Maddie Grace Duggar revealed the truth behind how she met husband Jason Duggar while addressing claims that she was already a “fangirl” of him and his famous family.
The couple did their first joint YouTube Q&A video on Thursday, April 24, sharing that how they met was the No. 1 question fans wanted answered.
“We actually met through Instagram,” Maddie, 21, explained. “There are rumors that I am a crazy fangirl. I am a fan of [Jason] now, but no, I was not a crazy fangirl.”
Maddie said she was not an “avid fan”of 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On while growing up, but confessed, “My family did watch a few episodes, like, on a beach vacation randomly.”
“So, I was on TikTok one day and I was scrolling along, and it was a video of where each of the Duggar kids is now. I was like, ‘Oh, I remember them. I’ve seen them before,’” she continued. When Jason’s face popped up, “I was like, ‘Oh he’s cute. He’s my age. I want to know more about this guy.”
Maddie said she looked up Jason, 25, on Instagram “as one does,” and thought, “He is cute, he works out.”
She said she came upon the reality star giving a tour of his treehouse. “I thought it was really cool, and I ‘liked’ it. That was about it … I didn’t think anything was going to come of that. He was just a cute guy on Instagram. He’s kinda cool and he posts cool content.”
Jason revealed that he didn’t see Maddie’s “like” notification at first because he’s not very tech savvy and didn’t go on Instagram very often.
The Arkansas native went to click the message button and instead happened upon his “likes,” where he saw Maddie’s heart and that she gave him a follow.
Jason checked out Maddie’s profile, where he happily discovered she was “pretty hot” as well as Christian, noting how seeing a Bible verse in her profile really touched him.
Jason decided to reach out to Maddie about a week later, noting, “I texted her around New Year’s,” while Maddie added that he gave her his phone number and they agreed to text instead of communicating via Instagram DMs.
“We were good as friends, but we were awkward,” Maddie explained about their initial time getting to know each other. Jason added, “It was rough because the FaceTime calls were really strange, and for both of us, it’s just odd when you don’t know someone.”
Maddie said that the chats “weren’t working” and there wasn’t much “chemistry,” so they decided to just be friends. “At that point it clicked. I was like, ‘Well, now that we’re just friends, I can really be myself,’” the Tennessee resident explained.
“Once we stepped away from that whole thing and we were truly just ourselves, then I was like, ‘Whoa. This girl is legit. She’s awesome, she loves the lord and she’s normal,” Jason recalled. “That’s when it clicked for me. I really love his girl.”
The TLC alum realized he needed to transition away from their pact to be friends so Jason decided to visit Maddie in Tennessee, where they could get to hang out in person.
After Jason drove 12 hours to see Maddie, their first “date” was at a “little pizza joint.”
“Over time I got to know him, and I couldn’t imagine my life without him,” Maddie shared about how she knew Jason was the one for her. “I couldn’t imagine marrying someone else.”
Jason and Maddie revealed their relationship in a May 29, 2024, Instagram post, showing the duo holding hands and cuddling on a beach.
The couple tied the knot on October 3, 2024. People reported the following day that 300 guests attended the “breathtaking” fall ceremony at The Estate at Sweetwater Creek in Newport, Tennessee.
