The Bates family is one of the most famous families on television, and it’s because there are so many of them. Parents with this many kids cannot help but make it to the television screen so that the rest of the world can see them raise such a large family. It’s always curious to those of us without such large families how it’s done, what they do, and how they make it work. Carlin Bates is one of the many Bates children, and she and her own family have been making their own lives work for them for some time. They’ve recently made headlines for some pretty outstanding things, and we thought we might get to know them a bit more.
1. She’s the Ninth
There are 19 Bates children, and Carlin is the ninth of them. She has eight older brothers and sisters, and she has 10 young brothers and sisters. This puts her somewhere along the lines of being one of the many middle children, but we wonder if she took up that traditional middle child trait that so many of us get to see in our own families…or are there so many of them that this trait goes unnoticed?
2. She’s Young
Carlin Bates (or Stewart, to be honest) is not very old. She was born on April 11, 1998, which means she only just celebrated the big 22 in 2020. Her birthday, we imagine, was not like other birthdays she’s had in the past considering it fell less than a month into the worldwide lockdown caused by the outbreak of COVID-19.
3. She’s Smart
When she was growing up, she chose to take dual enrollment courses and finish both her high school career and part of her college education a bit early. She did so with her brother, Trace, and the two were able to have their own high school graduation parties together as a family. They also invited everyone they knew, and we understand it was quite a bash.
4. She’s Her Father’s Biggest Fan
She is a huge fan of her father. In fact, if she could be like anyone in the world, it’s him. She finds him to be her biggest inspiration, and she aspires to be as much like him as possible. She calls him, “faithful in the little things. He’s steady in the Lord. Whatever he does, he doesn’t lose his cool,” and now we think maybe we should aspire to be more like her own father, too.
5. She’s Loving Being a Mom
Carlin Bates is a married woman. She married husband Even Stewart and knew immediately she would have a big family. They currently have one baby, Layla, who was born on the last day of January 2020. She’s just a few months old, but her mother already knows she was meant to be a mother.
6. She was 23 Kids
Carlin Bates is not exactly quiet about how much she loves being a mom, and we love that about her. She’s already so in love with her own daughter, who is only about 7 months old at the moment, that she’s already looking to have more kids than her mom. Her husband, however, is not looking to break any records, and he’s not quite on board with the number his wife threw out. She wants 23 kids. He’s cool with a big family, but maybe not quite that big.
7. Her Daughter Has Health Issues
Layla is only a few months old, but she’s been through more in her little life than many adults. She’s currently living with breathing issues that were caused – as suspected by her doctors – by being born prematurely. It turns out, she also has a small hole in her heart. She was with her aunt, staying with her for some time, when she turned blue and stopped breathing. After being rushed to the hospital by her aunt, the baby’s hole was discovered.
8. Carlin Had Meningitis
It’s not common anymore, but she did fall ill with meningitis following the birth of her baby. She was in the hospital with her husband suffering through her illness, and she was forced to ask her own sister to take care of her newborn baby at the time. As if that was not difficult enough, this was when her daughter turned blue and was not breathing. What a horrible, scary, difficult time for all the family to have to go through this while the baby’s mother was unable to be with her because of her own illness.
9. She and Her Husband Have COVID
The couple announced in August 2020 that they’d both been diagnosed with COVID-19 and are currently on the recovery path. They did mention that they were at the end of their illness and feeling much better, and we are so happy to hear that.
10. She’s Sure God is In Control
2020 hasn’t been anyone’s year, if we are being honest, but it’s really not been a good year for Carlin Bates. Her daughter’s premature birth, her breathing issues, the hole in her baby’s heart, her own meningitis diagnosis, and being diagnosed with COVID-19 are not things that make for a stellar year. However, the young mom and wife is certain that God is in control, He has a plan, and He will not allow anything in her life to work out in a way that He did not design.
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