Another Bates Courtship?

In a recent clip (embedded below) from last week's season three premiere of Bringing Up Bates, Nathan's siblings spill the beans about a possible courtship.

"Nathan has his girlfriend," says Callie, 6, when asked which of her brothers and sisters will be the next to walk down the aisle. "Shhh, no he doesn't!" adds Ellie, 8. Trace follows with another comment about his brother's relationship status.

The Bates family has not yet made a formal announcement, but we will keep you posted.

Video courtesy of UP

Celebrating the Bates Dad

Many of you are aware that Gil Bates was an athletic teenager, but did you know that he won the 1983 South Carolina State Wrestling Championship at age 18? He was also voted Most Outstanding Wrestler.
But more impressive than Gil's athletic accomplishments is his solid example of Christ-likeness and biblical manhood. Wishing the Bates patriarch a happy birthday and a blessed year ahead!

The Bates family has another reason to celebrate, as they look forward to seeing their family grow in the New Year. Watch the season three premiere of Bringing Up Bates to find out who's expecting! (Click here for details.)

Gil and Kelly Bates visit John, Alyssa, and Allie Webster

Photo courtesy of thebatesfamily.com

Recap: "Best Bates Moments"

On this New Year’s Eve special, the Bates review the best moments from the first two seasons of their show.

• On Valentine’s Day, Zach surprises his wife by arranging to have “Three Nice Guys,” an acapella quartet, stop by to perform two love songs. 
• Alyssa announces her pregnancy to the family with a shirt that says “Bun in the Oven.” 
• Erin and Chad share their pregnancy news with Gil and Kelly during a double date. 
• While Mom and Dad are away, Erin and Chad and the kids remodel the master suite. 
• Kelly and the children throw a surprise 50^th birthday party for Gil, to which they invite friends he hasn't seen in many years. The kids give speeches and perform skits that bring their dad to tears. 
• The Bates travel down to Florida and crowd into Alyssa and John’s tiny house.
• While helping Zach finish Bradley’s nursery, Gil reminds his oldest son that “Bradley and Whitney are more important than anything else you’re trying to do.”
• To celebrate Carlin's entry into womanhood, Gil and Kelly take their fifth oldest daughter out for a dinner date. Carlin is overjoyed when her parents give her a beautiful purity ring. 
• The older boys attempt to take over their younger brothers' fort using air-soft guns, but they don’t end up succeeding.
• The Bates make memories on a family camping trip.
• Gil and the kids convince Kelly to ride the Wild Eagle roller coaster at Dollywood. “That by far is the scariest thing I’ve ever been on,” says the mom of 19, who screams the entire time.
• Lawson turns up the drama after his wisdom teeth extraction, and the family enjoys teasing him.
• Erin is touched when her friend Kelsey not only throws her a baby shower but also organizes a balloon release in memory of the babies that Erin and Chad miscarried before becoming pregnant with Carson.
• Kelly brings the family to tears when she shares how thankful she and Gil are for their children. “Many times we look back, and we feel like failures as parents…and y’all are the greatest kids in the world,” she says. “Y’all encourage us so much.”
• Kelly and the girls take Whitney on a walk to jump-start labor. When Whitney is admitted into the hospital to give birth to Bradley, so invites her mother, mother-in-law, and oldest sisters-in-law to join her during labor. 
• When Allie Jane Webster arrives, Gil and Kelly drop everything and head down to Florida to meet their first granddaughter. 
• After a difficult pregnancy, Erin endures an especially painful labor, but the new mom says Carson is more than worth it.
• Brandon organizes a complex scavenger hunt through Washington D.C. for Michael, which culminates with his proposal. 

Tune in to UP on Thursday, January 7th, for the season three premiere of Bringing Up Bates. (Click here for episode summaries.) We wish you a blessed New Year!

Bates Christmas Traditions

Do you need some holiday cheer? Listen to Erin (Bates) Paine and Alyssa (Bates) Webster, accompanied by Carson and Allie Jane, share their favorite childhood Christmas memories (video below).

Only 23 days until the season three premiere of Bringing Up Bates! (Click here to watch the latest promo video.)

Video courtesy of UP

#TBT: Bates Family Christmas Pics

Only 15 days 'til Christmas! (And 28 days 'til the season three premiere of Bringing Up Bates!)

As Zach, Erin, Lawson, Tori, and Carlin perform their rendition of "Jingle Bells" in the video below, watch for snapshots of Bates family Christmases from years past.

Video courtesy of UP

37 Days 'til Season 3

Are you counting down the days until the season three premiere of Bringing Up Bates? We sure are! The fun-loving, super-sized Bates family returns to UP at 9pm ET/8pm CT on Thursday, January 7th.

For those who haven't heard our big announcement, readers who can't tune in live can watch past episodes on iTunes, Amazon, and gMovies.com.

You're going to love this promo video:

Video courtesy of UP

New Blog Header

What do you think of the new header? We are grateful to a loyal reader from Norway for taking the time to design it for us.

Less than six weeks to go until the season three premiere of Bringing Up Bates! Did you know that season one is available on iTunes and Amazon Instant video? Check out Sunday's blog post for details.

*We apologize for the typo in Gil's name and have asked the designer to correct it. 

Photos courtesy of UP/the Bates family