Recap: "Engaging Announcements" & "Duggar Challenges"

19 Kids and Counting "Engaging Announcement"

• On their way home from a speaking engagement, the Duggars stop in Tennessee to visit the Bates. Josiah describes Gil and Kelly Bates and their 19 kids as the Duggars' "southern sidekicks."
• When they arrive, the Duggars get some exciting news...Erin Bates is engaged! She and her fiance, Chad Paine, will tie the knot on November 2nd. According to Jessa, the two are opposites--Erin is bubbly and full of energy, while Chad is "Mr. Steady"--but they balance each other out perfectly. Jim Bob predicts a trend of Duggar and Bates weddings in the near future.
• Michelle and Kelly take their older girls on a ladies-only camping trip two hours away, while Jim Bob and Gil stay home with the rest of the kids. The girls' first task is setting up the tent, which hasn't dried out since the last camping trip and smells of mildew. They end up making other sleeping arrangements; some stretch out on the dock, and others crash in the Duggars' bus.
• Clad in their WholsomeWear bathing suits, the girls spend the afternoon on the lake. "Even if it's just us girls, we still try to maintain a standard of modesty," says Jessa.
• Back at the Bates' house, Gil and the kids prepare dinner. " Where's Jim Bob when you need him?" jokes Gil. Fast asleep on the couch, that's where!
• Gil takes Jim Bob out to his storage shed, which is one-sixth the size of the Duggars', and picks out three items to contribute to the Duggars' upcoming flea market.
• That evening, the ladies gather around the fire for s'mores and girl talk. While Erin shares how she and Chad met and fell in love, Chad tells his version of the story to Jim Bob in the Bates' living room.
• On the day of their engagement, Chad took Erin to Whitestone Country Inn. After a canoe ride, he arranged for a horse-drawn carriage to drop them off at a gazebo. Chad handed Erin a ring box with a letter inside that read, "I finally worked up the courage!" Then he got down on one knee and popped the question. And she said yes!
• Michelle says that her daughters are "ready to be married and to be a wife and a mother." Is it a competition to see who will be first? Nope. The girls say they're just excited to see who God has for each of them.
• The women return from their camping trip to find their kids happy and healthy, although some are in need of a bath. "Daddy did a good job," says three-year-old Josie.

19 Kids and Counting "Duggar Challenges"

• In D.C., Anna is still adjusting to life with three kiddos. "It's like, which child needs my attention most, and that's who we'll start with," says the 25-year-old mom. 
• Anna takes her kids to the grocery store to prepare for dinner guests. When they return home, the children nap while mommy works in the kitchen and at the grill. Josh says his wife is an amazing multi-tasker.
• What does Anna do when her kids won't stay in bed? Keeps tucking them back in. She explains her philosophy: "If I have to put them in bed 100 times, I'll put them in bed 100 times."
• Josh helps finish dinner when he returns from work, and at 7:00, the Reed family arrives. Both Scott and Amanda Reed are in the armed forces. They are stationed in D.C. due to Amanda's job with the national guard.
• Back in Arkansas, the Duggars are preparing for their flea market. The girls decorate their ping pong guns, while the boys make $5 off their first gun sale. Who's the lucky buyer? Grandma Duggar. "Nobody better mess with Grandma," says Jim Bob. "She has a knife now."
• Jim Bob plans to auction off the bigger items, so he invites auctioneer John Reddish over as a learning experience for the kids. According to John, the first step is to learn the rhythm of tongue twisters. Maybe one of the Duggars will be an auctioneer someday. "Or maybe not," says Jim Bob. The learning curve turns out to be a little bit steeper than any of them thought.
• It's crunch time for the Duggars as they finish off preparations for their flea market. "We have a few days, and if we don't hurry, it's not going to happen," says the Duggar dad. But Michelle assures him that they can pull it off. "Michelle's a very confident person, and when she sets her mind to something, it usually happens," says Jim Bob.

Stay tuned because one of the Duggar girls has a big announcement to make next week!