Duggar Family Members Attend Lawson Bates’ Wedding: Inside the San Diego Ceremony

Wedding celebrations! Members of the Duggar family traveled to sunny California to celebrate Lawson Bates’ nuptials with fiancée Tiffany Espensen. 

The Bringing Up Bates star married his bride in a ceremony on Friday, May 13, in San Diego. “I am overloaded with so many bittersweet emotions. I cried over and over again today with all the speeches and love tonight,” Tiffany captioned her May 12 Instagram post. 

Prior to the nuptials, Whitney Bates shared sweet photos while sightseeing with husband Zach Bates and children Bradley and Casey. Included in the photos was Abbie Duggar’s daughter, Grace, who also tagged along for the beach day.

“Spent the morning sightseeing, watching seals swim at the beach, and hanging with friends,” Whitney’s Wednesday, May 11 caption read. “We’re having a blast and totally loving our time here in Cali!”

Other 19 Kids and Counting family members like patriarch Jim Bob Duggar and children Jana Duggar and James Duggar took a snapshot of themselves enjoying dessert at the reception. 

Jeremiah Duggar and Hannah Duggar also attended the day of love, while posing for a picture with another attendee. Hannah wore a ruffled blue dress while Jeremiah opted for khaki pants and a white button-up.

The celebration seemed to have taken place on a boat with a beautiful view of the ocean and a picture-worthy sunset. 

The Bates and Duggar families have become close family friends over the years, primarily because they run a similar household. Each family has 19 members, and they are both deeply rooted in the Christian faith.

Tiffany and Lawson started dating in 2020, and the whirlwind relationship moved rather fast when the singer popped the big question in October 2021.

“Getting to know you this past year has made more brighter days and memories than I could’ve ever dreamed,” he said in his October 2021 engagement announcement. “I cannot wait to make a lifetime more of them with you! Thank you for saying ‘YES’ to our forever.”

The newlyweds recently bought their first home in March 2022. The new Nashville, Tennessee, residents revealed that they saw the home in November 2021 and fell in love with it instantly. 

“We finally have the house and officially closed on March 4,” her caption read. “This milestone in our lives together is something we are definitely celebrating.”