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Sunday, March 6, 2022

Jonah and the Whale

This year, the Bates celebrated I Love You Day without UPtv cameras. (We know how much you all miss the show...we do too!) The theme was Bible characters. The Balkas dressed up as Jonah, the whale, and sea creatures (adorable photo below). Alyssa and John posted footage to their YouTube account.

Past themes have included chivalry, animals/Noah's ark, growing old together, down on the farm, and the roaring '20s.


Josie Balka, Kelton Balka, Willow Balka, Hazel Balka

Photo courtesy of @josie_balka

18 comments:

  1. Looks like they had fun. I love the Bible theme and definitely will miss the show. Thanks for sharing.

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  2. Every year, these costumes are more like a Halloween party. They should do that in October. Dressing in something red would make more sense for I Love You Day. Sweaters with hearts, socks with hearts, red dresses, red jewellery seem more relevant to love.

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    1. Halloween is actually for scary outfits. In my country we celebrate "Carnaval" and one day of it is too wear costumes individually or in groups, and it's actually celebrated in February. I know they do it for I love you day, but it's a fun tradition, if they wore a love theme every year it wouldn't be as exciting, very repetitive.

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    2. They "should" do what they decide to do as a family. They have lots of fun with it - who are we to tell them what choices to make?

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    3. Just let them do what they want without criticizing.

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    4. Waste of money buying costumes you wear once.

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    5. I don't think they celebrate Halloween.

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    6. 9:42AM: Halloween is not "actually for scary outfits". My kids, through the years, have gone out for Halloween as a dog, a scientist, a monk, a pumpkin, a princess, a ballerina, an old man, a person riding a horse, a beekeeper. NOT scary at all.

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  3. My Thursday nights are all messed up since they took you off the air!!!!! I used to have the extra "Up Faith & Family" channel, but when they dropped you, I drooped them! Miss you all sooooooooo much!

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  4. That's so cute! I'll have to watch Alyssa & John's video. Bringing Up Bates was my absolute favorite show and I miss it so much! I keep hoping some other network will pick them up. Thank you for this blog that we can continue seeing some of the highlights of their wonderful family!

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  5. This comment is not meant to bash Josie but it’s based on something I’ve noticed. Why do people put toddlers in those heavy, clunky boots? They may look cute but it must be hard for them to walk in such heavy shoes.

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    1. That was actually my first thought when I saw the picture too! They look so heavy! How can a kid run and play in those?

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    2. Kids that live in areas where the weather gets cold do just fine running in thicker/heavier boots. I thought that too until we moved where it was colder (-38⁰ last night) and my toddler and preschooler do great in snowboots.
      Although not all boots that look heavy are actually heavy if you treat them at them in the store.

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  6. We all really want the Bates back on TV. Please be encouraged to find a new outlet to show your love and f a mily!

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  7. As long it was not a Killer Whale, lol, U guys are super cute Fab 4!!!!!!!

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  8. Halloween does not have a mandate that costumes must be scary. Many children dress up as angels, princesses, cowboys and law enforcement officers. Nothing wrong with that. Personally, I don't like the gore that has been stressed these last years on Halloween. Halloween is not about bloody crime and horror.

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    1. Actually, if you study the roots of Halloween, the Celtic celebration of Samhain, you'll see that animals were sometimes sacrificed to appease spirits. So there could be blood associated with it. But it was an important time of the year, marking the end of the growing season and the coming of winter. Spirits needed to be with you if you and your livestock were to survive the coming months. The Catholic church still celebrates All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day the days right after Halloween, so you can't separate thoughts of death from that time of year. It's nothing evil, it's more a time of reflection, introspection, thankfulness, and a reminder that we're all mortal. Personally, I find "magic" in the air that time of year with the earlier sunsets and the longer nights. Summer is behind and the seasons are changing. I can easily see why ancient people reacted the way they did and created their rituals. If people today don't understand the history behind Halloween, they can get upset that it's "the Devil's holiday" or some such idea. It's not.

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