"You really did change my life. Just through my teen years, I think I was having a hard time taking my parents' faith as my own, and you really befriended me as an older brother. It just really meant a lot to me."
-Joy-Anna Duggar Forsyth
Emotions were high on last night's episode of Counting On. During Joe and Kendra's rehearsal dinner, we watched Joy-Anna give a touching speech that brought tears to many eyes, followed by heartfelt hugs with her brother and future sister-in-law (video below).
Sharing speeches at rehearsal dinners is a Duggar family tradition, but it's not something that everyone does. Have you been to any rehearsal dinners where that tradition was practiced?
Photo/video courtesy TLC
Yes we actually had a lot of people give speeches at our rehearsal dinner. So many special memories of those speeches. We felt so very loved.
ReplyDeleteYes. Last year at my friends rehersal dinner we were giving speeches. It was a fun time. And friend loved hearing all of our speeches.
ReplyDeleteThat was so sweet. Very nice moment.
ReplyDeleteAw so sweet. Joy you’re amazing! And what an example Joe is to his siblings - so inspiring!! Thanks for sharing. Tears flowing over here.
ReplyDeleteI cried too, so much love in every word joy said about her brother joe, and every word Austin said about joe too. Wish I could see the whole wedding.
DeleteAnon 4 am
DeleteYes, it was sweet and made them feel like a real loving family.
I can't even see this short video, there's just a blank square... wish I could watch it, and the whole wedding (as well as all episodes), too!
I really enjoyed last night's episode. I truly love this family and I'm glad we have more episodes to look forward to.
ReplyDeleteThose were special moments not just at our rehearsal dinner but our wedding reception. Some of those people have gone to their heavenly reward now but they will be forever in our hearts.
ReplyDeleteI really really admire your faith and the way you are disciplined. I am 40 years old with 3 beautiful boys and by far your show is my favorite. You give me encouragement as a parent and just as being a human being. You give me inspiration to be closer to God. I think you all are so wonderful and thank you for making my week awesome. Hugs in Christ-Jennifer
ReplyDeleteI loved this! It showed the struggles that Joy has had and the fact that her sibilings were there for her. People are always tearing this family downs but I think that this showed how strong this family is. ❤️🇨🇦❤️
ReplyDeleteExactly
DeleteIt was a heartwarming rehearsal dinner, lots of love there. Joe and Kendra are just so adorable and sweet. And it was a beautiful wedding. Joy and Austin sure spoke from the heart! I think I saw Trace Bates in one frame, and Erin Bates Paine was very visible on the piano... That's unusual for TLC to show them, but was very nice to see. Really enjoyed everything about this episode
ReplyDeleteHow sweet, Joy!
ReplyDeleteI thought Joys speech was so sweet and heartfelt. I would love to hear Joys testimony!
ReplyDeleteI loved it....and when the power goes out at the chruch.....loved it the candles were gorgeous....love this family so much...love Janet Dunkley ,in Saskatoon Saskatchewan ,Canada.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree! I've never seen so many candles before and the arrangement of them was not only beautiful, but perfect when the lights went out! The timing was from Divine intervention as the power went off immediately after the pronouncement of marriage. God is always looking out for us in the big, small and medium-size issues! He knew what would happen at that wedding and it all worked out wonderfully! God bless that sweet couple!
DeleteHi Janet, I've been to your city as I have friends there! Just wanted to say Hi, from Europe. I consider Canada my second home country :) Have a nice Easter and God Bless!
DeleteWe don't have them at all in Australia
ReplyDeleteDon't know about anyone else but the video is a blank square here
ReplyDeleteI've been to weddings where they have a time of sharing at the reception. Sharing can be a special memory or telling the bride/groom how much they mean to you. Families or youth may even sing (acapella) to the bride and groom. It's a wonderful way to let the couple know how much you care about them.
ReplyDeleteWell, all the weddings I've attended included all of those traditions. I'm from Europe and different denomination and we don't have the tradition of rehearsal dinner. So we have a time of sharing at the reception, by both (bride's and groom's) families and friends. All of them usually sing, too.
DeleteThen there's a song by all friends (not just by the ones that share their memories) and a section called "free sharing" when anyone (who's not included in the family and friends part, like aunts, uncles, cousins, God-parents etc. - family means just parents and siblings and usually there's lots of siblings. I will soon attend a wedding where the bride has 16 siblings and the groom has 10 siblings.)
There is lots of congregational singing in these weddings, too. Some weddings can have long breaks between different parts of the program when people just chat and meet old friends and make new ones. Of course there's good proper meal served and then coffee with treats and a big wedding cake. The only minus side is, the wedding can be very long. It can last up to 8 hours. But if you're used to it, you just go with the flow and enjoy it. That's what I'm going to do :)
English is not my first language so if someone could clarify please what does it mean when a baby is sunny side up?? I heard it from both grandmas in Gideon’s birth special.
ReplyDeleteBreach. Like his face was up, legs down.
DeleteIt means that the baby is facing forward (towards the front of Mom) as opposed to the ‘correct’ way of facing to the back. When a baby is ‘sunny side up’ the labor and delivery is extra painful (especially bad back pain) and labor is often longer as well
DeleteIt means baby looking up. (With his/her face looking up and not down) difficult position for natural labor.
DeleteMost babys turn to face down when comming out . Sunny side up is when they are turned face up instead sometimes more difficult to give birth to.
DeleteIt means that the baby is head up. Ideally a baby's head should be down for delivery.
DeleteThey are facing upward instead of down when being born.
DeleteIf you imagine a mom on a birthing bed then usually babies' heads first come out looking at the floor or in other words facing down. Sunny side up means that the baby comes out looking up towards the sky, facing up.
DeleteBoth of my daughters were born sunny side up. It means when the baby us born the face is up not looking down.
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DeleteIt just means the baby is face up instead of face down during delivery, which often makes delivery more difficult.
DeleteEnglish IS my first language and I've not heard that term before in reference to a baby.
DeleteA sunny-side up baby, is when, during the the labor process, the baby's face, is pointing towards the mom's front, instead of the mom's back.
DeleteIt means the baby is face up during delivery, instead of face down...like they typically are...
DeleteI thought it meant the "posterior" presented first, not the head.
DeletePlease don't answer a question if you don't know the correct answer. A sunny side up baby is not a breech baby. As many others correctly said, a sunny side up baby (otherwise known as a poeterior baby) is born face up. A posterior baby often causes painful back labor, as the baby's bony spine presses on the mom's spine during contractions. Progress can also be slow because the baby is not in the ideal position for birth. Many posterior babies do turn before birth and are born in the correct face down, or anterior postition. A baby isn't truly a sunny side up baby unless it is born that way.
Deletemy baby boy was born face up. My Dr. called him an Airforce baby (looking towards the sky) I have never heard the term sunny side up before this episode.
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ReplyDeleteit was so sweet and beautiful
ReplyDeleteoh bless them Joy we have all been there us mum,s your not alone sweetheart all you said to Joe and Kendra came from your heart with love i got all teary just watching you get teary so it never stops stay happy stay in love with your cute baby and hubby God bless
ReplyDeleteLoved this, I cried too and still do every time I watch it
ReplyDeleteMe too!
DeleteJoys speech had me tear up, thanks joy 🤣
ReplyDeleteI thought faith was a personal decision. How do you take your parents faith? Does Joy Anna mean she took her parents ATI doctrine?
ReplyDeleteI don't personally know what Joy-Anna meant, but it might have been that she had accepted her parents faith (religious beliefs) and never had a personal relationship with God until later, after the time she was talking about referring to her teen years. She also could have meant that her parents have such a strong faith, not referring to a Salvation experience, but to their firm faith in God who can "move mountains" & work miracles.
DeleteWe may not all agree on religious, lifestyle, and educational choices of the Duggars... but it was nice to see genuine emotion that didn’t seem scripted or staged.
ReplyDeleteThe actual bear hug between between siblings and friends has this viewers stamp of approval. Connect with those around, we are on Earth for such a short time together.
I LOVED seeing the bear hug! A real emotion and reaction.
DeleteWhat a special testimony from Joy. I honestly watched her as a younger girl and figured she would be the one to go her own way once she was an adult. I watched how close she was to Amy and her boldness as a young girl, and that was my first impression of her. I am so glad to see that Joe made an impact on Joy and her faith, and I am happy to see that she proved me wrong. This family has made an impact on my life through their faith and willingness to follow the Word on a deeper level than most of us do. I know that as teenagers and young adults we go through a time of figuring our own way in life, but I am always glad to see a walk that grows deeper rather than nominal.
ReplyDeleteLove abc agree with your comment! I wondered the same things but am so proud of Joy for overcoming whatever obstacles she was facing and persevering! Way to go Joy! I wish I had stayed strong to my convictions growing up as a young girl. I made a lot of mistakes but God has been so good to me. You provide a great encouragement. Thank you for sharing your lives with us!
DeleteIt would be nice to see more of these issues like Joy experienced featured on their show. It looks like right now all the show is about, are weddings and babies. It would be a very good learning opportunity to see how they deal with the more difficult stuff in life. S. from Holland.
ReplyDeleteYes! I would like the married daughters to talk about their changed clothing style, and other changes they have made in lifestyle since moving on to their own adult lives
DeleteI agree, even the original show DID show some of the struggles the Duggars have faced such as Josie's premature birth and ongoing complications, and the stillbirth of Jubilee.
DeleteAnd the Counting On show actually DID take a hard look at the fallout of Josh's adulterous actions in the first episodes, before it started to focus 90% of the time on courting, wedding and baby moments.
On the other hand maybe that's what the Duggars are comfortable showing the public at this time, and if that's the case I respect that.
it was so sweet to hear what Joy said to Joseph at the rehearsal dinner. We did this too and it was very special at our wedding 24 years ago
ReplyDeleteI think joe did a lot to help and protect both joy and jinger. Jinger is really close to joe as well.
ReplyDelete11:35, I think so too. I also think John David was the same way with Jana and Jill.
DeleteI'm glad that Joy appreciates Joe, but the idea that he just encouraged her to close her eyes and just "swallow hard" and accept their parents beliefs without forming her own personal faith is weird.
ReplyDeleteUh, Joy doesn't say any of that in this clip, that Joe encouraged her to just blindly follow their parents, and I don't recall her saying that in the show episode, either. She also left it very vague when she mentioned "my parents faith".
DeleteSo, is that "faith" as in the particular version of Christianity the Duggars follow? Or faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior? Or faith that there is any God at all? Or faith that God not only exists but actually cares and answers our prayers? "Faith" could mean any of these things.
It's a shame that young people like Joy may feel guilty or somehow a bad person if they decide their parents' faith is not for them. Spirituality is what you hold in your heart and mind- it's personal. What works for one person may not for another. I hope that if any of the Duggars decide to attend a different denomination or no church at all, they won't be ostrasized for it.
ReplyDeleteI have always wondered about that, too. What would happen if one of these kids decided to break from that religion? Would they be given a hard time about it? Would they be distanced? Some families don't make a big deal out of it. But I have a feeling it would be a big deal to the Duggars.
DeleteWell, while so far none of the Duggars have actually given up the practice of Christianity, it seems fairly obvious that Jill and Jinger are attending (and in Jinger's case, supporting her husband in pastoring) churches that are very different from the churches the Duggar parents attend. And they're obviously not ostracized from the family for that. So I don't think that's what Joy was afraid of.
DeleteI think every teen goes through a time when they try to evaluate whether they're following their parents' faith just "because" (tradition) or whether there's a good reason. It can be a mentally tumultous time, and Joy's not the only one to go through this. Her parents aren't forcing her, she CHOSE her parents' faith.
DeleteI married a southern boy. At the rehearsal dinner every single one of his family members including aunts, uncles and cousins, stood to share a memory and say what a special man he was. My family was stunned and thus silent as they were not expecting this tradition. Was a little lopsided in that way but a good laugh now 25 years later.
ReplyDeleteWell the Duggars don't sit-down receptions at their weddings, so it makes sense to have them make heartfelt speeches at rehearsal dinners instead.
ReplyDeleteI find the rehersal dinner custom strange, we don't have it here in Ireland. The Duggars don't seem to do a big wedding reception meal for all the guests which would not go down well here at all. Here after the wedding every guest is invited to the reception and has a sit down meal or buffet. Many people will invite more people in the evening for a dance/hoolie and there will be more food served. To keep people who have bought you a gift and dressed up and travelled to celebrate with you standing in a church hall, and only feed them nibbles, cupcakes, ice cream floats and cake is just poor form and a bit cheap. If you can't afford to look after your guests don't invite so many people, a small wedding can be just as special.
DeleteThe wedding custom in Ireland is the same as here, for most weddings. It does not matter the religion. The only wedding I went to that did not have an actual reception was at a local independent Baptist church. After the ceremony, the guests stood around in the church hall. I don't remember if there were munchies served. The whole thing lasted at most 2 hours.
DeleteSuch a beautiful family!
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your words for Joe, Joy. We've all been struggling, rebellious teens that didn't always agree with our parents. Some of us struggled/rebelled more than others but still it happens to all of us.
ReplyDeleteSince these families claim to live quite modestly and usually don't have much money, just how much has Kendra spent on teeth whitening procedures? All of these females seem to have 'fluorescent white teeth', which we all know are NOT natural. Funny how they come up with the money for these things, yet they have no jobs.
ReplyDeleteThey are paid by TLC.
DeleteAnon @ 11:55 Not according to Derick they are volunteers on the show!
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