Katie and Travis: Will It Last?

[Italiangirl]

If it has happened, i hope that is the one of Trace to Chaney, Kate and Travis are still so young, and they are a thing from just a couple of months...I really hope they take some time and don't rush into marriage and babies at least a year between dating/courting, engagement and then marriage. But I'm not so positive for some reason this relationship seems to move fast 

[ariel9]

If they were to marry soon let’s just say they wouldn’t be the first fundies totally unprepared to marry to do so anyway. I mean in their circles they both love Jesus. Plus gritting err I mean God will provide. 

[JanasTattooParlor]

2 hours ago, Italiangirl said:

If it has happened, i hope that is the one of Trace to Chaney, Kate and Travis are still so young, and they are a thing from just a couple of months...I really hope they take some time and don't rush into marriage and babies at least a year between dating/courting, engagement and then marriage. But I'm not so positive for some reason this relationship seems to move fast 

I’m pretty sure Trace has already done his courtship proposal considering they announced they were dating already. If anything was filmed it would either be a real proposal or Katie’s courtship proposal. 

[Italiangirl]

@JanasTattooParlor you may be right that Trace has already courtpose to Chaney in private, since they are officially dating, but I still.hope that if something was filmed was related to them and not Katie (I know wishful hope) she is still just 18 and her and Travis are "special firend" just from the summer, please please let her wait another few months before starting court him. 

[rebeccawriter01]

I'm hoping Katie and Travis are still in their getting to know each other phase, but these fundies move fast. As far as Trace and Chaney, I'm guessing that the hugging photo that was posted a few weeks ago was probably from their courtship proposal photoshoot. These people don't do anything without a camera crew and a group of Taryn photos in full on blur. 

[ihaveanexamintwodays]

brief interlude: Trace and Chaney had their 1 tabloid article calling them "official", both posted instagram photos together the same time, and KJ herself used the term "courting" on an FB live before BUB very shortly after. I think they really are officially courting (Chaney's 21st bday was right before the string of announcements...). I believe she's in college, my guess a jr or sr this year, so we'll see when the proposal and wedding happen.

Katie, I believe finishes her cosmetology program next summer? If I recall, she started fall of '18, I think. She'll be able to bring in income, Travis has a richy-rich family so that she won't have to bring in income. Does anyone else remember Gil/KJ saying they offer a set amt of wedding $ for each daughter but the rest is paid for by the couple? If it lasts - I could see a courtship next summer, Katie saving up cosmetology income to help offset wedding costs, an engagement a year later with Travis halfway through school, a wedding 3-6mo after, and then newlyweds riding his family $ until he's done. 

Edited November 10, 2019 by ihaveanexamintwodays

[onyourwayhome]

I don’t see that owning Vision Bible College would make someone wealthy. My Kindergartener’s tuition is higher than theirs. 

[llucie]

11 hours ago, onyourwayhome said:

I don’t see that owning Vision Bible College would make someone wealthy. My Kindergartener’s tuition is higher than theirs. 

They also have a church and a school, i do think they must be at least high middle class, because poor people dont own rolex and expensives clothes like they do. Their houses also seem really big (mcmansions) but all american houses seem big to me.

[HereticHick]

On 11/11/2019 at 9:39 AM, llucie said:

They also have a church and a school, i do think they must be at least high middle class, because poor people dont own rolex and expensives clothes like they do. Their houses also seem really big (mcmansions) but all american houses seem big to me.

Appearances can lie. "Rolexes"  and other name brands can be fake. Houses can be heavily mortgaged (especially in the US-- I don't know what country you are in, but the odds are that the it is "easier" to buy a house in the US than in your country).

Edited November 18, 2019 by HereticHick

[llucie]

4 hours ago, HereticHick said:

Appearances can lie. "Rolexes"  and other name brands can be fake. Houses can be heavily mortgaged (especially in the US-- I don't know what country you are in, but the odds are that the it is "easier" to buy a house in the US than in your country).

I live in europe, anyway even if its easier to buy a house you cant really compare for example the tiny house Erin and her husband live in with the house her sister Josie already lives in. Richer people can get better houses in the USA too.

[nausicaa]

On 11/9/2019 at 9:40 PM, ihaveanexamintwodays said:

Does anyone else remember Gil/KJ saying they offer a set amt of wedding $ for each daughter but the rest is paid for by the couple? 

Yes. Gil and Kelly sat Michael down to discuss the wedding budget and laid this out in a BUB episode. Which seems the fairest way to do it, especially with that many daughters and a societal expectation of getting married young and a big (if not fancy) wedding. 

I'm still trying to figure out how Carlin afforded her wedding and if maybe she just had fewer people than Erin or Michael? (who were earning an income for quite a while before their own weddings but had more modest receptions in church halls). I wonder if the Stewart family pitched in or if that's a big no-no in their culture? Any former Fundies have experiences with this?

I realize it's none of my business, but I find the respective financial situations of a lot of Fundies really fascinating. 

[AliceInFundyland]

I have to think that the Bates are getting better on their grifting game. Carlin had quite a bit of time to work up public relations for her wedding. The show and family are more public than when the older kids managed their nuptials. She's likely learned a great deal about how to barter and deal.

(And didn't people complain about circumstances anyway? I thought she screwed some of her guests somehow.)

I also think they're having smaller numbers.

[Johannah]

Maybe the venues gave them a freebie or deep discount for the free publicity? And maybe the budget increased post-reality show success

[CarrotCake]

I could see Carlin and Even trying to grift for freebies at wedding suppliers.

More so than Michael and Brandon.

[kmachete14]

Depending on how flexible Carlin's venue was, the rental for 500 people max (which is already less than other fundie celeb's weddings) is about 10k. Then I think they talked about the caterer, a BBQ company, which probably wasn't Castleton Farm's usual catering service. Perhaps they negotiated the TV exposure or paid an "outside food" fee to have their own caterer. The BBQ company might have been a small business who cut them a deal. Feeding 500 people BBQ could be as cheap as $10 per person (bun, coleslaw, mac, and hotdog/sloppy joe/pulled pork/burger). You might have a total of 15k, + flowers (which if they still do through Kelly's sister might be at a discount as well, plus they only did flowers as bouquets and not table flowers, opting instead for candles that come from the venue) + dresses (probably bought from cheap places). I'd round out her total to 20k. 

Idk how much the parents contribute, but Carlin may have been saving up "her whole life" + Gil and Kelly's contribution + money from the shower/wedding presents + Evan's savings could scrape together to be that much. 

If they got it for less than that, well they are professional grifters! 

[Seculardaisy]

Carlin and Kelly made it clear in the episode where they toured her venue that the venue was being “generous” and offering it to them at a steep discount.

[ihaveanexamintwodays]

Carlin's wedding was significantly smaller (500 guests) than Erin's (>10k i believe it's been said) and Michael (~800 if i remember from her wedding episodes?), planned over a longer engagement (better budgeting and maybe a "saving up her whole life" type of situation). I too recall the venue-tour episode implying a generous discount, and I think the catering segment also noted the guy was a good deal. Michael's wedding used cheap catering from somewhere where the she or the Bates fam were frequent customers, idk about Erin or Alyssa's weddings. 

[RosyDaisy]

Alyssa had a "light dessert reception".  I take that to mean cake and punch.

[nausicaa]

13 hours ago, ihaveanexamintwodays said:

Carlin's wedding was significantly smaller (500 guests) than Erin's (>10k i believe it's been said) and Michael (~800 if i remember from her wedding episodes?), planned over a longer engagement (better budgeting and maybe a "saving up her whole life" type of situation). I too recall the venue-tour episode implying a generous discount, and I think the catering segment also noted the guy was a good deal. Michael's wedding used cheap catering from somewhere where the she or the Bates fam were frequent customers, idk about Erin or Alyssa's weddings. 

I remember that there were photos of Erin's friends and family helping prep the food (which seemed to be simple hors d'oeuvres, not a meal) and that her aunt made the cake. I didn't get the sense that there was an official caterer. 

Same for Alyssa's. It appeared that they had cake and punch (and maybe some popcorn? I recall that there was snarking on popcorn in cups) so no caterer, which would be one of the biggest expenses for a large wedding. 

[rebeccawriter01]

Erin, Alyssa, and Michael all worked prior to their weddings (teaching music lessons, nannying, working in the forist, etc.) and were contributing toward their weddings in addition to the set amount from Gil and Kelly. Since the show has been paying the family, Kelly is reportedly hiring the out of K-12 girls to tutor. In addition to that, Carlin has been teaching piano to some of the kids at Gil's church. So some of her money came from that. That painting of a lighthouse was done by the mother of one of her piano students. 

Erin and Alyssa both got married before the UP show, but had their weddings featured on 19KAC (Erin) and that Nightline special (Alyssa). In both cases, they bought discontinued or last season dresses from David's Bridal with alterations done by someone (Michael?) to add sleeves and a higher neckline. They didn't have huge receptions with food, which is pretty typical of Baptist weddings in the South. Michael sewed the bridesmaid dresses for Erin's wedding.

I was grown before I realized food was part of a reception, as it was always cake, punch, nuts, chips and dip, and some little mints in the basement or outbuilding of the local church. You were fancy if you had soda. I remember one church was near a convenience store and between the wedding and the reception, the guests were sneaking over and getting 32 ounce sodas to drink while waiting for the picture taking to end. The wedding photos of everyone throwing bird seed at the couple looked like the Beverly Hillbillies on vacation with everyone with a big cup and straw in one hand and a handful of seed in the other. 

I would guess that Josie working in the salon helped her with her costs too. It's not like these girls are saving up for anything but a wedding, as that is their life goal #1. 

As far as Carlin:  Castleton Farms does not do freebies, as they are normally well booked and don't need the publicity, but they apparently did waive the fees for using outside florists, caterers, etc. Sometimes they even charge extra if there is going to be a camera crew there, as there is more potential for damage to the lawn from the trucks and stuff like that. My guess is they charged their normal fee for booking the location and then waived the outside vendor fees and maybe rental costs for chairs, decor, etc. 

At the time of the wedding, Kelly Jo posted pics of BBQ and sides that were being served there and promoting the name of the business. When people asked about it, she commented that Gil and the boys had done some tree work for them in the past and they received a big discount on it. Legally, they can't say that the got the food for free. There is a big liability in that if someone was to get food poisoning or something like that. 

Edited November 21, 2019 by rebeccawriter01

[nelliebelle1197]

22 hours ago, rebeccawriter01 said:

Erin, Alyssa, and Michael all worked prior to their weddings (teaching music lessons, nannying, working in the forist, etc.) and were contributing toward their weddings in addition to the set amount from Gil and Kelly. Since the show has been paying the family, Kelly is reportedly hiring the out of K-12 girls to tutor. In addition to that, Carlin has been teaching piano to some of the kids at Gil's church. So some of her money came from that. That painting of a lighthouse was done by the mother of one of her piano students. 

Erin and Alyssa both got married before the UP show, but had their weddings featured on 19KAC (Erin) and that Nightline special (Alyssa). In both cases, they bought discontinued or last season dresses from David's Bridal with alterations done by someone (Michael?) to add sleeves and a higher neckline. They didn't have huge receptions with food, which is pretty typical of Baptist weddings in the South. Michael sewed the bridesmaid dresses for Erin's wedding.

I was grown before I realized food was part of a reception, as it was always cake, punch, nuts, chips and dip, and some little mints in the basement or outbuilding of the local church. You were fancy if you had soda. I remember one church was near a convenience store and between the wedding and the reception, the guests were sneaking over and getting 32 ounce sodas to drink while waiting for the picture taking to end. The wedding photos of everyone throwing bird seed at the couple looked like the Beverly Hillbillies on vacation with everyone with a big cup and straw in one hand and a handful of seed in the other. 

I would guess that Josie working in the salon helped her with her costs too. It's not like these girls are saving up for anything but a wedding, as that is their life goal #1. 

As far as Carlin:  Castleton Farms does not do freebies, as they are normally well booked and don't need the publicity, but they apparently did waive the fees for using outside florists, caterers, etc. Sometimes they even charge extra if there is going to be a camera crew there, as there is more potential for damage to the lawn from the trucks and stuff like that. My guess is they charged their normal fee for booking the location and then waived the outside vendor fees and maybe rental costs for chairs, decor, etc. 

At the time of the wedding, Kelly Jo posted pics of BBQ and sides that were being served there and promoting the name of the business. When people asked about it, she commented that Gil and the boys had done some tree work for them in the past and they received a big discount on it. Legally, they can't say that the got the food for free. There is a big liability in that if someone was to get food poisoning or something like that. 

What? This is not true. Of course you can announce donations of food and consumables.  Liability is liability no matter whether food is donated or discounted. 

[rebeccawriter01]

On 11/22/2019 at 11:37 AM, nelliebelle1197 said:

What? This is not true. Of course you can announce donations of food and consumables.  Liability is liability no matter whether food is donated or discounted. 

I am basing and standing behind my statement based on Loudon, Tennessee ordinances. Gratis and in mind food donations are not permissible and some money must exchange hands. That could be $1 per plate rather than $10, but there must be such an exchange. 

[nelliebelle1197]

1 hour ago, rebeccawriter01 said:

I am basing and standing behind my statement based on Loudon, Tennessee ordinances. Gratis and in mind food donations are not permissible and some money must exchange hands. That could be $1 per plate rather than $10, but there must be such an exchange. 

 I am fairly certain you are interpreting that incorrectly. Can you link? And your statement discusses liability for food poisoning, not Loudon, Tn ordinances. So this is a different statement.

 

Hmmmm... I actually just pulled the code for Loudon, Tn. There is nothing in the code that outlaws restaurants donating food in exchange for publicity. It's actually a commerce regulation issue and I am fairly certain it would actually be unconstitutional for a municipality to regulate the exchange of goods and services and what constitutes payment. The only prohibition I found was on city employees accepting any thing free of charge.

Edited November 24, 2019 by nelliebelle1197

[Ivycoveredtower]

Katie had been in Philadelphia with travis and his family  and just now posted a picture of her with him in New York city I smell courtship.

[Italiangirl]

You think they will officially courting before Trace and Chaney? Even if we are still not sure if Traney are courting or getting to know or what else...

I could see an announce from one of them (Katie or Tace) be made around Christmas, or if not for Christmas for the "I love you day". I guess will see pretty soon.