A big new family is in town and it is not the Duggars, but a good friend of theirs. Here is the Tennessee counterpart of the jumbo-sized "19 Kids and Counting" brood, the Bates family. Guided by Gil and Kelly Jo Bates, all 19 kids in this new celebrity kin will be seen in their new reality show titled "Bringing Up Bates."
As per People.com, the heads of the Bates family did not plan to have a family this huge, but with the 19th child in, it is safe to say that the couple of 27 years made a complete turnaround.
Bates patriarch Gil manages a tree service. With the help of his sons Lawson, 22, Nathan 21, and Trace, 17, they strive to keep the business smooth. Gil's lovely wife Kelly Jo keeps her hands full with overseeing their kids' home schooling and cooking the meals. Doing the laundry is also an entry on her checklist.
The Bates siblings include 11 boys and 8 girls. The oldest of the Bates kids is 25 years old, while the youngest is a little one aged 2. Four of Gil and Kelly Jo's children are already married, and just like the married kids from the Duggar family, they went through a set of strict dating rules before they walked the aisle. While front hugs are a no-no for Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, Gil and Kelly Jo allow these kinds of hugs. But it will take a special occasion for hugs like these to transpire. Basically, the Bates kids mostly have side hugs when courting.
As per The Epoch Times, the family would not change despite the publicity.
"I hope they come away with a love for God, a love for family, that husbands would love their wives and wives would try to encourage their husbands, that they'd spend time to love their kids, they'd say I want to put my life, because this is the most important thing, in the long-term in my life is the family I raise," Gil said about the show, as quoted by The Epoch Times.
Their official page is now up and the Bates family shared their goal in gracing the new series.
"Our goal is to train up our children in the ways of the Lord that they might enter work places, churches, and homes as soldiers for Christ and servants to all. And in so doing we'll all have purpose and direction for life."
"Bringing Up Bates" will premiere in UP network on Jan. 1 next year at 9 p.m. ET.
