Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar run a tight ship, especially when it comes to relationships.
The Duggar children never "date," they "court," which Michelle described to People magazine
as:
"Dating with a purposeful mind set, [which is] really such a contrast from what we are
used to seeing in our world."
"Well we're officially courting now."
"Yay!"
Courting, for Jim Bob, also means:
"Getting to know each other in a group setting, both families spending time together and the
couple setting goals together to determine if they are meant to marry.
With dating, a couple will often pair off alone and that sometimes leads to a more physical
relationship."
Because of these beliefs, you can imagine that there are a whole lot of things a Duggar
can't do before their wedding day, and some pretty strict rules to follow.
A Duggar who is courting, or being courted, is hardly ever alone.
Chaperones are required, and only side hugs are allowed; but after the engagement, hand
holding is allowed.
The Duggars are allowed to kiss for the first time on their wedding day, and are free to
let go and enjoy physical intimacy on their wedding night and after that.
In fact, Jill Duggar Dillard has been surprisingly outspoken on intimacy after the wedding and
beyond.
In a June 2019 blog post, she encouraged married couples to have intercourse three to four
times per week, as a starting point, and says,
"Be open with your spouse about your desires and change things up to keep it exciting!"
Because of all these rules that apply before marriage, it's not too surprising that the
Duggar kids tend to tie the knot on the younger side.
But how many of them have actually walked down the aisle?
Well, there are nineteen Duggars, and according to Cheat Sheet, eight of them are married.
Oldest son Josh Duggar and Anna Keller were the first to tie the knot in September 2008,
and as of early 2020 they are still together with six young children.
John David may officially be second born, or third born, considering he's a twin to
the unmarried Jana, but he's the most recent Duggar to tie the knot.
He married Abbie Burnett in November 2018 and the couple had their first child, a girl,
in January 2020.
Derick and Jill Dillard, who married in June 2014 and have two sons together, starred in
the spin-off show Counting On.
However, according to Entertainment Tonight, they were forced to leave the show after Derick
made offensive remarks and major backlash ensued.
Jessa and Ben Seewald met at church, and while Jessa was drawn to Ben, Cheat Sheet reports
that she was afraid he wouldn't feel the same way because she's two-and-a-half years older
than him.
That obviously wasn't a problem for Seewald, because the two have been married since November
2014, and together they have two boys and one girl.
Ben Seewald is the catalyst for one more Duggar marriage, he introduced sister-in-law Jinger
Duggar to former soccer star Jeremy Vuolo.
They tied the knot in November 2016 after just one month of courting.
Because Jinger and Jeremy didn't have children until two years after their wedding, fans
speculated there were either fertility problems or birth control was involved.
Josiah Duggar and Lauren Swanson also had an incredibly short courtship.
The former family friends went on a trip to New Zealand with a group, came back courting,
and 41 days after that, they tied the knot in June 2018.
Joy-Anna Duggar married Austin Forsyth in May 2017 and got pregnant on her honeymoon.
Their son was born in February 2018.
Joy-Anna may currently be the youngest married Duggar, but it was at her wedding that her
brother Joseph asked Kendra Caldwell to marry him.
So, was it a sweet moment, or did he steal Joy-Anna's thunder?
You be the judge.
Joseph and Kendra married in September 2017.
"I can't believe it, so exciting!"
"Yeah."
With eleven more Duggar kids to go, it may not be long before another wedding takes place!
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