If you’re a fan of the Duggar clan, then by now you’ve probably heard about the Derick Dillard vs. Jim Bob Duggar feud that’s been dragging on for months.
These two have been at each other’s throats for so long that the Dillards and the Duggars even spent Thanksgiving and Christmas apart.
The situation has gotten so bad that it may have led to a family-wide anti-Jim Bob rebellion, with Jill’s sisters joining her open insurrection.
All over the country, families have been divided by self-isolation, but for the Counting On clan, there may be a silver lining to the jet-black cloud of pandemic.
After all, if there were ever a family who could use some time apart, it’s these people.
Now, the Duggars can’t agree on much of anything these days, including the pandemic and what should be done about it.
Jim Bob and Michelle seem to be ignoring coronavirus safety guidelines by hosting large gatherings at their home and generally going about their lives as though nothing has changed.
However, the younger generation seems to be taking things a bit more seriously.
And even if their social-distancing is just an excuse to get away from Jim Bob, we applaud their efforts.
The latest Duggar daughter to set an example of proper quarantining is Jill Duggar, who exercised maximum caution while celebrating her eldest son’s fifth birthday this week:
“Happy 5th birthday Israel! Although the current state with Coronavirus has changed our plans, we are counting our blessings and trying to make lemonades from lemons,” Jill captioned a photo set on Instagram.
“We decorated the house after the boys went to bed last night and they were so excited this morning!” she added.
“We did a special birthday breakfast and are planning a drive this afternoon to say hey to friends from our car before we make our way to Derick’s mom and stepdad’s for a simple celebration in their front yard (keeping our distance)!”
And it seems there was one special guest that Jill didn’t mention in her caption.
Yes, that’s Michelle Duggar popping in on the birthday boy — from a safe distance, of course.
“Israel has loved getting to spread out his birthday over several days since gifts have been coming in the mail from family during #socialdistancing and is being a great sport about the non-traditional celebration,” Jill concluded her lengthy ode to Izzy.
“We’re so blessed to still be able to show him how special he is.”
Like we said, no mention of Michelle’s unexpected cameo.
And no mention of the fact that Jim Bob appears to have snubbed his grandson on his big day.
In all likelihood, that decision was a result of the ongoing tension between Derick and Jim Bob.
Derick has said he’s not welcome at Jim Bob’s house, and it appears that that’s a two-way ban.
But the fact that Michelle made an appearance in Jill’s online photo album has been taken by many fans as a sign that mother and daughter have buried the hatchet.
Or at the very least, that they know how to temporarily set aside their differences for their kids’ sake.