Kelly Jo Bates
Kelly Jo Bates
Kelly Jo Bates nee Callaham is the daughter of late Kenneth H. Callaham, Sr. and Betty Jo Callaham. [1]
She is the younger sister of Chip Callaham, Kay Mount, and Kim Adkins, the older sister of Beth and Beka Miller, and the stepsister of William, Ty, and Lee Miller.[1]
She is the wife of Gil Bates and mother of Zachary Bates, Lawson, Nathan, Trace, Katie, Jackson, Warden, Isaiah, Addallee, Ellie, Callie, Judson, and Jeb Bates, Michaela Keilen, Erin Paine, Alyssa Webster, Tori Smith, Carlin Stewart, and Josie Balka.
She is the grandmother of Bradley, Kaci, and Khloé Bates, Carson, Brooklyn, Everly, and Holland Paine, Allie, Lexi, and Zoey Webster, Kade Smith, and Willow Balka.
Early Life
Kelly Jo Callaham was born on October 26, 1966 to Kenneth H. Callaham, Sr., and Betty Jo Smith.
She was the fourth child, and her mother also adopted two more children after her.
Not much is revealed about her childhood.
When she was still a child, her parents divorced and her mum remarried twice once Kelly was an adult, with her third husband coming after her previous husband's death.
Education and Love Life
Kelly attended college at Anderson University, where she met Gil Bates. They both served on the same ministry team, and when Gil needed tutoring for his chemistry class, she was the lab assistant.
They both transferred to Carson Newman University. Gil proposed to Kelly while they were still in school and they got married on December 19, 1987.
Motherhood
Although Gil and Kelly had planned not to start having kids until they had been married for five years but Kelly got pregnant only a few months into their marriage, and on December 30, 1988, the couple's first child, Zachary Gilvin, was born.
Just over a year later, Zach was joined by his sister, Michaela Christian, on January 23, 1990.
The couple went on to have seventeen more children: Erin Elise, was born on May 2, 1991, William Lawson, born on July 27, 1992, Kenneth Nathaniel, born on August 29, 1993, Alyssa Joy, born on November 9, 1994, Tori Layne was born on December 20, 1995, Trace Whitfield was born on February 1, 1997, Carlin Brianne was born on April 11, 1998, Josie Kellyn was born on August 4, 1999.
Katie Grace was born on October 5, 2000, Jackson Ezekiel was born on February 17, 2002, Warden Justice was born on May 19, 2003, Isaiah Courage was born on October 16, 2004, Addallee Hope was born on February 17, 2006, Ellie Bridge was born on April 28, 2007, Callie-Anna Rose was born on August 2, 2009, Judson Wyatt was born on September 15, 2010 and Jeb Colton was born on February 2, 2012.
Kelly gave birth to her first two children in a hospital, but had the rest of her children at home with the assistance of a midwife.
Kelly homeschooled her kids, she began this since her oldest was old enough to begin school.
She also trains her children in taking care of a house by giving them chores to help things run smoothly.
"We're teaching them that work is fun, so they don't see it as a chore,"
she said in an interview.
Some friends and family expressed concern over Kelly's health after having so many kids but she assured them that she is doing fine.
"I have not had health issues and have had pretty easy pregnancies,"
she said in an interview after the birth of her nineteenth child.
"We try to live healthy and make wise decisions about our health.
We had a peace about the choice we're making."