The Bates family has grown by one! Carlin Bates, daughter of Bringing Up Bates stars Gil and Kelly Jo Bates, tied the knot with Evan Stewart at Castleton Farms in Tennessee on Saturday, May 25, Us Weekly exclusively confirms.
Gil served as one of the twosome’s wedding officiants, with all 18 of the bride’s brothers and sisters — Zach, Michaella, Erin, Lawson, Nathan, Alyssa, Tori, Trace, Josie, Katie, Jackson, Warden, Isaiah, Addalle, Ellie, Callie, Judson and Jeb — serving as matrons of honor, bridesmaids, flower girls, groomsmen, ushers and ring bearers. Joy-Anna Duggar was also in the bridal party, acting as one of Carlin’s bridesmaids. About 500 guests were in attendance to see Carlin walk down the aisle to “Lavender Blue.”
Carlin, 21, shared her love story on the couple’s wedding website ahead of their nuptials. “It all began in the fall of 2016, when my mother was asked to speak at a Ladies’ Conference at the Stewart’s church! Evan just happened to be one of the servers for the conference!” she wrote.
The TV personality, who was studying for midterms at the time, revealed she made the first move, addressing Stewart, 24, after he repeatedly passed by. “I noticed he was nervous and eventually said, ‘Well aren’t you going to say, ‘Hi’?’ He blushed and we chatted briefly,” she recalled.
The next day, Carlin’s future spouse took the lead after her family was invited to lunch with the Stewarts. “My sister Erin … told Evan she would love to have him as a brother-in-law, smirking and pointing at me! He said, ‘Well, I’m available!’”
She concluded, “He is my best friend I can hardly wait to spend forever by his side!”
The couple got engaged in the fall of 2018 with a destination engagement in Maine that Stewart planned with help from Erin.
Carlin told Knox News in January that it was especially exciting to her to be engaged at the same time as her sister Josie, 19, who married Kelton Balka in October. “It gave us a common interest,” she told the outlet. “Staying up late, talking about our fiancés and about weddings and other common topics kept us laughing and really gave us a lot of fun sister time. I think as we look back at those late nights we are going to realize how special it was to get to share in these experiences.”
The reality star also revealed to the publication that she and Evan will soon be moving to Nashville, where Stewart works as an electrician apprentice: “I’m super excited about starting a home with him there.”
The Bringing Up Bates baby specials will air on UPtv on Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET through June 20.
Scroll down to see more photos of the couple’s special day!
With reporting by Brody Brown
