LilSugar

It's a Girl For Josh and Anna Duggar!

LilSugar — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 07:17:59 -0700

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar are grandparents! Their eldest son Josh and his wife Anna welcomed a baby girl, Mackynzie Renée Duggar, on Oct. 8 at 6:39 p.m. She was born at the couple's home with the help of a midwife and a doula. Congratulations to the new family, and cheers to the next generation of the big brood!

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Photos courtesy of TLC

Does a Woman's Right to Choose Apply to Michelle Duggar?

LilSugar — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:00:00 -0700

Is it hypocritical when people who firmly believe in a woman's right to choose criticize Michelle Duggar for having so many children? Yesterday, Jim Bob and Michelle announced that they are expecting their 19th baby next year. Once we posted, readers responded with a slew of comments. While some wished the expanding big brood well, the majority of posters questioned the parent's birth control methods, child rearing abilities and religious beliefs. One commenter said:

Hey, look, if you're going to argue that a woman has a right to choose, don't get down on someone who chooses to use their ability to have as many kids as they want. I, too, think it's gotten a bit grotesque, but it's their life and if that's how they want to live it, so freakin' be it.

What's your opinion? If you've got strong opinions, mosey on over to our Duggar Discussion group at LilSugar's Community!

Source: TLC

Michelle Duggar Pregnant With 19th Baby!

LilSugar — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:30:07 -0700

Anna isn't the only Duggar expecting! This morning on the Today show, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, who will become grandparents next month, announced that they too will add to their big brood with a 19th baby next year. The couple known for their reality show said they are currently close to the three-month mark. Congratulations to the growing family!

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If you've got strong opinions, mosey on over to our Duggar Discussion group at Lilsugar's Community!
Source: TLC

It's a Girl For Josh and Anna Duggar!

LilSugar — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 07:59:19 -0700

The next generation of Duggars will begin with a baby girl! The entire big brood - Jim Bob, Michelle, and their 18 children, including eldest son Josh and his wife, Anna - appeared on The Today Show this morning to uncover the sex of the impending babe! The newlyweds cut into a cake dyed pink to reveal that the first grandchild will be a lil lady. Though the couple has not committed to a single-letter name theme like Josh's parents, plans to decide on a fitting moniker for the child due in October are in the works! Congratulations!

The Duggars Give the Gosselins Marital Advice

LilSugar — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 16:22:11 -0700

The parents of our favorite supersize big brood, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, were recently interviewed by The Washington's Post's Sally Quinn about marriage and family. During the interview, the couple talked about how they navigate their own relationship and why they pray for fellow TLC parents Jon and Kate Gosselin during their much-publicized marital woes.

Josh and Anna Duggar Expecting Baby!

LilSugar — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 12:07:46 -0700

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar are going to be grandparents! The couple made famous by their TLC show, Eighteen Kids and Counting, is growing their family. But, this time it's not Michelle who is with child, but her daughter-in-law, Anna. Joshua Duggar, 21, the eldest of Jim Bob and Michelle's brood, got married in September and the newlyweds recently announced their exciting baby news. The parents-to-be plan to leave the number of children they have in "God's hands" and name them with a theme, but no word if they will continue the "J" tradition. The bundle of joy is due on October 18. We're looking forward to the next generation of Duggars!

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Interview With Michelle Duggar: Mother of 18 (Part IV)

LilSugar — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 07:00:00 -0800

In their spacious abode for their big brood, the Duggars have two kitchens - one for looks, a "pretty" place to make smaller meals and another for the more industrial cooking required when you have so many mouths to feed. Jim Bob and Michelle's book, The Duggars: 20 and Counting! ($11) is filled with recipes for their clan's favorite meals and thirst quenchers - from tater tot casserole to poor man's pizza and snow ice cream to lemonappleade.

There are even some thrifty ones for how to make household products like laundry detergent and inventive baby wipes from paper towels and an old ice cream bin. While chatting with the mama of 18, Michelle told us her thoughts on eating organic, how she stays trim between babies and even let us in on her very basic beauty regimen.

lilsugar: There's a big movement in parts of the United States to eat local and organic, but many of your recipes include canned or processed ingredients - do you not believe in that type of diet or is it an economical decision?

Michelle Duggar: We probably don't eat as healthy as we should. If we were trying to feed our large family, it would be a lot more expensive to do so. Our health and our children's health have been very good. We don't eat organic, but we do make wise choices with our food, we do eat candy and cookies occasionally, but it's not day in and day out. I will admit, I like ice cream so I consider a freezer without it not properly stocked. Overall, we eat a lot of vegetables and fruits and our meals have a lot of whole grains, we use brown rice and make our own bread after grinding our wheat. We have salad just about every meal and on any given occasion, we're going and buying five more bags of apples, but they're not organic (laughs). We also cook with ground turkey and season it so it tastes really rich. But, we also love dill pickles and pretzels as snacks.

To see Michele's way for losing her postpartum pounds and what surprised her most about motherhood, read more.

lilsugar: I read that you stay trim between babies by being a lifetime member of Weight Watchers. Despite the stress that comes with having 18 children, you look incredibly youthful. What's your secret?

Michelle Duggar: I guess that the children keep you young running and keeping up with them. Losing 40 pounds years ago made me so much more energetic and eating high fiber and low fat. I still have a sweet tooth, but I satisfy it with Fiber1 and fudge bars.

lilsugar: Do you have any favorite products? I know you make your own detergent, do you make your own soap or beauty products as well?

Michelle Duggar: We don't make our own soap, but I've used Ivory soap forever. And then Lubriderm lotion. I have dry skin and I've used it from way back when the dermatologist said to use the one without scent. So every night, I put another coat on my face whether I get a shower or not! (laughs) And, I'm really bad, I don't take my makeup off every day. I put the lotion right on top and go on!

lilsugar: You know you're a mother when ______?

Michelle Duggar: You can't go to the bathroom without somebody knocking on the door saying, "Are you in there?"

lilsugar: Why didn't anybody tell me _______ about motherhood?

Michelle Duggar: How little sleep you learn to live on. Actually, the baby slept until six in the morning last night. I put her down at 11 o'clock and I woke up at 4:30 thinking why did she not wake up.

lilsugar: How much sleep do you get?

Michelle Duggar: I'm getting about three hour stretches or four. But sometimes she'll go six hours and I'm amazed, especially with breastfeeding.

lilsugar: What's the best trick your mama taught you?

Michelle Duggar: To be organized. My mom was such an organizer and I'm not. Things are never where they are supposed to be around here. We have a place for them, but everybody is always using them and they don't get back to where they belong.

lilsugar: Helicopter mom or free-range kids?

Michelle Duggar: I feel like I train them and I want them to be responsible and stand on their own, but it takes some time before you can cut them loose!

To read our full interview with Michelle, check out these posts. The Duggars: 17 Kids and Counting airs on Tuesday nights on TLC. For more information on the Duggars, check out their website.

Courtesy of TLC

Interview With Michelle Duggar: Mother of 18 Children (Part I)

LilSugar — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 08:17:46 -0800

Michelle Duggar has been pregnant for 12 years if you combine all the time she spent carrying her 18 children. She and her husband, Jim Bob, have two sets of twins in their brood aged one month to 21 years old.

The mom and dad made famous by TLC's 17 Kids and Counting took time away from their family to chat with me via phone about their new book, The Duggars: 20 and Counting!, and the topics - marriage, raising children, conservative values, financial freedom, and faith - it covers, while their newest addition Jordyn gurgled in the background. The couple was candid, open, and incredibly kind. And if you assume they set out to have kids by the dozens and name them all with the letter "J," then think again!

After suffering a miscarriage, Michelle and Jim Bob, who are religious, chose to forgo the birth control they had been using and leave it up to God to decide how many children they would have. Michelle, now known for her soft voice and calm demeanor, spoke of a time when she had five children under five, was exhausted and shedding tears. She credits her faith for getting her though the challenges of motherhood.

As far as their children all having names starting with "J," in the text, Jim Bob and Michelle explain that they initially picked names they liked that all happened to start with the same letter for their first three children and then continued the trend not wanting the newest baby to feel left out - only they never suspected there would be so many names.

To see Michelle's candid responses to a couple of lil questions, read more.

lilsugar: The book answers just about every question a person could have about your family and the forces that have guided you in making those decisions. Did you write The Duggars: 20 and Counting! to dispel misconceptions people have about your family?

Michelle Duggar: I see how the book could do that, but I don't think that was our intention. We really just had a heart to answer the people who had been emailing us. We had thousands of emails and there was just no way we could do what we needed to do to take care of our family and take care of those. We've been in politics in the past (Jim Bob was a state legislator in Arkansas) and we know there's a lot of people out there that don't agree with us, so that goes on as well, but we wrote this for the people that ask us for advice and encouragement more than the other angle.

lilsugar: Online, some members of the public have been critical of your buddy system, saying that your older children are raising the younger ones; do you think this is a misconception?

Michelle Duggar: I'll put it the way my daughter, Jill, said it - she had really had a sweet answer. She said, "Mama, they just don't understand or know what it's like to be in our large family and how much fun we have and how sweet is it to have these little ones that look up to us and want to be like us. When people get this idea of oh my God, they have so many kids and there's no way you can spend one-on-one time with them and give them the undivided attention or that the older ones are raising the younger ones, love doesn't divide it multiples."

My older ones have a mentoring relationship with the little ones. We are still the parents, Dad and I are the ones to give them counsel and different things like that, but when they are working together on their music practice or playing phonics games and doing math drills, those times are precious because I see the relationships that have developed.

Check out what Jim Bob and Michelle had to say about homeschooling and keeping a calm home in tomorrow's post on lilsugar. For more information on the Duggars, check out their website.

Would You Let Your Kids Name Your New Baby?

LilSugar — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 14:00:00 -0800

Last night on 17 Kids and Counting the Duggars took a family vote on what to name baby number 18. While Jim Bob joked that his vote was worth 20 and Michelle's should be worth 40, they ended up naming their new bundle of joy Jordyn-Grace Makiya by popular demand. Do you (or did you) give your children a choice in naming their siblings?

The Duggars Have Another, Their 18th Baby Is Born!

LilSugar — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 11:00:04 -0800

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, the Arkansas couple known for their large brood, just welcomed another! Jordyn-Grace Makiya was born on Thursday, Dec. 18, via C-section. Weighing in at 7 lbs., 3 oz. and stretching 20 inches long, she will be the newest star of the family's TLC series, 17 Kids & Counting. She will make her debut, on the show that documents her parents and 17 siblings conservative ways, in an episode that airs on Dec. 22.