Zach and Whitney's update!

Last night, Zach and Whitney took Bradley over to spend some time with their family! Bradley loves spending time with his grandparents, aunts and uncles. Bradley just celebrated his third month of life!

Gil, Jeb, Jusdon, and Bradley

Lawson and Bradley

February birthday covers!

Our facebook cover for the month of February

February birthdays!

The Bates are celebrating four birthdays in the month of February! Trace and Jeb are celebrating their birthday on the first of February while Jackson and Addallee celebrate their birthday on the 17th of February! 

Birthday cover will be posted tomorrow here and on our fan page! 

Grandbaby #2: 30 weeks pregnant!

It's hard to believe that Alyssa is 30 weeks pregnant with her first child, a little girl. We are so excited to meet Allie!

Where to download the new song?

We got a special sweet treat for Lawson's fans!

You can download the new song here Lawson's song!

Recap: Nashville Son

The family is getting ready to plant a garden. Kelly and Gil are excited to be planting healthy garden. Gil and Kelly work on where they were going to put the garden. Gil thinks that their valley would be the best place due to where the water rolls down the hill. Kelly reminds her husband that the water comes from the sky and lands everywhere.
Kelly and her supporters to give in to the good attitude and asked Gil to build the playground for the little kids. Kelly reveals that when there is a difference of opinion that the family tries to stop and give the opinion. Kelly feels that there was some hard feelings about the garden. Gil gets ready to plow the land and prepare for the garden when Chad shows up to help the family.
Meanwhile, Lawson heads to Nashville to record a new song that was recently released. Lawson reveals that he took up a hobby a few years ago.  Lawson reveals that some of his songs were about his experience growing up and others.  Lawson reveals that he is nervous about the new song but he has a full time job as landscaping business but he is focusing on his music.
When he first gets to Nashville, Lawson meets with Joyce Martin for practice vocal training. Lawson heads to record his song with Ricky Skaggs. His new song is called problems and is song with Rachel Leftwhich which is Rick's niece.
Lawson heads over to talk to the president of Daywind Records Ed Leonards. After he is done with recording and the meetings, Lawson heads to the house.
Kelly reveals that she and Gil had no musical background and can't read a note. They wanted to have their children to learn music and so they can used it for a ministry.
Lawson, Nathan and Trace are asked who they think will be the next one to be married. Nathan thinks that it will be Lawson or Tori. Lawson adds that the girls like to jump early at leaving the house.
Kelly reveals that courtship is the biggest topic in the family since the kids like tease each other about their future husband or wives.
Lawson reveals that his parents are forcing the kids to get into courtship before they get married or the other way around. They pretty much tell their children to make their own choice and have promise to support, encourage and advise them.

Family blog: Encouragement

Once a project has been started, sometimes the more challenging part is getting the kids to complete it!

Bates advice for encouraging your children to see a project through from start to finish:

• Key is praise and positive peer pressure/examples
• Motivate your children to make them feel like they can do anything
• Be around positive role models to help encourage teens to strive to reach goals
• For the younger kids, turn the task into smaller, more “do-able” parts
• Make a game out of it to lighten their load and add enthusiasm

Kelly's blog: How Does Your Garden Grow?

Every project is a BIG project in our house! Cooking meals, doing laundry, planning the schedule, and yes, even planting a garden can seem enormously overwhelming when you’ve got so many opinions weighing in! Who knew that planting a garden with the kids would create such strong feelings? I think somewhere along the way, they forgot the garden is going to produce vegetables and not skittles or chocolate covered candies! Gil reminded us all when he said, “This is a lot of work for food I’m not even sure I like!” We encourage healthy competition, but there’s no room for sore losers in the Bates household! In this particular instance, the kids needed to be reminded that a few moments ago, no one really cared about planting the garden, let alone where it should go! Well, just as any mom would, I stepped in and turned this moment of temporary tension into a learning experience for our family. No one likes to lose; we all love winning, but sometimes we have to ask ourselves at what cost? Have we turned a molehill into a mountain just for the sake of “winning” or getting our own way? We have to remember, that as a family, we’re on the same team and sometimes that means we give up our individual desires for the betterment of the team. When one of us is down, we’re all down! The point is, we should always (and only) be planting seeds of peace, love, joy, and kindness. Gil and I get asked a lot to give tips on parenting, and that’s hard to do, but the best advice we can give about making decisions in any size family is to make sure everyone feels seen, heard, valued and of course, loved. So it was, that I had to concede on where we planted our little garden! As I told my son Warden, “We’ll be the givers this time and maybe next time, we’ll be the takers.” All for the sake of the team…go Team Bates!

Love, Kelly Jo

Zach's blog: Cherishing Every Moment

I know he hasn’t made his debut in the show yet, but I’ve gotta tell you guys, Bradley is growing up so fast! Whitney and I are working hard to cherish every moment. Everyone keeps asking us how we’re adjusting to being new parents and if we’re having a tough time handling things but the truth is… Bradley has been easy on us! He is just a cool, chill and happy little baby. There’s no greater privilege in the world than to get to be his parents.

It was pretty cool to see Lawson record in Nashville. He’s definitely got a career ahead of him if he wants one. Proud of him!

Erin's blog: All About Chad

Hi everyone! Hope you enjoyed tonight’s episode! As you all know, I’ve never been shy about expressing how in love I am with my sweet husband Chad but tonight, you got to see just how important he has become to my entire family, too!  My family calls on Chad for just about everything because he can do just about everything! Anyone need a haircut or a master gardener?! Chad has such a heart for helping others. He’s an incredible man and I know he’s going to be the best daddy to our little baby! Be sure to check out his latest blog entry for news on little baby Paine and more at http://chadsperspective.blogspot.com/. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Love, Erin

Lawson's blog: I Thought I Had Problems…

I am super excited to share with you about a new project I have been working on over the past six months. I would say this project has had a greater impact on my life than anything I have worked on so far. Over the last few years, I’ve been able to go on several mission trips where I have seen some of the poverty, suffering, and hardships that more than 90 percent of our world faces daily. Over 100 million people are homeless; Thousands of children die daily from disease or malnutrition and there are over 153 million orphans worldwide (www.worldorphans.org). These are just a few heartbreaking statistics that show the reality of suffering that happens in the world today.

I have come to realize the things we often complain about are nothing in comparison to some of the challenges others face, and this is what inspired me to write a new song, Problems (which will be the first single on my upcoming second album). A music video of this project is also currently in the works!

Comparing my small problems with the hardships others face daily, changed my whole perspective and created a desire to help raise awareness for needs around the world. I hope this song will inspire listeners to look for ways they can reach out to those who are hurting, not just around the world, but in our own communities.

Each of us know people who have lost loved ones, or who suffer with illnesses, or who face discouragement and loneliness. I hope this song will challenge listeners to take a closer look at how they can make a difference.

If you’d like to listen or download my latest song, check out the iTunes link! https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/i-thought-i-had-problems-feat./id961835350

Alyssa's blog: Cooking for 2.5

Jeb Bates

I’m glad to see my family making strides to eat healthier, but as the former go-to cook for my family, I have a confession to make… I’m pretty sure I could live on cereal alone! When I got married, one of the hardest things for me to do was to learn how to cook for two people instead of 21! Pretty soon though, I’ll be cooking for 3, or at least 2.5 with little Allie Jane on the way. She’ll be here before we know it and for that I’m grateful. We can’t wait to meet her; we love her so much already! I wonder if she’ll be a picky eater like her mama? Pregnancy countdown continues… :)

Chad and Erin's interview!

After suffering three miscarriages due to a blood clotting issue, Chad and Erin are happy to announce that they are expecting their first child. Chad and Erin found out that they were expecting in October and decided to wait to revealed until Erin was halfway into her pregnancy due to the high risk.

Erin is almost 22 weeks pregnant with her first child and are due on June 8th. Erin is happy about having this baby. Erin reveals that she wanted to be cautious and wait because if something would have happen, the lost would have been really hard.

Chad and Erin did not revealed the gender of their child but reveal that they have chosen baby names.
Chad has been a big help around the house while Erin was going through morning sickness with the baby. She is so excited to hold their first child later this summer.

Erin's due date is revealed!

Erin and Chad will be welcoming their first child on June 8, 2015!


We are so excited for the couple!

All about Bradley: Three months old!

It's hard to believe that this little man is three months old. This month he got to spend some extra time with grandma when she came to watch him so Zach and Whitney!


February's month update is going to be on February 28, 2015

Bradley is going to be a cousin to two little ones when his aunt, Alyssa, and his aunt, Erin, welcome their first children in the spring! 

Sisters and their baby bumps

Chad and Erin

John and Alyssa

The Bates Grandchildren

Bradley is the son of Zach and Whitney Bates. He was born on October 29, 2014. He just turned three months old. He is the first grandchild of the Bates family.

Allie Webster is the daughter of John and Alyssa Webster. She is due on April 10, 2015. She will be the second grandchild of the Bates family.

Baby Paine is the child of Chad and Erin Paine. At the time of writing this blog, there was no due date announced. Chad and Erin recently lost three other babies.

First pregnancy blog for Chad and Erin!

Chad and Erin went to find out that they were expecting back in October 2014. We are going to start the pregnancy updates here and we update them every week until we find out when they are due. I asked Kelly when they are due and she responded that Chad and Erin will be revealing all of those details in the coming weeks so we will just have to wait and see. Right now we are thinking that she is due right around her sister.

Erin and Michaella on youtube!

Just a few days before Chad and Erin announced that they were expecting their first child due later this year. We found this clip of Erin with one of her friends. We hope that you like it!

Here is a sweet interview of Michaella talking about when she and Brendon will get engaged Michaella's interview

Nashville son preview!

Budding country singer/songwriter Lawson Bates heads to Nashville to meet with a record label executive and a vocal coach, while Kelly, Gil and the younger kids start planting a fall garden. But with so many people offering their opinions, the task doesn't go as seamlessly as Kelly thinks so she calls for back up.

Is there a courtship on the horzion?

Ever since Joseph Duggar moved near the Bates family, rumors have started that he is in a courtship with Tori or another Bates daughter.

This is where we set the rumors straight: Joseph moved down near the Bates family to go to school.

There is no courtship announcement as of right now!

Chad and Erin's surprising News!

Chad and Erin are so excited about the news of their pregnancy. Chad reveals that God grew their hearts together even more as a couple of the losses that they experience.

Chad reveals that they been wanting to revealed that they were expecting but due to the high risk pregnancy that Erin is currently in, they chose to wait for a little while longer.
.
As of right now, there is no announcement of when they are due

Sweet video of Callie!

Callie sat down with Lawson and Katie Bates to do some history lesson! It's such as sweet a video!

Clearing somethings up!

John and Alyssa: Many of you notice that the maternity pictures that they took that Alyssa wore pants in some of them. Many of you think that she is making the wrong choice about what she wears but she looks really cute in anything that she wears. What many of you don't know is that Whitney wore pants before she started a courtship with Zach.

Chad and Erin: Many of you have comment on Our journey to parenthood first post for them that we said "First little one". We honor each and every life that they have gotten pregnant no matter how short their lives are. 

 
 

Journey to parenthood: Chad and Erin's first update

Chad and Erin revealed that they were expecting on Thursday night's episode of Bringing up Bates! We are so excited for the Bates and Paine family. This marks that it will be the third grandbaby for Gil and Kelly Bates.

This baby will joined Zach and Whitney's son, Bradley, and John and Alyssa's daughter, Allie, right around the summer time!

More information about Baby Paine!

Last night, I asked about Erin's due date and here is what Kelly had to say about the due date.

"Dear Michelle, I think she and Chad want to announce all those fun details,, so I am sure that they will be giving lots of details in the upcoming weeks Love Kelly Jo"
She went on to add!
"Dear Michelle, I think she will be announcing all of those details over the next few weeks! Believe me, she is soooo excited! We are all so very grateful to everyone for their interest, love and prayers! God Bless Kelly"

Eight months of marriage

John and Alyssa have been married for eight months! They are busy trying to get ready for their daughter's arrival!

Lawson's blog: New Song “Problems” – Coming Soon

I am super excited to share with you about a new project I have been working on over the past six months. I would say this project has had a greater impact on my life than anythingIMG_0833 text I have worked on so far.
Over the last few years, I’ve been able to go on several mission trips where I have seen some of the poverty, suffering, and hardships that more than 90 percent of our world faces daily. Over 100 million people are homeless. Thousands of children die daily from disease or malnutrition. There are over 153 million orphans (www.worldorphans.org). These are just a few heartbreaking statistics that show the reality of suffering that happens worldwide.

I have come to realize the things we often complain about are nothing in comparison to some of the challenges others face, and this is what inspired me to write a new song, Problems (which will be the first single on my upcoming second album). A music video of this project is also currently in the works!

Comparing my small problems with the hardships others face daily, changed my whole perspective and created a desire to help raise awareness for needs around the world. I hope this song will 2inspire listeners to look for ways they can reach out to those who are hurting, not just around the world, but in our own communities.

Each of us know people who have lost loved ones, or who suffer with illnesses, or who face
discouragement and loneliness. I hope this song will challenge listeners to take a closer look at how they can make a difference.

My new song, Problems, will be available for download on iTunes, Google Play, and lawsonbates.com on Wednesday, January 28, 2015.

Kelly's blog: FAMILY CONFERENCE

What: Dr. SM Davis will visit Bible Baptist Church to host a family conference. Join us to hear topics on expectations, priorities, parenting, anger the destroyer, and more!
When:  January 25-27, Sunday at 10 am, 11 am, 6 pm and on Monday & Tuesday evenings at 7pm.
Where: We will move our regular church service to a different location to accommodate guests. Services will be held at the Junior Achievement Hollingsworth Building, 2135 N. Charles G. Seviers Blvd.,Clinton, TN.
Bio: Dr. S. M. Davis has been married to Rae Jean since 1969. They are the parents of 4 daughters who with their husbands and 12 grandchildren, are all actively serving the Lord.He is the founder and director of Solve Family Problems, a DVD ministry that gives Biblical solutions to critical family problems, as well as help to foresee and avoid problems. After serving for 36 years as the Pastor of Park Meadows Baptist Church in Lincoln, Illinois, Dr. Davis became a full time conference speaker in 2012.

Baby Webster and Baby Paine's first pictures

Allie Webster

Baby Paine

Recap: Training Up Bates

Gil and Kelly are getting ready to take a trip to North Carolina to visit Kelly's mom with 11 of their children. Kelly insist the younger kids to help. Gil and Kelly are working on child training with their youngest children.
The older Bates kids say that their mom and dad have become less strict over the years but Kelly reveals that she wants to spoil the youngest while Gil says that they are tried. One of the ways that the kids practice is getting in a line from youngest to the oldest.
The next day, The family goes to Aunt Kim's flower shop and Gil says that Jeb in a flower shop is real life. The youngest struggles to obey no touch rule and has to be talked to many time time. Kelly thinks that two years are terrififc and they have full of energy.
Later the family goes shopping for toys and clothes. The family loves to save money at 50 and 75% off.
Michaella is busy with work and says that she doesn't see her boyfriend popping the question any time soon since he had to use all of his saving. Brandon wants to be more stable before marrying her.
Erin hopes that she is pregnant and so she and Chad heads to the doctor to find out if they are expecting their first child. Erin is scared due to the recent ultrasounds that they have had.  Chad and Erin learn that they are expecting when the ultrasound picks up a heartbeat. Erin is so sexcited that she is pregnant and hopes that its a little boy.
Erin has a blood clotting disorder which eans that she has to take shots twice a day throughout her pregnancy. The Doctor gives Chad directions to give his wife the shots. She reveals that she is not a fan of needles but it's worth it at the end.

29 weeks pregnant!

Hey Bates fans!

It's time for another pregnancy update for Alyssa! This week we had a quite busy updating for the family on Alyssa's pregnancy! We will make sure that we post the links down below. John and Alyssa can't wait for their baby to be born!

Check out the links:
* Grandbaby #2 Gender and name reveal 

                         * Alyssa's baby bump
                         * Celebrating baby Allie
                         * John and Alyssa's maternity photos!

Michaella turns 25!

Michaella is celebrating her 25th birthday today!

upcoming blogs for Chad and Erin's pregnancy

• More pregnancy information
• Due date revealed
• Chad and Erin's journey to parenthood
• Baby's name guesses
• Baby's birthday guesses
• Baby's gender guesses
• Weekly pregnancy updates

Two Grandbabies on the way!

We are so excited to announce that the Bates family will be welcoming two grandbabies. We know that Erin's pregnancy journey was filmed around September/October which means that she could be due around the same time as Alyssa.

Alyssa's blog: Being an Older Kid

Trips to Meema’s house are always so fun, and I have such wonderful memories visiting her as a kid. She is an incredible woman and grandmother, and I look up to her so much! I was so disappointed that I missed out on this visit, but John and I were busy back in Florida, and there is never enough that we can do to prepare for having our first child!
As an older kid in the Bates family, it has always been my responsibility (along with the older siblings) to help out with the little kids. It was so much fun growing up in this family because I was incredibly close to my little sisters and brothers. I will absolutely be instilling these same values in my own family. I believe that this is the best way to a) be a tight-knit family and b) have well-behaved and responsible children. John and I will certainly be trying our best! Parenthood will be no easy feat, but the practice I have received as a Bates older kid has been priceless.

Lawson's blog: Budgeting King

If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from my parents, it’s how to budget! My dad is the king of budgeting. Seriously, who else could save over $1000 at a store? It’s pretty impressive, I do have to admit. I’ve caught a bit of the budgeting bug from him. I’m trying to be wise with my money and learn to save for the future. The key word here is “trying”… it’s hard work!
It was a bummer that I missed out on this trip to Meema’s. We love spending time with her in North Carolina, and I can be the first to tell you that we are a huge handful when we visit. She is so sweet, but she is definitely exhausted by the end of our visits. Who can blame her?! 21 houseguests are a lot to handle, even though it’s family ;)

Erin's blog: Hearing the Heartbeat

I’m so glad and relieved that tonight’s episode has finally aired! Chad and I have been waiting to share our big news with the rest of the world for quite some time now. The news is true! Chad and I are having a baby! To say that we are thrilled would be the biggest understatement; we can hardly contain our excitement as we prepare to be parents.  As many of you know, starting a family for Chad and I has been a painful journey, but the Lord has taught us so much this past year as husband and wife. In tonight’s show we finally heard our sweet baby’s heartbeat. It was one of the most beautiful moments in our lives and the sound of our baby’s heartbeat… the most beautiful music.  This is definitely an answer to our prayers and we are so looking forward to learning how to be a mom and a dad. More to come next week!

Zach's blog: Learning from the Best

Believe it or not, being part of a television show isn’t always easy. Sometimes it’s hard to re-watch moments you’ve lived or to know that people see one small piece and think it’s the whole puzzle. On the other hand, it’s pretty cool to know that we have a time capsule filled with some of the most special moments of our lives because of the show. It’s been a wild ride that’s for sure. One of the moments I’m most looking forward to re-living this season is the birth of my son Bradley. One of the questions Whitney and I get asked a lot is if we’ll raise Bradley the way my parents raised us. Well, I can tell you one thing… my parents are experts at raising kids! I certainly wouldn’t be the Dad I am and intend to be without their training and guidance. Another question we get asked is if we’re going to have 19 kids like my mom and dad. The truth is… right now we have one very little and very special boy we get to be parents to and we’re having the time of our lives doing it. And if you’re wondering if I think my parents have gone soft and have ‘Grandparent Syndrome’… for Bradley’s sake and the other grandkids soon-to-come… I sure hope so!
Whitney and I couldn’t be more excited for the big news in tonight’s episode but I’ll let Erin share that. :)

Kelly's blog: Patience Please

In tonight’s episode we took a road trip to North Carolina to visit my mom (known to us as Meema) and my wonderful sisters. One of the first stops we made was at one of our favorite consignment stores where I found the deal of the day! I found a Sit n’ Spin (among other things) in great condition and I got an additional 75% off!  I know it goes without saying but I’ll say it anyway… It’s amazing how much you can save by buying used items. Shopping at thrift stores has saved our family so much money over the years and it has provided a lot of fun for our family, too! After our shopping spree, we headed to my sister Kim’s floral shop. Kim can turn absolutely anything into something fun and entertaining for the kids. It’s a true talent, one that I greatly admire. Thankfully, she’s also patient. Whether you have one child or 19 kids, parenting requires a lot of patience, doesn’t it? I love the saying, “Patience isn’t just waiting, it’s waiting with a good attitude” because it’s so true. Whether we’re training our kids how to behave in public or waiting on God to answer our heart’s prayer, it’s important to wait with a hopeful attitude. For those of you who watched tonight’s episode, you now know that Erin and Chad are having a baby. This is certainly an example of answered prayer and our hearts are overflowing with joy at the news of having a third grandbaby! There’s so much in store and we can’t wait to share! Love, Kelly

Family blog: Budgeting, Bates Style

Budgeting is key when it comes to raising a family, big or small! Here are some of the key budgeting rules when it comes to keeping the Bates family running:

Shop at discount shops such as consignment stores
Head to the sale sections first
Keep an eye out for extra promotions and in-store coupons
Narrow down your selections once at the cash register
We want to hear from you: What are your budgeting secrets? Let us know in the comments section!

Erin is expecting

Erin is expecting her first child! The baby is due around summer. This baby will mark the third grandbaby for the family.

John and Alyssa's new cover

Do you like our new cover?

We wanted to make sure that John and Alyssa have their own cover on their facebook fan page. We love how we created this photo for John and Alyssa.

John and Alyssa's maternity photos!