Michaela Keilen

Michael Christan "Michaela" Keilen (née Bates) (born January 23, 1990) is the second child and first daughter of Gil Bates and Kelly Bates.

She is the sister of Zachary Bates, Erin Paine, Lawson Bates, Nathan Bates, Alyssa Webster, Tori Smith, Trace Bates, Carlin Stewart, Josie Balka, Katie Clark, Jackson Bates, Warden Bates, Isaiah Bates, Addallee Bates, Ellie Bates, Callie-Anna Bates, Judson Bates, and Jeb Bates.

She is the wife of Brandon Keilen and the foster mother of their two foster children.

Early life[]

Michal Christan Bates was born on January 23, 1990, in Tennessee, to Gil Bates and Kelly Bates. She was the couple's second child, and they went on to have seventeen more children after her.

When she was still an infant, her parents legally changed the spelling of her name from "Michal" to "Michael" after deciding they were unhappy with the connotations that the Biblical name carried. When she was about five or six years old, Michael was unhappy with having what she considered a boy's name, so she began going by the nickname "Michaella". At some point as an adult, she changed the spelling of her nickname to "Michaela", as indicated on her personal website.

Michaela learned to sew as a child, and by the time she was a teenager she made many of her family's dresses. At some point, she also began making modest swimsuits for her family as well. Growing up, Michaela was responsible for doing the family's laundry.

At fifteen years old, Michael became a Christian. Growing up, she dreamed of love, marriage, and a family, and would often pray for her future spouse.

Along with her siblings, Michaela was homeschooled growing up. She and her siblings grew up as active participants of the Institute in Basic Life Principles, and regularly attended the yearly Advanced Training Institute conferences in Big Sandy, Texas.

Personal life[]

Courtship[]

Shortly after her nineteenth birthday, Michaela traveled to Chicago, Illinois, with her family. While there, she saw a young man helping an older man walk in the snow, and was impressed by the man's kindness. She went on to Michigan to attend Journey to the Heart, but when she returned she learned that her family had met the young man, Brandon Keilen, and he had made an impression on them too. Michaela got to know Brandon over the next few years, and found herself attracted to him. Two years later, while spending a few weeks in Chicago, she grew closer to him, and begin praying for him frequently. She did her best not to reveal her feelings, as she didn't want to lure him into a relationship. The two remained friends while Brandon attended Bible college.

On November 29, 2013, Michaela's father told her that someone had asked permission to get to know her better. She reminded her parents that she was only interested in one guy and was not interested in any other suitors, only to learn that the interested man was Brandon.

On December 30, 2013, Michaela arrived at Brandon's family home in Lansing, Michigan. Brandon and his sisters took her to The English Inn, where they had a table decorated for her. Brandon gave her a journal engraved with her name, which had a dozen photos filled with a fairy tale he had written about them. He then presented her with a box that contained a dried rose covered in gold. When she opened the box, Brandon asked her to begin courting her, which she accepted.

The two had a longer courtship than is typical, due to the fact that Brandon was not allowed to get engaged until graduating from Bible college.

Engagement[]

On April 13, 2015, Michaela and her parents took a trip to Washington, D.C., where Brandon was visiting his sister. Although Michaela thought this trip was a surprise for Brandon, he had secretly been planning it with her parents the whole time. Brandon had planned a scavenger hunt, leaving clues at seven different locations, with Michaela finally arriving in Great Falls, Virginia, where Brandon proposed and Michaela said yes.

Marriage[]

On August 15, 2015, Michaela married Brandon Timothy Keilen at Wallace Memorial Baptist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. Her bridesmaids were her sisters Alyssa and Tori, sisters-in-law Angie, Becky, and Christy Keilen, and close friend Jana Duggar, with both her mother Kelly Bates and her sister Erin serving as matrons of honor.

For their honeymoon, the couple went to Montana and Wyoming.

After their honeymoon, Michaela moved in with Brandon in Chicago, Illinois. "It's definitely different from being home at a farm in the mountains, but I'm loving it," Michaela said of her new life in the city. "It's definitely an adjustment. The cold's very new, but I love married life. We've found a church that we just love, and it's been great."

Motherhood[]

On June 25, 2017, Michaela shared a post on her blog about her struggles with infertility. The post did not provide many details on her specific health concerns, only that she and her husband had been trying to get pregnant for over a year with no success. The couple has seen a number of doctors over this issue, and is relying on God to get them through this struggle. This is an issue that they still struggle with today. They'll try fertility treatments, but if none of them work they plan to adopt children instead.

On January 2, 2022, Michaela did a Q&A on Instagram about her infertility. She revealed that she has multiple blood clotting disorders, like some of her sisters. She also revealed that her doctor said that it was medically impossible for one of her sisters to serve as their surrogate and she also can't receive IVF. During another Q&A on February 1, 2023, she revealed that she and Brandon had suffered a miscarriage with a baby girl. She later revealed that they chose the name Eden for their daughter. In a video posted to their YouTube channel on April 6, 2024, they revealed their daughter’s full name to be Eden Miracle Keilen. She would have been born around Christmas 2021, but was miscarried early on.

In May 2025, she and Brandon became foster parents for two young boys, a 3-year-old and a newborn.

Career[]

Teen jobs[]

When Michaela was in her late teens, she became a licensed EMT. She also worked as a nanny for many years.

Education[]

Michaela took classes through College Plus for awhile after finishing high school. After getting married, she began taking online classes from Roane State, where she was pursuing a degree in liberal arts with a minor in health science. It is unknown if she has finished this degree.

She pursued a degree in nursing. She is an LPN. She passed her NCLEX exam.

Television[]

Michaela appeared on the TLC show 19 Kids and Counting many times as a teenager and young adult.

In 2012, TLC aired one season of the show United Bates of America, which focused on Michaela's family.

In 2015, UpTV began airing a similar show, Bringing Up Bates. Michaela was featured on both shows.

Missionary[]

In July of 2013, Michaela and her friend Jana Duggar went on a mission trip to Honduras and El Salvador with a group of seven other girls from SOS Ministries. Michaela's involvement in the trip was funded by an anonymous sponsor. While there, Michaela worked at an orphanage, leading Bible studies, performing skits, and sharing the gospel. It is likely that Michaela has been on other mission trips as well.