‘Counting On’ Family Honors Jim Bob Duggar On Father’s Day, See Jill And Jessa’s Sweet Messages For Their Dad
Jim Bob Duggar got a touching tribute from his family of 19 kids on Father’s Day. The Duggar patriarch was first honored by his wife Michelle on social media followed by his daughters, Counting On stars Jill and Jessa.
Michelle Duggar wrote a dedicated post on the family’s website, honoring Jim Bob for being a wonderful father to their 19 children. She reminisced their family’s activities led by Jim Bob–from working on cars to his short stint in the political scene.
“I am so thankful that our children have Jim Bob as a father! He is always such a great example of the love, patience, and kindness that [the] Lord has for us.”
The 19 Kids and Counting star also posted pictures of her younger kids’ Father’s Day gifts for Jim Bob: mostly handwritten cards, crafts, and chocolates.
Counting On stars Jill and Jessa Duggar each wrote a tribute to their famous father on their own websites. Jill and Jessa are two of Jim Bob’s older daughters and are now starting their own families as seen on their reality show.
In her message, Jill Duggar Dillard called Jim Bob as “the best dad a girl could ask for.” She also said that Jim Bob has all the qualities she dreamed of finding in a guy, which she found in her husband Derick.
“The character qualities I saw you display (hard work, wisdom, patience, kindness, and much more!) were all things that you taught me to value and that I wanted in my hubby/found in Derick! Derick and I are so grateful for you and for the amazing grandpa you are!”
Meanwhile, Jessa Duggar penned a lengthy blog post just for her dad–even longer than her message for her husband Ben Seewald! In it, she enumerated 101 things she’s “most thankful for” about Jim Bob, calling him “God’s channel of blessing.”
Jessa’s long thank-you list mostly revolved around how Jim Bob reinforced godly and Christian ways to the whole family. The Duggars are known to be devout conservative Baptists. Their defunct family reality show, 19 Kids and Counting, heavily featured their religious beliefs and strict rules on dating and dressing up.
But Jessa also recounted practical things Jim Bob has done for her and her 18 siblings, painting the Duggar patriarch in a cute, normal-dad way. She mentioned bike rides, sock fights, family vacations, and birthday lunches–done 19 times over!
“[Thank you] for teaching me how to roll my socks into a donut and fire them at my brothers and sisters… [Thank you] for the special times when we went out to eat (yes, we most definitely took advantage of kids-eat-free, the modern day policies of ‘2 children per paying adult’ probably happened because of us??)”
Jessa’s list took a more serious tone when she thanked Jim Bob for helping her start her own family, from paying for her wedding to helping her with home renovations. She also praised her dad for being a great example of what a “godly marriage” is like.
Jill and Jessa’s younger sister Jinger, who is now living in Laredo, Texas, with her husband Jeremy Vuolo, also sent out a Happy Father’s Day greeting through a video message.
https://www.facebook.com/duggarfamilyofficial/videos/1065630636903918/
Jim Bob Duggar became an American household name when TLC picked up his unusually large family in 2008, giving them their own reality show, 17 Kids and Counting (turned 19 Kids and Counting by 2010). In 2015, the series was canceled after his eldest son Josh Duggar got involved in child molestation cases. The family has moved on since and now has a spinoff show, Counting On, focusing on Josh’s younger siblings.
Despite his family’s controversies, it’s nice to see Jim Bob being honored by his children on Father’s Day. After all, it’s no minor feat raising and providing for 19 kids! Jim Bob is also now a grandpa to seven grandchildren, with two more on the way (Jill is expected to give birth in July and Anna, Josh’s wife, is also pregnant).
Counting On Season 3 airs on TLC every Monday night.
[Featured Image by Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images]
