Michael Bates Courting!

[RosyDaisy]

It seems to me that since Gil is now on Gothard's board of directors, some of the royal families are taking an interest in the Bateses. I predict that Lawson, Nathan, and Tori will be courting soon.

[Closed Womb]

Well, now this is happy news to wake up to, if only to end the "poor Michael" comments every time a Bates family member goes on a date. Seriously, I am very happy for her. And Kelly wasted no time getting THAT news up on the blog.

I don't get the same vibe that Kelly and Gil would make Michael stay home to be a nanny if they had more money. They seem to really love their kids and want them to have their own life. I do think there are a lot of superficial things about the families that the Bates kids are marrying into that would make JB and Michelle raise an eyebrow -- pants wearing, college going (although I am wont to call a Medical Billing certificate any kind of "college", but it is focused career training which is nothing to scoff at), women-working-outside-the-home-among-heathen-strangers kind of things -- and I'm damn happy about it.

[NotALoserLikeYou]

I think what the Bates have going for them is they allow their children to naturally spend time with and develop attractions to people. All the couples found each other and fell in love. Some of these fundies arrange things to the point where it's just a business transaction or a matter of practicality. But then the Bates standards of courtship and purity still apply and both parents and kids seem happy. And the parents know its healthy for their kids to move on, whereas the duggars are scared of it and don't allow for as much "mingling" to occur.

[formergothardite]

IM happy for Michael. As a mother of more children then Kelly. I didn't rely on my oldest girls for help all the time. Just normal chores that all my kids did. I think Kelly is more like that. Her older daughters are happier and less stressed then Duggar girls. I feel JB and Michelle it's more a brand then family. Plus Michelle is lazy mother.

What makes you think that they are just doing normal chores? They admit to using the buddy system. One of the last babies was assigned a buddy before it was even born and that buddy was so parent like that she was the only one to know the gender before birth, not Kelly. The young teen also traveled with Gil and Kelly to care for the newborn baby. There are also younger girls to take on the burden of helping raise the children where the Duggars don't have that, so that might be why the older Bates daughters look less stressed than the Duggars, they have more sister-moms to help them out

[Closed Womb]

IM happy for Michael. As a mother of more children then Kelly. I didn't rely on my oldest girls for help all the time. Just normal chores that all my kids did. I think Kelly is more like that. Her older daughters are happier and less stressed then Duggar girls. I feel JB and Michelle it's more a brand then family. Plus Michelle is lazy mother.

I agree with you. I remember an episode of United Bates wherein Kelly was taking the girls out to shop for ingredients and then cook a normal sized meal. It was obvious that the girls knew nothing about cooking. They were grossed out at cutting chicken, IICR. If you ignore the part about the girls learning to cook for "a feller" someday, I considered it a very good sign of their beliefs: the whole thing spoke to the kids not being slave labor.

Most families with children give the kids chores in order to teach some responsibility. I think the Bates fell into this category rather than slave categories.

[copper]

Jim Bob must be crying in Springdale. The Bates seem to be pairing off with a higher caliber of fundies than the Duggars have been able to snag so far. And it is rather telling that as the Bates have flown off the shelves, not one flight is with a Duggar.

[Mela99]

Brandon seems to be into ATI. He wrote this for Journey:

http://livingthejourney.com/journey-on/ ... -the-lord/

They also seem to live close to Frankenmuth, MI. That's definitely where some of the pictures are from, and they visited when Michael was there last year.

ETA: Yes, her sister was Erin's bridesmaid. I believe Erin visited them in the summer. Either them or someone else in the saker area of Michigan.

Whooooa. There might be a new Bates family an hour from me!

[Closed Womb]

Jim Bob must be crying in Springdale. The Bates seem to be pairing off with a higher caliber of fundies than the Duggars have been able to snag so far. And it is rather telling that as the Bates have flown off the shelves, not one flight is with a Duggar.

No joke. JB's getting emails from creeper fans who think it'd be fun to have a hot, submissive wife, while the Bates family is actually living and meeting people in the process. I wonder if fan email has actually made him super suspicious of anyone who shows an interest in the daughters?

Although, it's pretty unfair of me to try to figure out why one group is marrying off/courting at a rapid rate and the other is not. It could have nothing to do with needing kids to run the house, or issues of control, or arrested development stemming from a camera in your face for weeks on end. Maybe the Bates kids are just *nicer* than the Duggar girls?

[Seren Ann]

No joke. JB's getting emails from creeper fans who think it'd be fun to have a hot, submissive wife, while the Bates family is actually living and meeting people in the process. I wonder if fan email has actually made him super suspicious of anyone who shows an interest in the daughters?

Although, it's pretty unfair of me to try to figure out why one group is marrying off/courting at a rapid rate and the other is not. It could have nothing to do with needing kids to run the house, or issues of control, or arrested development stemming from a camera in your face for weeks on end. Maybe the Bates kids are just *nicer* than the Duggar girls?

It's true that many people who have met the Duggars say they are very smug and self-satisfied... maybe the potential suitors find the girls too confident to make a "good" submissive wife ?

[nellautumngirl]

No joke. JB's getting emails from creeper fans who think it'd be fun to have a hot, submissive wife, while the Bates family is actually living and meeting people in the process. I wonder if fan email has actually made him super suspicious of anyone who shows an interest in the daughters?

Although, it's pretty unfair of me to try to figure out why one group is marrying off/courting at a rapid rate and the other is not. It could have nothing to do with needing kids to run the house, or issues of control, or arrested development stemming from a camera in your face for weeks on end. Maybe the Bates kids are just *nicer* than the Duggar girls?

I'm sure they could marry off Jana in no time if they wanted to.. Jill seems hard-working, gentle and baby-loving as well. They managed to marry off Jessa (although we'll have to see how that one works out) and she isn't exactly the humble, meek helpmeet she's supposed to be.

[lascuba]

I haven't paid much attention to the Bates, but I get the impression the those kids just have more personality than the Duggars. I know how people act on camera isn't the whole of who they are, but I honestly can't picture any of the Duggar girls, except maybe Jinger, talking about anything other than Jesus, the Bible, missionary work, etc. I mean, they described one of Jessa's favorite activities as "disciple-ing" to her friends. The Bateses seem to have actual interests. No matter how religious you are, when it comes to marrying someone you still want someone you can have an actual conversation with, you know? Keeping sweet ain't gonna cut it.

[Closed Womb]

I'm sure they could marry off Jana in no time if they wanted to.. Jill seems hard-working, gentle and baby-loving as well. They managed to marry off Jessa (although we'll have to see how that one works out) and she isn't exactly the humble, meek helpmeet she's supposed to be.

Although it seems to be what matters the most in fundie circles, I wasn't talking about meekness or submissiveness. I was really just talking about good, old fashioned being a nice person to be around.

[Ralar]

Honestly, I don't think Chad is that attractive...but that's just me. This guy, however, is cute.

I find Chad creepy looking, mostly because his doppelganger is Paul Ryan. I think Michael and Brandon are both average looking.

For people who despise same-sex marriage, I can't wait to see the engagement/wedding announcement:

Mr. and Mrs. Gil Bates and Mr. and Mrs. Ron Keilen announce the engagement of their children, Michael and Brandon

[ILoveJellybeans]

IM happy for Michael. As a mother of more children then Kelly. I didn't rely on my oldest girls for help all the time. Just normal chores that all my kids did. I think Kelly is more like that. Her older daughters are happier and less stressed then Duggar girls. I feel JB and Michelle it's more a brand then family. Plus Michelle is lazy mother.

More kids than Kelly :o How many do you have?

I wonder if hes calling her Michaela because people might assume he is gay if he mentions dating someone called Michael.

[Ralar]

I once had a roommate named Michaela. She went by Mikie. I thought it was super cute, and it fit her perfectly. Mikie would be perfect for a girl/woman named Michael.

[Sister Mozz]

I just saw this so I haven't read the whole thread, but Michael looks SO HAPPY! I am thrilled for her! Also completely shocked.

Will be coming back to read the rest of what you guys have found out as soon as I can.

[lizzielouwho]

I noticed on the very first picture of the wrapped book/journal, he has spelled her name "Michaela." How long has it been since Gil & Kelly dropped the "a"?

Maybe she has decided she likes the added "a". If that is the case I hope she gets married in a state that will allow her to legally change it when she changes her maiden name to her married name.

[lizzielouwho]

Wow, this came out of nowhere! I was expecting the next courtship news would probably be Lawson.

I feel bad for Michael though - we know she doesn't like the limelight at all to the point that she didn't want to be a bridesmaid in her sister's wedding, and now she has a whole lot of attention coming her way! I was anxious about all the attention myself on my own wedding day, I can't even imagine how scary it'll be for her to have hundreds of people watching her and getting to see her first kiss and all those other moments she probably wishes were private.

I do hope that if she doesn't want a big wedding that her family and his will respect her wishes. I am like Michael in that I also don't like the limelight and I really hate to be the center of attention. I never wanted birthday parties, or wedding/baby showers because I didn't feel comfortable with that. I even turned down being a bridesmaid in my brother's wedding.

[nellautumngirl]

Although it seems to be what matters the most in fundie circles, I wasn't talking about meekness or submissiveness. I was really just talking about good, old fashioned being a nice person to be around.

Sorry, my reading comprehension is off today. But Jana and Jill also seem to be nice!

[nokidsmom]

Although it seems to be what matters the most in fundie circles, I wasn't talking about meekness or submissiveness. I was really just talking about good, old fashioned being a nice person to be around.

It could very well be that simple. That they are simply nice and pleasant to be around. I often get the impression that the Duggars can be real pain in the arses to deal with. If I lived in NWA I would avoid them like the plague.

But there's also the show. True, the Bates have been on TLC but they don't have that long running show and the notoriety that goes with it like the Duggars have. Plus add the stress of keeping the dog and pony show going. The travel, going to unfamiliar places while being filmed. And on top of taking care of your parent's kids through it all. Traipsing around on political campaigns. Dealing with fans. Those girls are going to be more stressed and it probably shows. And they are more spoiled from the perks. The Bates girls don't deal with all of that, aside from raising the parents' kids part.

[xReems]

I sometimes wonder if the reason why there's less courtship in the Duggar household is due to the girls having an aloof attitude. These girls, compared to most fundie families, have been living the high life because of their show. They could have high expectations on who they want for husbands and expect the same royal treatment like they currently do. It could also be that some suitors just do not want to be around the cameras, which the Duggars might find as a problem.

It could also be that JB just has high expectations. He did state that of all the men who have come to him, Ben was the only who "passed the test". It could be because Ben it turning into a younger version of JB, which is an absolute plus for Dimbulb or it could just be that more creeps want to court the girls.

It could very well be that compared to JB and Michelle, Gil and Kelly allow their children to enjoy the dating aspect courtship before the engagement. I know in one episode, Michelle stated that the courtship process is more like a "business environment" compared to Kelly who has said that they view the courtship as a period to woo one another. I'm not saying that Kelly and Gil are not crazy with their conservative viewpoints but it does seem like they are constantly changing the courtship model and letting their children to have a bit more freedom than most fundies would.

If the Duggar girls are expecting the royal treatment than they're in for a real surprise when they realize just how small the pool is going to get.

All I got to say is that it's not surprising than between the 2 families, the Duggars have had 1 marriage, 1 courtship, and the Bates have had 2 marriages and 2 courtships..probably more to come.

As for Michael, I'm so glad that she found someone! The guy is pretty good looking and they both look happy together.

[silverspoons]

I'm glad Kelly kept this private till now and if Michael is happy that is all that matters. I do feel like Michael wedding with get some attention, with it being 2 ATI families. I think Zac's wedding will be the most low key of the 4.

I wonder if this changes the family almost from a mega family to a large family again. Losing the oldest 4 kids, then having 2 adult sons that work leaves them with 13 kids. Maybe it is almost like the "old days" for Kelly. As we have seen with the Duggars it is hard to plan activities for ages 2-24. I'm sure Kelly within the year having kids 2-16 will be more like a normal large homeschool family. I have always felt like Kelly was more involved in education and now with just younger kids in the household, it will make it easier for her.

[Finduilas]

AMAZING ! Go Michael(a) !

I'm sad for the little one who cryed at the wedding (Callie?) because she thought Michael was going to leave too ... clever kid, she knew something was going on :p

[BullyJBG]

Wow, this came out of nowhere! I was expecting the next courtship news would probably be Lawson.

I feel bad for Michael though - we know she doesn't like the limelight at all to the point that she didn't want to be a bridesmaid in her sister's wedding, and now she has a whole lot of attention coming her way! I was anxious about all the attention myself on my own wedding day, I can't even imagine how scary it'll be for her to have hundreds of people watching her and getting to see her first kiss and all those other moments she probably wishes were private.

I wondered about that. I figured she might choose to have a very small wedding when her time comes, like just their immediate families. But hey, if them and Alyssa and John get engaged at the same time, they could do a double wedding! Let Alyssa have more of a spotlight, and Michaela more behind the scenes. Well, we'll see what happens.

And about Jessa, didn't Jimbob say Ben was the first out of the "potential suitors" to have a ministry mindset? Probably the other guys who showed interest in any of the Duggar daughters are just testing them, or "weirdos" as one of them said. Or the other young men discussed here like the Staddon brothers and the 2 of-age Wissmann brothers, and the other Waller brothers, aren't really into having cameras following them. JMO. Then again, with Jill desiring to go back to South America, and going to Nepal, etc, I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up with a man of another race. We'll see.

[notaduggarlover]

I'm happy for her. She looks happy in those pictures. I'm just glad she didn't end up with a Duggar. She did much better with this guy.