Michelle Duggar on Improvements and Possibly More Kids

by Susan Avery and Colleen Egan (Subscribe to Susan Avery and Colleen Egan's posts)
May 6th 2010 1:57PM

Filed under: Celeb Kids, Celeb Parents, In The News, Media, Amazing Parents, Celeb News & Interviews

Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar, with baby Josie. Credit: Scott Enlow, TLC

Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar's 19th child is still dealing with digestive issues, but her family is optimistic about her outlook.

When Josie Brooklyn, the newest star of TLC's reality TV show, 19 Kids and Counting, was born on Dec. 10 at a gestational age of 25 weeks, she weighed just 1 lb., 6 oz. Now, she's making strides and weighs in at 5 lbs., 14 oz. Josie's adventures will be featured on the family's Mother's Day special on Sunday, May 9 at 8 p.m.

We talked exclusively with uber-Mom Michelle Duggar about life with the new baby, her plans for Mother's Day and how she teaches her kids to deal with naysayers.

ParentDish: Tell me about Josie. How did you come up with the name?
Michelle Duggar: When I was pregnant, we discussed with the family some name possibilities for a boy or girl. Everybody really liked Josie. Then Jessa mentioned the middle name Brooklyn and that's what it was.

PD: Have you been to Brooklyn, New York?
MD: Yes, we've been there! [Laughs]

PD: When you were pregnant, we held a ParentDish poll asking folks to vote on the next Duggar name and the one that won was Jillian, but I personally love the name Jewel.
MD: Jewel is a beautiful name. That's a great idea!

PD: A great idea for the next Duggar? Are you trying to tell me something? Are you planning another baby Duggar?
MD: I'm 43 right now and I know my time clock is ticking so I may be able to have more, I don't know. We are so grateful for the ones we have and I couldn't imagine life without one of these. They represent a future home one day, and will do whatever God calls for them to do in life. I would be thrilled to have more if God sees fit, but we take it one day at a time. Our focus is on Josie right now.

PD: How is she doing?
MD: She's doing great. We are so thankful. She's growing and gaining and that's what we need to happen for her. She has tummy issues that were working out right now. Our doctor said from the very beginning that having a preemie is a roller coaster ride. Parents in the NICU [neonatal intensive care unit] will tell you, 'never trust a preemie.' One day she'll do great and the next day she'll have a setback.

PD: What are the doctor's concerns right now?
MD: Josie loves to eat but she has some challenges pooing and you gotta do both to make it work right, so we have to figure that out. She's taking her feeds well and that thrills my heart. She's kind of at that place with preemies where she's trying to thrive on eating and growing. We're rejoicing because she's approaching the six-pound mark. Josie wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the Lord and the expertise of this facility [Arkansas Children's Hospital]. We are so grateful for every day we have with Josie.

PD: You are amazing for holding everything together. What are your guilty pleasures to help you decompress?
MD: At this season of life, it probably would be sleep. You go through different seasons of life as a mom and so I relish getting extra sleep here and there when I can. Josie is approaching five months and I have to breastfeed frequently, every three to four hours, so there's a lot of interrupted sleep. It's a supply-and-demand thing. I feed my babies on demand when they're newborns. Thankfully, my milk supply has been great.

PD: Switching roles, how's life as a first-time grandma?
MD: I am elated. I dreamed about the day I get to be a grandma. Mackynzie is a chunk, a rolly polly grandbaby. She's approaching seven months now and it's just so sweet. I had her sitting on my lap the other day and she was smiling and touching my face. So much fun being a grandma.

PD: What are your plans for Mother's Day?
MD: I actually don't know. I'll spend some time at the hospital with Josie. I don't know what the family has planned. I don't want to mess things up so I don't ask any questions because my little guys will say something they shouldn't, so I don't ask. We'll be at church in the morning. We go to the Friendly Chapel in Little Rock and Victory Baptist Church.

PD: Any Mother's Day gifts coming your way?
MD: Usually Jim Bob has something up his sleeve. Handmade cards are my favorite. Those are my keepsakes. Daddy will usually give the kids paper and the older girls will work with the younger ones to make special Mother's Day cards for me.

PD: Sweet. Breakfast in bed, too?
MD: They've attempted to make breakfast. That's been interesting. They know I like eggs over easy and they become scrambled over easy when the little guys try their hand at it. They're kinda crunchy. And the toast, they try to get it just the right color two or three times, then they load it with butter. I enjoy it and I eat it. I'm along for the ride.

PD: You have a ton of fans who wish you and the family all the best, especially on Mother's Day. But how do you deal with your detractors and the negative comments on the web?
MD: We receive a lot of feedback, positive and negative, and we've told our children who help with our correspondence that people have their opinions in life and we have to understand that people don't have the same perspective we do. They are entitled to their opinions and we always go back the same place.

PD: What do you mean?
MD: We know that this is where God has called us and we know everyone has their own calling and place in life. You're always going to have the negative naysayers and you're not going to please everyone. You please God and you seek to do what he's called you to do and you will have peace. When there are criticisms, you listen and you take that through the grid of God's words and ask if there's something you can learn from them.

PD: That's pretty hard to teach kids.
MD: We teach them to never just blow people off and not listen. If there's something that you need to change, that's fine, and if not and if it's off the course, move forward and don't get bogged down. You can't please everyone. There are so many things you come up against in life, but we do what God wants us to do in training and loving our kids. We will be the first to tell you we are not perfect. We are still learning every day, but we are finding our answers in God's words, and there's joy and peace and enjoying the fruit of that. As parents, we're all in this together and we're learning as we go along.

PD: What are your biggest challenges as a mom?
MD: Laundry, dishes. I had this mountain of laundry this week. We had gone a whole week without doing any and you can't do that. Keeping up with laundry is number one, and number two is keeping up with dishes and mealtime. Of course, keeping up with their hearts and just asking the kids how they're doing and what's going on and allow them the freedom of opening up and helping them navigate their years and keeping them grounded. All of those concerns are most important in life. We just have to keep at it and encourage them along the way.

Related: Michelle Duggar Chats About Morning Sickness.

For more on the Duggars, visit Duggarfamily.com.

ReaderComments (Page 4 of 34)

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8-07-2010 @ 4:51PM

lizzy lou said...

And isn't it being irresponsible when people who are "fixed" go out selfishly and have multiple partners or marriages for their own pleasure? That way you can't tell who they've been with or what they are up to. How can you criticize someone who's faithful and just happens to have a lot of children. Who would you judge negatively?

5-06-2010 @ 3:40PM

kidochick said...

How dumb and selfish can someone be? If this baby has problems, the next one will too. Someday she will give birth to either a stillborn baby or one that will only survive a short time, or she will so endanger her own health that she will die. That sure sounds like a happy reality show (sarcasm). And the resources that the one family uses are too much. There is a population explosion, and our world is going to be too small to support all these people. Each child she produces will marry and have their own children, so it just multiplies, like a stray cat and her multiple litters.
Use your brains, Duggars!

5-06-2010 @ 3:46PM

Firstmate said...

The Duggars have a beautiful family but 19 is enough, especially at her age. She's lucky she and her baby are alive. Besides, when I do watch the show, I've noticed that the little ones are hellions and the older kids are expected to care for the younger kids. Don't her older daughters want lives of their own, like go to college or hang out with friends? All they do is take care of the younger ones. I've rarely seen Michelle one on one with her kids unless it's a baby or a toddler. Don't get me wrong; I admire many of the Duggar's values but I don't see her really raising her kids herself, it's the older ones doing all the work. Sometimes she seems totally clueless.

5-06-2010 @ 4:02PM

j smith said...

If you watch the show, you must know that no one, male or female, in the family is encouraged to seek higher education. The girls will all marry men chosen by mom and dad and start up their own little litter, each probably trying to outdo the others by procreating the most. Having children is obviously the most important thing in this family's lives.

5-06-2010 @ 3:42PM

Beverly Tarr said...

I think this is a wonderful warm family and I just love to see them together. I do have one problem. The older ones need to have a life of their own sometimes. They have too much responsibility with the young children. I don't think it is fair of Mom and Dad to expect all that just because they keep having babies so close together. Really is sad.

5-06-2010 @ 3:43PM

amy said...

way to go Duggars! i applaud you all! honest, dependable, responsible,honest and Godly. There should be more people like that on this earth!

5-06-2010 @ 3:44PM

robin said...

I have no idea why anyone would want/have that many children. I only saw the show a couple of times. There is, of course, No alone time with any, as it would take all day long
I have no idea if it is some freak religion, some guiness book of records, it is just sick......
Her body is trashed inside. Have a brain. STOP! you are too old to continue this baby machine...

5-06-2010 @ 4:19PM

ursula said...

This is outrageous and crazy having 19 children and wanting more. I truly think this family is mentally ill.

Mike said...

Mrs. Duggar,

It's a vagina, not a clown car. Give it some rest!

5-06-2010 @ 6:48PM

kathy said...

you're not even original...that stupid remark has been said soooooo many times before. Get a new one - you sound so stupid. It's hateful, ignorant people like you that shouldn't breed.

5-06-2010 @ 3:47PM

David S. said...

Having seen the show, I always have mixed emotions about this family. While I do not relate to their strict fundamentalist faith at all, I would have to say the kids are all well-behaved (although you could also say somewhat robotic too) and the parents seem to be good role models. But by not allowing the kids to live somewhat in the real world (no TV, all the kids are home-schooled, they rarely seem to go out) I wonder if they are really prepared to face things as adults someday. I cannot imagine why this woman would want more kids, but hey, that is her and her husband's decision. I would however think there comes a time when anyone just grows weary of diapers and bottles and potty training and just wants all their kids to grow up already!

5-06-2010 @ 3:52PM

Kristen said...

These people make me ill. Look at that poor baby...they just had to keep going until they ended up with a retarded child.

This is God's way of staying STICK A CORK IN IT.

Those children have no lives. The only way she can have this many kids is to lock the older ones in the house and stick them with diaper changing. I doubt any of the Duggar kids can even read.

5-06-2010 @ 5:14PM

Chrissy said...

Did you all forget the GOLDEN RULES? take a refresher course from this family 1. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you....2. If you dont have ANYTHING NICE to say... DONT SAY ANYTHING AT ALL!

5-06-2010 @ 3:54PM

Felicia said...

Ridiculous people!

smitty said...

What Jim Bob and Michele choose to do with their lives is their business but why do they have to be held up by the media as role models? TLC showed its hypocrisy with the Jon and Kate Plus 8 show and I doubt its credibility with this family as well. Putting your kids on tv is exploitation, plain and simple.

It is irresponsible to have 19 children in this day and age. I hope God decides that 'enough is enough' with Josie.

5-06-2010 @ 8:21PM

Natalie said...

This family is amazing. Everyone gives them a hard time for having so many kids, when what everyone is forgetting is that in the last few centuries, 12, 13, 14 or more kids was not uncommon! Just because we live in 2010 doesn't mean it should be thought immoral or abuse of the planet for having alot of kids. God calls everyone to different places. I know many families who have felt a call from God for the orphans of the world, I being one of them. However, other families are called to have biological children, like my parents. Should my parents have forgone having my siblings and I, simply because they COULD adopt? Of course not! How does the standard change from a 3-child home to a 19-child home? And many mothers risk premature births, mental retardation, and other health-defects just because they are in thier late thirties/early forties - even mothers having thier first child! There are always risks, but you can't fear risks if God is calling you to step out. They are in a fantasic financial state - with NO debt, and they don't take any government handouts. There family has been on TV since it was "14 and Counting", and they havn't fallen apart or crashed under the "pressures of stardom." Why? Because they are only concerned with what God thinks of them, and what He is asking of them. The opinions of the world are just that -mere opinions. Thier children are well-behaved (which is something many parents today cannot claim about thier own) and they are PRODUCERS, not consumers. They help run the household instead of expecting "handouts" from thier parents. It's still the parents who are the parents, but the children are so self-governed they could hold the house together when little Josie was in her dark first moments of life. Now thats amazing. These people may not think or act like the rest of us, but that does not make them any less grand than the rest of us.

Joan said...

Children for profit.
In this garbage world of today, noone should have
children at all...moreover 19.

Tami said...

Really, Joan? No one should have children at all? When you are old and sick, where do you think the nurses, doctors and other health professionals are going to come from to care for you? They are the children being born today. Plan on collecting Social Security, Medicare, and/or any type of pension in the future? Not without new taxpayers to pay into the system you won't. So many people in these comments are complaining about the number of children the Duggars are adding to the overpopulation problem and I would have been one of them once upon a time. However, I have since heard statistics about what is happening in the most developed countries in the world (Western Europe and Japan in particular), and they are going to be facing very serious social and economic issues in the frighteningly near future. Their birthrates have plummeted so dramatically, they will be unable to support their way of life economically and Muslim immigrants who have very high birthrates will change the social and political life in those countries as they have in large parts of Asia and Africa. The US is not far behind. If I remember correctly, we need a birthrate of about 2.3 children per family to maintain our culture, so we need the occasional large family to balance out all the childless, one- and two-chilld families.

5-06-2010 @ 3:55PM

brrrrk said...

Look, a few kids is one thing, but any woman who wants to keep cranking them out like she was a playdough fun factory has a serious mental issue.

5-06-2010 @ 5:05PM

artgrrl said...

let's not forget Jim Bob's mental stability.... if you scroll through all of these comments you'll note that rarely is the husband even mentioned. Isn't he just as wrong??

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