After the birth of Jim Bob and Michelle’s youngest child, Josie, in 2009, the Duggars’ TLC show was renamed 19 Kids and Counting after being known as 17 Kids and Counting and 18 Kids and Counting as the Duggar family continued to grow in size. Since then, viewers who have grown to know the Duggars through the series have been captivated by Counting On, a spinoff that follows the Duggar children and their own children. While we wait for more news about Jessa Seewald-Duggar, rumored to be expecting more children, here are ten interesting facts about the fifth oldest Duggar child.
10. She Took Piano And Violin Lessons Growing Up
credit: Duggar Family Official
When Jessa was a small child, her “Nana,” Ruth Anita Anderson, began teaching her and her siblings the piano. Besides the piano, she also studied the violin. Jessa has been spotted playing the harp as an adult, though it’s unclear when she first picked up the instrument.
9. Jessa Is A Very Organized Person
credit: @jessaseewald
In a household of over 20 people, organizational skills are crucial to keep the home running smoothly. As a result of her meticulousness, Jessa is in charge of packing the Duggar family’s vacation bags, which she labels alphabetically. She has packed more than five hundred pieces of luggage in her lifetime.
8. She Has A Strong Personality
credit: @jessaseewald
Jessa recalls being a very willful and independent child. Jessa Duggar details how she and her older sister Jana often butted heads. Jessa would kick Jana’s bed at night because they were crammed into a bunk. Thankfully she now has much more space to relax as an adult.
7. Jessa Isn’t A Fan Of Halloween
credit: @DuggarFam
With the Duggar family being devout Christians, Halloween is something that the family avoids. The Duggars are quoted as saying in E!, “Magic and witchcraft are part of a demonic domain God wants us to keep away from.”
6. She Doesn’t Like The Beach Either
credit: @jessaseewald
Also, I wouldn’t count on family excursions to the beach anytime soon. “It’s just too hard for [them] to try and keep their eyes averted,” Michelle reportedly told E! of the Duggar men and husbands when asked about women in bikinis.
5. She’s Considering Adopting
credit: @jessaseewald
Jessa and Ben, both from big families, want to expand their own by adopting. She reportedly told US Magazine, “We are talking about our ambitions and the future, with family. We both talked about adoptions,” also noting that “We’re both eager to become parents, and we’re open to the possibility of adoption as well.”
4. Jessa Was Home Schooled
credit: @DuggarFam
Jessa was raised with her siblings in a homeschooling environment. She and her siblings grew up attending the annual Advanced Training Institute conferences in Big Sandy, Texas, as enthusiastic members of Bill Gothard’s Institute in Basic Life Principles. Later in life, she was expected to take on the role of tutor for her younger siblings in addition to completing her own academic responsibilities. In 2009, when she was 16 years old, she attempted to earn her GED.
3. She Never Went On Dates Alone
credit: @DuggarFam
With the Duggar family being Christians and following the bible when it comes to relationships and marriage, Jessa’s parents joined her and Ben on all of their dates so that they might be held “accountable.” In his interview with E!, Jim Bob reportedly said that this “keeps things from heading in the wrong direction.”
2. She Didn’t Kiss Her Husband Until Her Wedding
credit: @jessaseewald
It turned out that Jim Bob and Michelle had nothing to worry about when Jessa and Ben began dating. Before they married, Jessa and Ben avoided the temptation of direct chest-to-chest contact by simply hugging on the sides. She and Ben didn’t even touch until they were engaged, and they waited to share their first kiss until the wedding reception.
1. How Jessa Met Her Husband
credit: @jessaseewald
While on vacation in Jessa’s hometown, Ben Seewald visited the same church as Jessa and her family. He decided to grow facial hair and pass for an older man to win her heart. Soon after, he became close with Joseph and Josiah, two of Jessa’s younger siblings. To see the Duggars, he started working additional hours to make extra money, and he would always ask if “the whole family” would be there before going there, saying he was there to see Josiah. After getting to know Jessa and her family at church, Ben finally got her number from Jessa’s dad, Jim Bob, and started talking to her regularly.
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