'A Monumental Proposal' Recap

Bringing Up Bates "A Monumental Proposal"

• After Kelton surprises her at work, Josie has to run home to pack. When Josie, Kelton, and the parents arrive in Utah, they are amazed by the beautiful scenery.
• “My nerves had been high when I asked Josie at work to come on this trip, but when we landed, I thought everything was going to calm down a little bit, and really my nerves just kept building the entire time,” says Kelton.
• The group arrives at their rental condo in Moab, and Kelton gives Josie the first packet, which represents the first stage of their relationship—the “best friend” stage. The packet contains a handwritten letter, pictures, and a best friend charm for Josie’s bracelet. “I was just amazed at the thoughtfulness,” says Kelly.
• The following day, the first stop is Eklecticafe. When the server brings out coffee, he presents Josie with the next packet, representing the “boyfriend/girlfriend” stage. The packet has another letter, more pictures, and another charm (a coffee cup).
• As the engagement unfolds, Kelly films the highlights on her phone and sends the videos to the rest of the family.
• Kelton has planned a sightseeing tour of Arches National Park in a 4x4 vehicle. Michael and Kelton arrange for one of the Navtec Expeditions employees to place the next two packets in two scenic locations ahead of Josie and Kelton's arrival.
• When the road gets bumpy, Kelly starts freaking out. “…Every time Mrs. Bates would get in a panic about something, [the guide/driver] would just continue to antagonize and make it worse,” laughs Kelton.
• At Double Arch, Kelton leads Josie to the third packet, representing their courtship. He gives her a bridge charm, another letter, and more pictures. “There’s something about seeing your child happy,” says Kelly. “That brings the most fulfillment. And knowing how happy that Josie is going to be when Kelton surprises her…I’ve been counting down the days for this.”
• The final destination is Tower Arch. Josie notices that Kelton is becoming increasingly nervous, and she expects that the big moment has arrived. The final packet (the engagement stage), is sitting at the proposal spot. While Josie is looking at the infinity charm, Kelton gets down on one knee.
• “Josie Bates, you are the love of my life, and I don’t want to do life or live without you," Kelton says. "Everything that we have been through together has brought us to this point, and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you’re the one that I want to spend the rest of my life with. Will you marry me?” Josie says yes!
• “I am completely blown away by all of the planning and work and sentiment that Kelton put into the trip and the engagement, and now I’m just excited to get married,” says Josie.
• “It seems like, as soon as we check one thing off of our calendar, ten more things are added to the calendar,” says Kelly. “It’s like the calendar keeps growing just like the family keeps growing.”
• Back at the Bates house, Carlin and the Paines head up a huge cleaning and redecorating project as a surprise for Gil and Kelly. They repaint the living room and dining room white, and they repaint the exterior doors and dining table blue. They also de-clutter. “I don’t’ know what Dad would have thought if he was here just because he’s a pack rat,” says Erin. The finishing touches are new decorations and family photos for the walls.
• Meanwhile, Zach and Whitney sit down with the owner of Hunter Valley Farm, the venue for their upcoming vow renewal, to discuss decorations and logistics. Whitney says there are two reasons why they are doing a vow renewal: she wants to show Zach how much she still loves him, and she wants to honor her parents because they missed out on her wedding.
• As always, Zach is all about the food. “Everything could fall apart that day, but as long as we have good food, he’s going to be okay,” says Whitney.

'Blue or Pink, What Do You Think?' Recap

Bringing Up Bates "Blue or Pink, What Do You Think?"

• “When I found out Tori was expecting, the first thing I said is, ‘Can I plan you a gender reveal party?’” says Erin, who loves parties. Tori and Bobby arrive at the event, attended by the entire Bates family and hosted under a pavilion at a local park. The gender is soon to be revealed, but that doesn’t stop the family from trying to pull the news out of the parents-to-be.
• Gender reveal parties are a newer thing for the Bates because Gil and Kelly enjoyed waiting until birth to find out the gender of their babies.
• After lunch, everyone divides into two groups, which turn out to be about even, based on their guess. To make the announcement, Tori and Bobby fill a balloon with blue powder, and then Tori pitches the balloon to bobby, who hits it with a bat. Both Tori and Bobby admit that they were hoping for a boy first. His name will be Robert Ellis Smith IV, but his nickname will be Kade. Bobby says it’s Latin for “fourth generation.”
• At Zach and Whitney’s house one morning, they discuss plans for their vow renewal over breakfast with the kids. They are all eating Honey Nut Cheerios, which Bradley and Kaci love. “I like Cheerios, with milk and a spoon,” says Bradley. 
• “We always ate off-brand everything growing up, except for Honey Nut Cheerios,” says Zach. 
• Later, Kelton shares his proposal plans with his father, two sisters, and two brothers. “It’s a huge relief that all these plans are coming together,” he says “Now that we’re getting things locked down, it’s starting to hit how excited I am that I actually get to propose in Utah.”
• “We kind of have an idea of when we want to get married, but I don’t have a ring, and it needs to change soon, so hopefully those plans are in the making,” says Josie.
• On the big day, Kelton picks up pink roses at Powell Florist and drives over to Josie's place of employment. “As I was walking up to her salon, my heart was just pounding in my chest,” admits Kelton. “I was not expecting to be so nervous.”
• When Josie sees Kelton and asks him why he's there, he responds: “I have some bad news and some good news, okay? The bad news is, I don’t think your next client is going to show up because that’s a fake appointment. The good news is, we’re going on a trip. We’re going to take you somewhere that you’ve always wanted to go, and we’re going right now.” 
• Josie shares she has never been one for surprises but that she has come to enjoy Kelton’s surprises.
• Gil and Kelly present Josie with a cake decorated with graham crackers and a cactus to see if she can guess the destination, which she does.
• At the start of the trip, Kelton presents Josie with a charm bracelet and an airplane charm. Along the way, he will give her additional charms: a heart that says “best friends” to symbolize the start of their relationship; a coffee cup because they have shared many coffee dates; a bridge because Kelton asked Josie to court while standing on a covered bridge; and an infinity symbol.

Tune in next week for the final episode of season seven, which will feature the proposal!

'Baby Fever and Proposal Decisions" Recap

Bringing Up Bates “Baby Fever and Proposal Decisions”

• A group called Carpenters For Christ has arrived to help Gil and the boys expand the church. “They like to start really early, so they said, ‘Be out here about 5:30,’” says Gil, chuckling. “Bates time, 5:30 means 5:30pm.” But the Bates know they will need to do better than “Bates time” for this project.
• The three middle boys are thrilled to be part of the building crew. “We got a lot out of this process,” explains Jackson. “We got some blisters, we got really tired, but we got a few learned lessons. It’s fun, and it’s hard work.”
• On the first day, the crew gets a slow start due to some unexpected rain, but after just six days, they are already working on putting up the roof and installing windows. “Only about 15 percent of the guys are skilled…” says Nathan. “The rest of us, this isn’t what we do for a living, but we’re just kind of taking directions from people…”
• After Carpenters For Christ leaves, the Bates still have a lot of work to do, but they are extremely grateful for the progress that has been made.
• Whitney drives 10 minutes over to Erin’s house for a play date. “When I first had Everly, just adjusting to the life with three kids was really hard,” admits Erin. “Now I think it’s getting easier because Carson and Brooklyn are amazing with her.”
• Whitney is hit hard with baby fever when she holds newborn Everly, and Erin completely understands how she feels. “Baby fever is very real and very scary, especially when it’s my wife that has the baby fever,” jokes Chad.
• “I just love these kids growing up together,” says Whitney. “It just makes me so happy.” She states that she really wants a third child but that she is scared, as well.
• Later, Gil and Kelly meet Kelton and his dad, Michael, at their house for an engagement discussion. Gil and Kelly had given Josie and Kelton the yellow light, which Gil had intended to mean “move forward with caution.” But Kelton says that Josie has been putting the pressure on him to propose, although he doesn’t seem to mind.
• “Josie kind of established the parameters when she says she wanted a fall wedding, and not next fall, so I think the boundaries have been set,” laughs Kelly.
• Kelton is considering proposing under the same covered bridge where he asked Josie to begin a courtship, but Kelly gently suggests another idea. Gil and Kelly are planning to take Josie on a birthday trip to Utah, a place Josie has always wanted to visit. “What if you showed up there and surprised her?” Kelly tells Kelton, who is absolutely thrilled.
• When Kelton pulls out the ring, Gil and Kelly are shocked that he is so on top of things. “The [Balka family] is already a step ahead of us,” says Kelly, who thinks the ring is the most beautiful thing she has ever seen.
• As Gil and Kelly leave, Kelton is excited but is also very nervous about planning this big event.  

'The Ring, the Dress and Ready for Next Steps' Recap

Bringing Up Bates "The Ring, the Dress and Ready for Next Steps"

• Kelton, accompanied by Bobby, goes engagement ring shopping at Bristol & Bragg Jewelers in Maryville, Tennessee. He already has a square, princess-cut diamond but needs to have it set. “Josie, she was pretty specific in what she liked,” says Kelton.
• Gil and Kelly and the boys arrive at the Smiths’ Knoxville apartment to help them pack their belongings into a friend’s moving truck. Within an hour, everything is piled into the truck, including a small car. This past year has gone by so fast,” says Tori. “There’s a lot of things that are happening, and it’s really overwhelming, but we’re really excited.”
• When Tori and Bobby and the Bates arrive at the new apartment in Hendersonville, Tennessee, the following day, their new church family comes by to help unload. The first-floor apartment is gorgeous, but it’s also double the price of their old one. “…The living room is huge…and the bathrooms are huge, and the closets are huge, and I love it,” says Tori. “I’m so excited about it.”
• After unloading, everyone goes out for dinner. “I think I’m still trying to put off the emotions,” says Kelly, knowing she will soon have to say goodbye to her daughter.
• In Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, Whitney and Zach visit Renee’s Bridal to choose a dress for their vow renewal. Renee has designed wedding dresses for Tori and some of the Duggars. Carlin and Josie go along for support. “Taking young girls around wedding dresses is like taking mamas around babies,” says Zach. “It kind of starts the fever.”
• The first dress has a keyhole back that everyone likes. The second one has a high neck and no sleeves and immediately becomes the favorite. But when Whitney tries on the third gown, Zach tells her she looks beautiful in that one, as well. “I was no help…” he admits.
• “The last one was really pretty,” says Whitney. “But we all just kept referring back to that second one because it was just a mature, classy, beautiful dress that would absolutely fit this event. It was the one.”