Duggar Family and 19 Kids: Are the Duggar Kids Missing Out on a Normal Life?

I admit, I turn the TV over to TLC to watch the Duggar Family's trials and tribulations. I am impressed by Michelle and Jim Bob's Duggar's large brood of well behaved children. Perhaps it is the magic of TV editing, but Jim Bob and Michelle seem to run a happy, stress-free household (most of the time) in stark comparison to the dysfunctional and now defunct John & Kate Plus 8. What I am not impressed with is their family size. 19 kids? That's not a lot. Not if you know the Migliaccio family.

Who are the Migliaccios? While Duggar fans were glued to the tube for updates on Michelle and baby Josie last December, the Migliaccio family of Sumter County, South Carolina were preparing to celebrate Christmas with their own super sized family. Robert and Kathie Migliaccio have adopted 33 children over the past 39 years, most with special needs. Simply put, they opened their hearts and home to children that no one wanted to adopt. In total, the Migliaccio clan totals 40 children, with 7 being born naturally to Robert and Kathie.

I caught up with one of the natural born, or "homemade" children that I have known since high school. Angela Migliaccio Parker took the time to answer the burning questions that are on everyone's mind, especially in light of the Duggar Family's notoriety and the near routine announcements of one more Duggar on the way: When you live in such a large family, do you miss out on a normal life growing up?

CH: You have 39 other brothers and sisters. What is it like being part of such a large family? Do you buy gifts for everyone or do you do a gift exchange? What is Christmas and Thanksgiving like when you all get together?

AMP: I love the huge family. I have not known a small family and what it is to be part of one. I have one now, but I still have the large one there too. It was always fun. There was never a dull moment. There was always someone to play with growing up, or someone to talk to when you had a question and didn't want to ask your mom..... it was normal to me.

At Christmas now I get gifts for all the kids at home. It may not be huge or expensive ones, but I get them something. They all can't get me something because of their disabilities, but that is OK, because its not about getting a gift in exchange. It's the look on their faces that I love.

Thanksgiving is great, we all help cook. Mom does all the pies - my dad and I always eat a piece before dinner -- but we all help with the rest of the meal, whether it be opening cans of veggies or peeling potatoes. When dinner is ready, we all say grace together and we eat. I still help to get plates of food for the kids who can't get their own.

CH: Were you expected to help your mother care for them? I know you help her now.

AMP: As i got older, around 16, I helped with feeding some of the kids that needed to be fed. I helped with meals. I helped my sister get up and ready for college - she is in a wheelchair. I was not made to do this; it was like you having chores. I helped more when I got older, and even after I got married I was there more to do more things. You learn what is very important the older you get.

CH: Did you ever feel that your parents didn't have time for you? I remember you running Cross Country in high school. Were your parents still able to come out and support you when you participated in school sports/activities? I remember the big Greyhound Bus!

AMP: I never felt my parents never had time for me. They went to a lot of the meets that I ran in. They did go to a lot of activities that I participated in growing up.

CH: I have to know, which Duggar do you most identify with?

AMP: To be very honest, I have only seen part of one of the shows. It has never appealed to me as a show. I think its great they have a lot of kids, but the difference between them and my family is that my parents took in kids that would otherwise have no family, kids that no one else wanted. The most important thing in life is family. We just got to choose ours, so that makes it all the more better and more special in my eyes.

CH: The Duggars have a tater tot casserole recipe. Did you have a special, inexpensive dish that was served a lot growing up?

AMP: Spaghetti - just spaghetti - which is my favorite so I never complained. It took 10 pounds of noodles to make it, and it still is my favorite today.

CH: Are you particularly close to any of your adopted siblings?

AMP: I am close to a lot of the kids that I helped with. I was close to my brother Mike, who passed away in December of 2009. He was a total care person, meaning that he needed to be fed and bathed and everything. I did all of that for him. Taking care of him made us close, and even though he couldn't talk or anything, he knew me and my voice. He recognized me when I was there with him.

I am close to most of the kids -- it is something that happens being in a large family. You just are close and you accept unconditionally. I don't look at it as they are adopted -- they are just my brothers and sisters. Most kids my parents have still are the kids that require more care. So, there is a closeness that is developed because of that. Though I am more involved with the kids my mom still has at home, and I talk to them the most.

A special thank you goes out to my friend, Angela Migliaccio Parker who graciously answered these questions. If you would like to read more about her family, please read Sumter County Couple Adopts 33 Kids, published on January 7, 2010 on MidlandsConnect.com.

Sources:
Interview with Angela Migliaccio Parker
Sumter Couple Takes Care of 40 Kids