There's a constant buzz of activity around the Bates family home. But Gil and Kelly Bates -- and it seems the 17 children, too -- wouldn't have it any other way.

From the time they get up in the morning to lights-out -- around 8:30 or so for the little ones -- there's always something going on, whether it's laundry, school work, play time, music lessons or Bible study.

And, in the middle of it all, the family is working to complete a massive renovation of their home.

Gil and Kelly Bates are the parents of 17 children: Zak, 20; Michaela, 19; Erin, 18; Lawson, 17; Nathan, 16; Alyssa, 15; Tori, 13; Trace, 12; Carlin, 11; Josie, 10; Katie, 9; Jackson, 7; Warden, 6; Isaiah, 5; Addallee, 3; Ellie, 2; and 3-month-old Callie.

"There's never a dull moment," Kelly Bates said.

Each day, the older children help their younger "partners" get dressed in the morning, the family members have time for personal Bible study, and then they complete chores before everyone gathers for breakfast, usually cold cereal or oatmeal.

When they do have bacon and eggs, Kelly Bates said it takes three packs of bacon and a few dozen eggs to feed her brood. Three gallons of milk last the family "about half a week," she said. Another family favorite -- mashed potatoes -- takes 10 pounds of potatoes.

After breakfast comes family Bible study, music lessons, lunch, naps for the younger children, and school for several hours each afternoon.

"They're home all day, so we have a whole lot of one-on-one time," Kelly Bates said.

Comparatively, she and Gil Bates said children who attend public school spend most of their days in school, and their parents work, so they may not have as much time together.

Birthdays are special in the Bates family. The parents said each child enjoys a meal out with mom and dad, and they also get to have another meal out with mom, dad and a friend. For the younger children, they might get to have a treasure hunt for gifts, and the older ones are asked to provide lists of what they'd like and they get to go shopping with mom or dad.

"We don't have any birthdays in March, June or September," Kelly Bates said.

“On average, we have a birthday about every three weeks," Gil Bates added.

Kelly Bates said she likes for each child as they get older to have at least one big gift, particularly a musical instrument.

"Music opens the door for ministry," she said.

As soon as the children start school -- Kelly Bates home-schools each of them -- they begin piano lessons. A few of the children also play guitar, violin, mandolin and harmonica.

The family gets by on income from Gil Bates' job -- he owns Bates Tree Service. Even though they qualify for federal assistance, the family does not accept it.

"We want to be on the giving end," Kelly Bates said. "Gil has always said that God will take care of our needs."

They shop at local thrift stores and yard sales, and daughter Michaela sews approximately six matching outfits for the family each year.

"We like to match, for safety reasons, when we go out in public," Kelly Bates explained. She noted that Michaela can sew the outfits in two days, without a pattern.

Kelly Bates met her future husband while both were students at Anderson College in their native South Carolina. They transferred to Carson-Newman College in Jefferson City, graduated and married in 1987.

"I worked as a youth minister and got a job with a heating and air company for $4 an hour," Gil Bates said, telling of the couple's early married life.

Kelly Bates said that within three months of their marriage, she was pregnant with their oldest child, Zak.

After a time, Gil Bates got a job working in sales for Nabisco and the couple rented a home in South Knoxville, where they lived for nine years.

Gil Bates then left his job at Nabisco and the family moved to a rental home in North Knoxville. They moved to Lake City four years ago, when they bought a 60-year-old, 1,700-square-foot farmhouse.

"I always told my family I wasn't going to have any children," Kelly Bates said. "I was very career oriented." The mother of 17 said she wanted to work with special needs children or in some kind of ministry.

"I said if I did have any children, I was only going to have two," she said.

"God has a way of changing your heart," she said. "He gave me the desire and a career didn't seem as important anymore."

"We were going to be in charge of how many (children we had)," Gil Bates said.

But then he began studying the Bible more to learn what God says about children.

"The Bible says children are a blessing," Gil Bates said. "I didn't think we'd have any, but God opens and closes the womb. God really is in charge."

"Children become like the examples you put before them," he said of the family's beliefs and practices.

"Our goal is to teach them to look to God. He won't let them down like we will. We're still learning," Kelly Bates said.

The family is also learning that people are a blessing to them while they add on to their house.

In May, family friends Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar brought their 18 children from Arkansas to Lake City with a surprise for the Bates family -- help building a new laundry room addition to the Bates' home.

What started out as a small one-room addition quickly became a sprawling project.

"Jim Bob dreams big," Kelly Bates said of the Duggar family patriarch. The Duggar family was in Anderson County last week helping with the project.

Now, even though the project is still under way, the size of the Bates family home has more than doubled.

The family originally had three small bedrooms and three bathrooms. Once the project is complete, the three-story addition to the home will include a large kitchen and living room space, three additional bedrooms, a playroom, and seven and a half bathrooms.

"It's the first time we'll have extra space," Kelly Bates said.

Construction help has come from many friends, acquaintances and businesses in the community, Gil Bates said. And, two of the Duggar sons, Joseph and John-David, have even stayed longer than the rest of their family to continue working.

"We're blessed," Gil and Kelly Bates said in agreement.

When Big Families Collide
What's crazier that a family with 17, soon to be 18 kids? How about a family with 16 -- soon to be 17 -- kids coming to visit! Meet the Bates family from Tennessee, who have decided to visit the Duggars in Arkansas. Hosting another mega-family proves to be a challenge for Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar, but as usual around the Duggar home, there's always a plan.

Bates vs. Duggars Smackdown
Big families like competition; and by big families, we mean BIG families. The Bates family has 16 --soon to be 17 --children. They traveled all the way from Nashville to visit their friends the Duggars. What do you get when you combine two mega-families, each with a pregnant mom? A total of 33 children and a competitive spirit, not to mention chaos! Watch what happens as the Duggars compete with the Bates in paintball, and dare each other to jump out of an airplane.

 Photo 1: Mom Kelly Bates tends to her younger children, baby Callie, and Addallee.

 Photo 2: Gil Bates leads his children in Bible study.

 Photo: 3: Sisters Josie Bates, left, and Alyssa make bread. Each child in the family of 17 kids has chores to do.