Bringing Up Bates"Fire Trucks and Diaper Dumps"
- Gil and Kelly plan a “diaper pounding,” a small baby shower where guests bring diapers rather than traditional baby gifts, for Alyssa. “Because Alyssa lives so far away, I feel like I don’t get to be involved and do as much for her as I do the other married couples, so I really wanted to give her a shower or do something just to show her how excited we were,” says Kelly.
- After Thanksgiving, some of the younger kids visit the married couples. Back home, the Bates’ laundry room catches on fire. Lawson and Trace panic when Judson is nowhere to be found, but they end up finding him and are able to get everyone out of the house.
- Zach, a cop, is on patrol when the fire breaks out and is called to the scene. Gil and some of the boys are on a tree job when they hear what has happened, so they rush home. “I just didn’t know what to expect when we came down the driveway,” says Gil.
- “It’s unbelievable how fast fire can spread, especially in a room with tons of fuel, which would be clothes,” says Zach. “It could have ended much differently, and it’s a miracle from God that my family didn’t lose much more.”
- After the firefighters put the flames out, Gil goes into the laundry room to assess the damage. The fire has burned holes in the walls and blackened almost every surface According to the firefighters, had the door of the laundry room not been closed, the fire could have easily burned the entire house down.
- Judson and Jeb come clean: They accidentally started the fire while secretly playing with a lighter in the laundry room. “We’ve talked about ‘don’t play with fire,’” says Gil. “You think…everybody’s got it, but I guess they really didn’t get the seriousness of it.” The father of 19 has a serious talk with his two youngest children about the dangers of fire and plans to have more conversations with them in the coming days.
- The next day, a crew comes by to pick up all the clothing items that need to be cleaned. “About the 70th bag, and I realized we have too many clothes,” says Gil.
- Meanwhile, Kelly, Katie, and Emily Raynes (a family-friend who played at Michael’s wedding) are in Chicago visiting Michael and Brandon. Kelly is thrilled to be visiting her daughter, but she is anxious to return home to find out more about the fire.
- After spending a short time in Chicago, Kelly, Katie, and Michael head down to Florida for Alyssa’s diaper pounding. Rather than a women-only shower, this event is a fellowship for both guys and gals at a local park. Brandon is able to join them.
- “Me and Michael are really close, and it’s been really hard, telling her that I’m pregnant and talking about my pregnancy…and her wanting so bad to have a big family and have a child," shares Alyssa. “It’s a really delicate topic, and it’s just hard to watch because she would be such an amazing mother.”
- “There’s a little bit of sadness in all of our hearts because we all pictured that by this time that Michael would get to be holding a baby, and I know that’s her heart’s desire,” adds Kelly.
- Michael is “absolutely thrilled” for Alyssa, but she admits that she still feels a longing to have a child of her own. “Every time I hear of a pregnancy announcement, it is hard, but it doesn’t at all take away from the excitement of hearing about new life and a new baby.”
- Although taxing, Kelly says that the events of the week have brought the family closer together.