The Bates Family: Blessing #18 on the Way!
posted by on 01/24/10
We just received a wonderful call from our good friends the Bates in Tennessee. We rejoiced with them when we heard the news: their 18th child is on the way!
The love that Gil & Kelly Bates have for children is reflected in the love that each of their children have for each other. May the Lord bless them with many more! “Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD:
and the fruit of the womb is his reward” (Psalm 127:3).
Incredible! I guess they’ll need a new family portrait not too far in the future.
I was born just over the line from TN in KY so really feel “at home’ when I think of the Bates. Hugs for Kelly!
What a blessing! I’m so happy for the Bates Family!
What a fabulous blessing! Praise God!
Just for the record, they told us before that they are NOT in competition with the Duggar family.
Truly every child is a gift from God. Now is the time to pray for our nation and pray for Mrs. Bates too.
Well I do pray that Ms. Bates has an uneventfull pregnancy and birth. I just hope she chooses not to televise it. The exploitation of large families needs to stop. When the secular wolves of society at large refer to TLC as “the devil” there’s obviously an issue. I also pray for the Duggars who are now part of Peta’s latest cruel billboard. Google it and take a look. Pretty mean if I say so myself.
How wonderful!! Sending my prayers for a healthy pregnancy.
congratulations the bates..god has blessed you and if you choose to show us on t.v go ahead..as for peta shame on you this is pretty low and if they werent christain theyd prob sue..
Congrats to the Bates family and my kids and I love watching them with the Duggars. Its really cool that they are such pure Christians and how strong their faith in God is. I hope to see them again on 19 Kids and Counting. Congrats again and good luck hope everything goes well if you have another baby.
Congrats to the Bates family on new baby.Best wishes. The Bates are a wonderful and loving family.
Thank you for sharing this news with us. I am so glad that the Duggars have decided to show their faith throught the opportunity that Christ has given them. They have encouraged and blessed millions through it, including my husband and myself who have now decided to have more children. (We have 5 currently.) God Bless the Duggars, Bates and Staddons!!!
What a blessing to know that there is a another Bates on the way. They have been such a great example to my life and my family. Also we are so happy to know that little Josie Duggar is at home. May God Bless you all. Thank You.
VALERIA
CT age:12
It is inspiring and uplifting hearing about the Bates and Duggar families. The gift of family togetherness and Christian values is very special and it is wonderful that the families are willing to share this.
We love you all. We enjoy seeing you and the Duggars together. I homeschool my 3 kids, also. I think that is the only way to go they learn so much more and are alot smarter than the kids that go to public school. Here where I live they lock the kids in the building. They shouldn’t treat the kids like they are prisoners to get them to learn, but some schools do that every thing.
When is baby 18 due? I wish I could have more children. I have to many health problems. But if God wants to give me more children I would try to go off all my meds. and that way the baby would be healthy.
My oldest is 13 but thinks he is 25. he loves to drive the four-wheeler and go fishing and help out around the house. His birthday is September 14th.
My next son is 11 but thinks he is 19 and thinks that all there is to do is fishing all the time. He likes to work in the garden. his birthday is May 13th. My little girl is 9, but loves to talk to every baby she sees and would love to have a little baby sister. She enjoys doing anything that the boys do. Like fishing and driving the four-wheeeler and working in the garden. her birthday is November 19th. She was born 1 month early, but was eating soft table food the week we brought her home from the hospital. My oldest son had alot of gas problems that was from the formula that we had him on so when my second son was born he started to have some problems too so we started cutting back on the bottle and feeding him from the table and he done really great. So now i tell my husband that if we were to have another bay I would put it on whole milk from the start and feed it from the table if I could. Because I didn’t have enough breast milk to feed them.
hi i love hearing about your family and your friends it is great to see families so close – there is way too much dividing families and society these days. Just wanted to say to Barbara if she has another baby and it has too much wind see a doctor as my son had a milk allergy and couldn’t have the regular formula – there are other ones such as LCP which i get a perscription for and my son had no pain and put on weight with it
It seems to me that, far from being exploited, the reality families on TLC receive many opportunities they would not otherwise be privy to. While the families are filmed about 3 days a week only 23-45 minutes are aired weekly. Most people would happily exchange less than an hour’s worth of film a week for those opportunities and the money they make. My own 6 children would have been delighted to see themselves on TV! If there are children to feel sorry for, it is those in Haiti to name but one place, not those on TV. As for me?….well I’m just happy to be entertained. Keep up the good work!!
My heartfelt congratulations to the Bates family on their newest member!!! Praise be to God!!!
I disagree that the Duggars or Bates should not be on television. My family LOVES watching them, and it’s been so wonderful to be able to see a tight-knit family with good ol’ fashioned values. In this modern, keeping-up-with-the-Joneses society it’s refreshing that TLC would even televise such an “odd lifestyle”. I don’t mean any disrespect by calling it that, but here in California everyone is “all about Me”. With the cookie-cutter houses & their 2.1 children, minivans, soccer moms and the plastic, Barbie look the Duggars & Bates are considered strange. Even with ONLY 4 children, my husband & I are looked at like we’re crazy!
I admire that both families have continued in their faith and in the way they choose to raise their growing families. I admire that, although they’ve opened themselves up to criticism, they’ve accepted it with grace & humility realizing that it was inevitable. I usually tell people “Criticize the Duggars & Bates all you want. NONE of their children have run away from home. NONE of their girls (as yet) have gotten pregnant out of wedlock. NONE of their boys (as yet) have gotten any young ladies pregnant out of wedlock. NONE of their children are on drugs. NONE of their children have dropped out of school. And NEITHER family is on any kind of public assistance. You can’t deny they must be doing something right.” I sincerely hope TLC continues to televise both the Duggars & the Bates.
Hey, my little girl was asking me is it a boy or a girl? She is hoing that it is a girl, but would take a boy. She loves babies. And she also loves the Bates family and the Duggar family, too.
Hello, I was just wondering if the Bates family has a website or email that we can contact them on?
Kasey
We are a large family not as large as the Duggar’s or Bates. We have 14 children. I did not give birth to all of them. I have adopted 9 in the process of adopting 1 and we are sponoring 1 child from Haiti. We have 4 bio and will take more if God desires.
I love that the they believe children are a blessing. We believe every child deserves a mommy and daddy. I have been asked don’t you have enough children. I always answer God brings the children who need us. We have children others consider damaged and not worthy. Every child is a gift from God.
Thanks to the Duggars and Bates for showing God’s love !
The Beach 15
Melissa Beach
Kemah , Texas
My husband and I know the Bates family and recieved a phone call from Gil yesterday informing us of the birth of #18 born six days ago, a baby boy! I don’t think they have a website or email since they do not have cable or internet in their home.
Hello Kathy! Thanks for the update. Actually the Bates do have a website! They update it pretty regularly. You an find it at http://www.gilbatesfamily.com.