Michelle was talking. That's how it works.

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    2. I agree with 5:04. If someone was hovering over me and talking to me like that during labor, I would punch them in the face!

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    3. Everyone is different! My mom talked to me, and it helped me during labor.

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    4. 5:04. I had to fast forward Michelle. That’s as nice as I can be.

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    5. 9:08, this is OP. Some people are comforting to have during labor, Michelle just doesn’t seem like one of them. Kendra’s mom comes across as a very nice and helpful birth coach, and Michelle just likes to talk for the sake of talking. And by the way she says things (thinking back to how she was during Lauren’s birth) it’s more so for the benefit of the camera then to be helpful to the laboring mother.

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    6. Why is Michelle always the one who’s coaching the daughters-in-law and not their own mothers? Michelle should stand back and wait for the young women to ask for her help. I always feel bad for the girls’ mothers whose role seems to be as an onlooker from a distance. As far as the over coaching goes, I agree. I actually threw an ice pack at my husband while laboring with our first child because he was over coaching me. When you’re in pain and are scared of what’s coming you don’t need someone telling you that you’re not moaning correctly!

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    7. Maybe she asked Michelle to do it. Maybe her mom didn't feel comfortable doing it, especially on film.

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    8. Anon 8:32. Abbie's mom had 8 children. I'm sure she was just as capable as Michelle when it comes to coaching a birth. Michelle comes across as very bossy and hard to discourage from being in the forefront of any activity going on.

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    9. Having 8 children doesn't guarantee that you would feel comfortable being a birth coach on tv. I've had five children and I wouldn't do it.

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    10. Thank God that one of the mothers, Michelle, was able to be there for Abbie. Her own mother did not arrive at the beginning, so Abbie probably is very thankful that Michelle was there to help her.

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  11. I'm happy she got an epidural and was not suffering. I still can't forget Kendra's labor this November when she was asked to wait for a doctor because he was delivering another baby, and Kendra had to wait in pain.

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    1. I thought that was cruel. I wouldn't have waited. IMHO!

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    2. Yes, it was maddening that they put policy above the mother.

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    3. Kendra’s choice to forgo pain meds. I’m hoping with the influence of Abbie maybe she will realize having an epidural will be a good thing with #3.

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    4. I don’t feel sorry for any of the Duggar/Duggar-In-Laws when they are in labor. They all can have epidurals and/or pain assistance. They choose not to.

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    5. 9:00, that’s cruel of you to say. Kendra shouldn’t have been made to wait 30 minutes to deliver her baby, that was the point being made, you don’t need to jump in and basically say that she deserved to be in unnecessary pain. There are many reasons that people choose to not get epidurals, them being opioids is one of the reasons. Don’t be rude just because some people make different choices then you based on their own informed knowledge.

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    6. I agree, 5:29. Not to show sympathy for someone else because they make different choices than you would is kind of a scary reaction.

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  12. Jim Bob guessed her weight right! I love the name Grace. I didn't get to use it (got to pick boy names instead!). I am curious why Michelle told Abbie to moan in low tones rather than high. Is that a way to help her relax and that high tones mean you're tensed up?

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    1. Low moans are very effective. Has nothing to do with being relaxed (no such in as relaxed in birthing! :) But from experience it works but as to how and why, I'm not sure

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    2. There is "relaxing" in birth, or they wouldn't tell you to relax your shoulders or your forehead or your legs, or any of the other things I've heard from nurses. When you're in labor, it hurts more if you are tense. Yes, certain muscles have to be tense, because that is what contractions are, but you can purposely relax other body parts rather than holding them rigidly.

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    3. Low moans help keep you from tensing up. I agree relaxing is pretty impossible but you are trying to get there as much as possible. Low moans are more condusive to that vs tightening your face and other muscles in a higher pitched tone and can stall progress and make contractions harder to cope with.

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  13. thank you for sharing the special w/ us however there a few things I don't understand. Why would the doctors allow her to suffer for 30 hours before inducing her and giving her an epidural? It all seems so needless when there is no need to suffer that long.
    Also I'm not sure why they would have 6 sisters show up at the hospital to bring snacks that a laboring mother can't eat? It seems that the 5 youngest sisters were totally bored with it and not wanting to be helping Jana w/ this errand.

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    1. Who knows why they let the labor go on like that. As for the snacks, they probably were for the spectators and TV crew not for Abbie.

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    2. It’s best to avoid induction if at all possible, and Abbie did not request an epidural until that point (probably because they can slow down contractions and that’s not what they were wanting to happen at that point). Labor is almost always long for first time mothers, there really wasn’t anything unusual about Abbie’s birth. Also you are allowed to eat during labor, and if you are in labor for an extended period of time like Abbie was it is better to eat. You don’t need you blood sugar levels dropping while in labor, not to mention the lack of energy you would have while constantly doing something very strenuous without having any nutrition.

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    3. It’s all for TV.

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    4. They specifically brought snacks that Abbie and John requested, that's why.

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    5. Snacks? The only thing I was allowed for 32 hours was ice chips.

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    6. 10:44, that’s horrible

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    7. Each mother should have the freedom to choose when and if she wants an epidural. Abbie has not been conditioned to believe that birth is a painful thing to be fear and managed by a doctor. Plus although an LPN she would still have exact knowledge of what an epidural is, the side effects and how to avoid the complications.

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  14. If, like me, you live outside of the USA, and the online links don't work for you. TLC, we will airing John and Abbie's birth special, on their tv channel, on Sat. Feb. 15th. The link to TLC's tv schedule is: https://www.tlc.com/schedule

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    1. Thank you for letting us know. Much appreciated!

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  15. Awe, well that was a long and tough labor for sure, but Gracie is so stinkin' cute and so loved by lots of family, it was worth the sacrifice! What an alert, adorable, little doll baby, she is perfect, my heart is full, congrats family of 3, God bless you on your new journey, the best days of your lives just started!

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  16. I would love to see the announcement, gender reveal and birth on season 11 if it's not in the special on Feb. 15th. Hopefully season 11 starts sometime in early spring this year if not the end of Feb. Natasha B.

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  17. Why would anyone want to watch someone they don't know giving birth, for entertainment? Not going to click on those links. It's not anyone's business but Abbie's. She should never have let it be filmed. Turns a highly personal time into a money-making and ratings time.

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    1. The post specifically explains that John and Abbie did not have the birth filmed.

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    2. No it doesn’t. You don’t get to choose what someone else does with their life, stay in your own lane.

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    3. I don't think Abbie has a choice now that she isn't working and is married to a Duggar. Abbie and Gracie both will now have to have their privacy filmed and in tabloids for money. If you marry a reality personality then this is your lot in life.

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    4. For me, it's such an exciting time that I love to have the privilege of seeing it. You don't have to show anything up close and personal. It also brings back all the memories of having my babies, the best experiences of my life.

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    5. There's no good reason to film and air anyone's birth, certainly not for a reality TV show. It doesn't matter if they didn't film the actual delivery. Filming labor to show the public what you went through is ridiculous. Who else but people like the Duggars do this? Why do hospitals allow it?

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    6. I don't understand why they would film a lady moaning in horrible pain like this. It is extremely uncomfortable to watch and uncomfortable for the poor pregnant lady to have to deal with that horrible pain and cameras and camera crews filming it. Come on now Duggars, there has got to be more going on in your lives then filming these poor girls in labor!!!

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    7. !2:25- Money motivates people to do alot of things that they'd not do othewise.

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    8. What a shame. Money is not supposed to be your master, according to the Bible. "No one can serve two masters."

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    9. People have been watching the Duggars since when now 15-year old Jackson was not even born! Duggars became our family, so of course it is interesting to see any developments in Duggars' lives.

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    10. 10:20, your comment is so embarrassing. Filming your birth does not mean you’re serving “two masters”. Do you use money? Are you serving two masters? For shame🙄

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    11. @5:22 Some people think the Duggars and others like them put getting money and getting richer above all else. They'll do whatever it takes, even sacrificing their children's privacy, which is something not many of us would be willing to do, no matter how much it paid. That's the kind of life the Bible warns about when it comes to money.

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    12. 7:26, while I would put Jim Bob and and Michelle in that catagory, I would not say the same for any of the kids. If they choose to have their kids on the show it’s their choice to make, and doing so is going to provide money and opportunities for them that they would not otherwise have. There is nothing unbiblical about what they are doing, and for people to claim so is putting their own opinions on the same level as the Bible and that’s so wrong.

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  18. Best wishes to Abby, John and Gracie!
    That two part series was very well done.
    So happy for your new family.

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  19. I just can’t imagine having a camera crew present for the most intimate and personal moment of your life.
    I guess it’s cool to have the memory on film, but I don’t think it’s worth it.

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    1. The Duggars seem to think it's "normal" to have a TV crew filming them during labor and delivery. If a FAMILY member wanted to film my labor and delivery it would be one thing. This appears soley for financial gain on the part of the Duggars.

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    2. They weren't present. The post specifically stated that the birth was not filmed.

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    3. Then don’t do it.

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    4. And having a bunch of realatives is ok? I have 3 kids and I wanted medical sfaff only, not even husband.

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    5. I have some delivery toom pictures which are nice but I'd never consider haring them with curious strangers.

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    6. Anon 12:37. The post said that film of the birth was "not shown". That doesn't mean it WASN'T filmed for a later airing.

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    7. I could have had a member of the housekeeping staff in the room, for all I cared at the end of my labours. For all I know, maybe they were there lol.

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    8. 12:17, If they wouldn't show film footage for her birth episode, why would they show it later? Ain't gonna happen.

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    9. They did not film the birth itself. Birth is disgusting and painful experience for a woman, so I'm glad all that mess was not filmed.

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    10. 9:48, birth isn’t “disgusting” grow up

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  20. I was never unkind to my husband during pregnancy or labor, ( I have an awesome hubby),but the one thing I wouldn’t allow was him making us a “we”. “We” weren’t pregnant, and “we” weren’t going through labor. That was all “ME”! I would have gladly split the weight gain and 48 hrs of labor with him to make it a “WE”..LOL😃

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    1. Amen!!! I say the same thing!

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    2. I agree. My husband got so annoying during my labor with that "we" thingy" I sent him out of the room. HE wasn't the one with back labor.

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  21. What a blessing to have a new baby, congratulatin.

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  22. Getting an epidural - smart Abbie! :)

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  23. Congratulations on the birth of Grace Annette. She's a cutie!
    I'm a bit confused about the term "low intervention" room for labor/delivery. Pitocin and an epidural don't sound "low intervention" to me.
    Anyway, congratulations to all!

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    1. Isn't she adorable? I think low intervention might mean that is their original intent, but the option is there if she changes her mind? I know that you can make a birth plan and then it goes out the window when you are actually in the situation.

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  24. Giving birth and first hours with your baby are priceless. Can't understand this "team approach". Anna is able to spend a day with newborn bonding, and all thecrest have a show instead.

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    1. I know. No wonder Derrick has opted to move his family in a different direction.

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  25. I understand wanting to show the baby off to the family but why would 20+people crowd into a small trailer to see a new baby? And what if one of them is unknowingly sick and passes this along to a new baby? I don't understand why they didn't go the big house so that there aren't so many germs in their own home.

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    1. I can understand that they wanted to be in their own home, but you'd think that the REST of the family would have had enough sense to visit them a few at a time.

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    2. I agree. In my country parents usually ask people to wait one month to see the baby. If you want to see the baby before that they usually ask you to get the whooping cough vaccine

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    3. The Duggars never seem to think twice about spreading germs. They all used to pile into that one bus to travel, and everyone would get sick. They said so themselves! You'd think with preemie experience, they'd be more aware of risks to babies.

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    4. 4:11, that was motion sickness! You don't catch motion sickness from other people. 😄

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    5. @9:33 There was some other kind of illness in an old episode where they were all on the bus together. Jana? described it.

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  26. First labor can be long, your body does not know yet what to do. I'm so happy for her that she had epidural!
    Also, 660 sqft is not a big space. I lived in a 550 sqft 1-bedroom apartment, it was cute, but kinda small. Just extra 100 sqft to it would not add much. It's livable but with the new baby they will need more space.

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  27. Why go 30 hours if they ended up with Pitocin to help things along? Should have done it sooner. Also, I can not believe how all those people crowded into that little house to see a 2 day old baby. Michelle’s voice through the video would have caused me to demand a drink!!

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    Replies
    1. Cameras rolling Michelle talking. Been going on for years. lol

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  28. So beautiful. They are a beautiful family. I love the show.

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  29. jim bob was right on with the 7lbs 11oz!

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  30. Seems to me as a nurse she was quite unprepared. Didn"t she expect the pan? Happy things went well for all of them. Cute baby . Love the name Grace. Ledabeth

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    1. Ledabeth, nothing prepares you for the pain of labor. Guessing from this and other comments that you haven't had a baby yet?

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    2. 11:30, at what point in time did Abbie say she didn’t expect pain? Just because you are prepared to go through something does not lessen the pain.

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    3. Right.... I wasnt even close to prepared for the 36 hrs of back labor and then csection.

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    4. Have 8 children. Been through labor numerous times. She should have done some reading and attend birthing classes. Ledabeth

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    5. But hearing about the pain is not the same as experiencing the pain.

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    6. Ledabeth, then you should know that nothing prepares you for that. I don’t really understand what point you’re trying to make? What are you thinking Abbie should have been doing, just walking around like “oh well I’m in an extreme amount of pain, but I’m going to just go on my day anyways since I knew this would be painful”, like what?

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  31. I know Michelle has given birth numerous times, but she came across as very officious and IMO annoying. Abbie didn't need to be told how to moan.

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    Replies
    1. Yep. Abbie got the Michelle Special.

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    2. I thought JB and Michelle weren’t allowed on the show. I haven’t watched in a really long time because, well, it’s the same thing over and over, but are JB and Michelle back on?

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    3. 5:50, sadly they’ve been back on more and more this last season. I don’t care to see them anymore than just walking in the background, and definitely don’t care for their talking head segments.

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  32. �� Thanks so much for showing us Abbie’s labor.. O yea.. �� John David too..�� Beautiful baby girl.�� So happy for y’all..�� Gods beautiful blessings from above..

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  33. Loved John’s video he did for Abbie and Gracie. He really seems to be a thoughtful and compassionate man. I also thought they did a great job sticking to their guns and not allowing a public video of the birth. The photos were beautiful and tactful. I think this was my favorite birth special, so far!

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  34. It was a nice one. It was ok they didn't have cameras for us viewers to see the birth but pictures were fine. Now Michelle, I know she was trying to help but... she was getting annoying. All in all enjoyed.

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  35. She was doing a lot of moaning for only 3 cm. She must have a low pain tolerance.

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    Replies
    1. Everyone is different. I don't have a low pain tolerance, but labor was extremely painful for me. My sister does not have a high pain tolerance, but she wasn't in any pain during labor. She actually asked me what the contractions felt like when I was in labor with my third. She had already had three children at that time.

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    2. Oh, please. Everyone's experience is different. We already had this discussion with Lauren.

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    3. 4:37, you can have strong contractions without being dialated very far

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  36. Amazing. You marry a wealthy reality TV star and end up living in a small trailer in rural Arkansas. What a life!!!

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    Replies
    1. Guess that proves she loves him, not what he can do for her.

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    2. His married siblings all live in nice houses. You'd think John would want one too. No such luck. lol

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    3. They are probably just frugal and planning for the future.

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    4. John David IS from Arkansas, the whole family is. So marrying John, Abbie obviously was going to "end up" in Arkansas. As for the trailer, John was a single man for years, I doubt he wanted a huge house just for himself. He married very quickly, and probably he did not expect it to happen and happen fast. They married in like 3 months after engagement, went on a honeymoon, then Abbie got pregnant and very sick. I don't think there was really like a time for them to look into buying or building a new house. Abbie was at a hospital several times during her pregnancy, it's tough.

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    5. From what I see John David and Abbie are more interested in serving God, creating a loving family and not living a "wealthy reality life", like so many others on tv.

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    6. Anon 1:24. My experience with overly "frugal" people is that they never know when to stop saving and start enjoying their money. Besides that a house is an investment and usually gains value as time goes by. A trailer? Nah

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    7. @6:12 Watch how fast John will buy planes.

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    8. Anon 7:46. Exactly. John's first priority has been and will always be his plane. He doesn't care where he and his family live. He can always justify money spent for another plane. lol

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    9. Anon 3:38. Of course. I can hear it now "Honey, it (the plane) was such a good deal I couldn't pass it up". lol

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    10. I agree with @6:04. John likes planes, he is interested in flying. He probably just needed a place separate from all the kids running around, just for him, to come home, have some meal, sleep. So mobile home suited him just fine, especially it was told that a bank gave him this home, for some land cleanup. I'm sure when John and Abbie get with their routine (no changes, no wedding, honeymoon, pregnancy, sickness), they will think if they need a bigger house with yard.

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    11. And another regular size baby birthed by a non-Duggar daughter! Even Ivy who was born 10 days before her due date was almost 8 lbs, so if she was born at her due date she probably would be over 9 lbs.

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    12. 9:26, what's the point? If she's not genetically related to the Duggar daughters, why would it be noteworthy that the size of the baby is different? I think it makes sense that sisters would be similar while non-sisters would not be.

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  37. After years of being told that John owned a house, I will admit I was rather surprised when the "house" turned out to be a very modest trailer. A bit of miscommunication no doubt.

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  38. Anon 6:04. I think it's rather amusing. The Duggars spent years saying John owned a house. None of them ever mentioned that the "house" was a rather modest trailer.

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    Replies
    1. They actually cost money too, mobile homes. John is interested in flying, he has planes. I would take a pilot with several planes who can fly me places instead of someone with just a house anytime.

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    2. He did have a house, they showed it on the show waaaaaaay back when, like before Jessa and Ben were dating. I’m guessing he refurbished it and then sold it.

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    3. Anon 5:13. The story of John's "house" keeps evolving. I'm having trouble keeping up with all the changes. You gave a new twist in the stories. He "had" a house which he no longer seems to have. Others say he was given a trailer that a bank had foreclosed on in exchange for some work he did. The Duggars NEVER explain things so the fans just come along with scenarios. No way to tell what actually happened.

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    4. Except I remember seeing a picture of a house, not a trailer, a few years ago. If the Duggars don't explain things, at least a fan blog could you'd think.

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    5. @8:50 AM: I looked up on internet, and one article mentioned "Duggar matriarch, Michelle, once revealed in a blog for the TLC website that her son does indeed own a house. "Our son John David has got a job and a home," she wrote in 2013. "He's leasing that home out as rental income and putting the money aside."
      So seems like John was given a house by the bank, but then rented it out. I would be surprised if a bank gave John a trailer. Most probably John had some regular house, and maybe it's still rented on some long-term contract, so they could not move there right away. Or maybe he sold that house and bought a plane.

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    6. You can rest assured that per public records, John does own a house and a decent sized lot. They are choosing to live in the trailer.

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  39. There was some talk that John had a house, and he does! Many people live in mobile homes communities, they can be quite nice. I was more surprised that it's like a trailer park with many homes around. I'd expect John would want to own a bit more land, to have more privacy.

    When we first met Anna, they showed that her parents lived in a trailer, with all their children, who were getting married and moving out one by one.

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    Replies
    1. This is not the house that John had. That one was a brick ranch house.

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    2. Hmm, @7:21 PM - was it shown on TV, John's brick ranch? I remember they were saying that he did some land cleaning, and a bank gave him a house for that. I wonder if that was the ranch house, what happened to it? The trailer is definitely not the best housing option.

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    3. Anon 5:41. The bank wouldn't give someone a brick house for clearing a bit of land. I'm pretty sure they gave John the trailer for that work. A foreclosed one bedroom trailer has no resale value to speak of and the bank would consider the trailer a bad debt that they were happy to get off their books in exchange for some labor. I think John must have sold the brick house and spent the proceeds as he didn't buy a comparable house for him and Abbie to live in after their marriage.

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    4. Anon 5:41. I don't know how John obtained the brick house or the trailer, but if he still owned the brick house, he and Abbie would be living in it instead of that inadequate trailer.

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  40. I find it interesting that Joseph got that nice looking spacious wooden cabin with a large deck, to live there with Kendra, while John lives in a 1-bedroom small trailer.

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    Replies
    1. Yeah. Since he's the second oldest of the siblings, you'dd think he would be eligible for a better house. lol

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  41. 660 square feet is not considered small by European standard. We live in an appartment thats just a bit larger, about 800 square feet. It has 3 bedrooms and we live here with our two children. Some people just don't have the desire to live in a big house, for many reasons. Just because his siblings have big houses doesn't mean he has to live like that too.

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  42. That was a weak birth special. If she didn’t want to be filmed for the birth they should have stuck with that not a in between episode. The still shots were very anti climatic so I didn’t even finish the episode.

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  43. Hooray for John David to live so frugally. Saving up for a nice house, college education for Gracie, and also retirement. He’ll probably have just the one kid. Having too many is fiscal irresponsibility.

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    Replies
    1. What you need to do if you have more is get a TV show. Oh wait...

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    2. Who said John will have just one kid?? They don't have any fertility problems, they are both young. I'm sure they will have 4 or 5 kids for sure.

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    3. @11:57 Claiming that you're "sure" they'll have 4 or 5 kids is just as unreasonable as saying they'll likely only have 1. No one knows what the future holds for anybody. Making predictions for other people is just plain silly.

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  44. Poor Abbie gained so much weight in her face, she looked uncomfortable.

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    1. Her face looked uncomfortable? I'm guessing that's not what was causing discomfort. 😄

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    2. I guess no one ever taught you to refrain from insulting people.

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  45. I loved how they all came to visit with baby cousins, Ivy, Addison, Bella.

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  46. I'm finding the saga of John's house extremely entertaining. Long term fans insist he had a regular house a few years ago. It seems to have vanished off the face of the Earth, leaving him with a one bedroom trailer in which to house his family. lol

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    Replies
    1. Easily entertained? I find the subject kind of ho-hum myself.

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