A Dozen Duggars Sick with the Chickenpox

Constructing the New Duggar Home: A Family Project

The Duggar family is the focus of the reality show on The Learning Channel, 18 Kids and Counting. However, before they got their own show chronicling their lives in Tontitown, Arkansas, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar started imagining their dream home. They wanted a place where all their children could eat, sleep, study, pray, play and live without stepping on top of each other. They also envisioned a home where they could all sit down together and eat a family meal.

Most of all, the Duggars wanted their new home to be a learning project and a family affair that everyone can work on together. They put their noses to the grindstone and started designing their 7,000-square-foot home from top to bottom, inside and out, and they got what they wished for. TLC was even on hand while it was being built and when the family moved in, chronicling the events with the special, The Duggar Dream Home.

Staying Debt-Free

The Duggar family prides themselves on being debt-free and not using credit cards to pay for anything. Because the Duggars already owned the 20 acres their new home sits upon, there was no need to seek out loans to pay for the house. Instead of hiring contractors, they sought out family and friends to help construct the all-steel home, which was built from two do-it-yourself kits. Their appliances were purchased at auction for a mere fraction of the original $100,000 cost. They scavenged store and restaurant closings for items including a serving line and swing doors from a Kmart that went out of business and a canopy from Schlotzsky's Deli that shut down.

Through budgeting and saving, the Duggar family paid for a majority of the new construction and furnishings but received some sponsorship from the Campbell's Soup Company, Huggies Diapers, Home Depot, Sears and Home Decorations Collection among others. In an attempt to keep spending low, the family cooks most of their meals from scratch and makes their own laundry detergent, among other items.

http://reality-tv.lovetoknow.com/Duggar_Family_House

Their 650 square meters (7,000 square-foot) house was built by hand by the Duggar family themselves over the course of three years with minimal assistance from friends, primarily in the form of instruction. The home was completed on January 20, 2006.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/19_Kids_and_Counting