Bringing Up Bates alum Travis Clark publicly celebrated his wife, Katie Bates, less than three months before admitting he was unfaithful in their marriage.
“Happy 25th to the easiest person in the world to celebrate,” Clark, 24, wrote via Instagram in October 2025. “You love so deeply, give so much of yourself to everything you do, and somehow make every season we’re in feel special.”
He continued, “From the first day I met you I knew there was something different about you … and I was right. Happy birthday, Kate! I love you.”
Clark also included hashtags for “Birthday,” “Wife,” “Love” and “Best Friend.”
Bates responded in the comments section at the time, writing, “I love you.”
Three months later, Clark issued a public apology for admittedly cheating on his wife just hours after she revealed she had suffered a miscarriage.
“This is hard to write, but I owe the truth and I owe an apology. I was unfaithful to my wife,” Clark wrote via his Instagram Stories on Saturday, January 17. “I had an affair and repeatedly broke her trust. There is no excuse for what I did. This was my failure and my responsibility alone. I know that words don’t begin to express the damage I caused or the depth of the hurt I’ve brought into her life, but I am truly sorry.”
Clark has been married to Bates since 2021, going on to welcoming two children together.
“I’m sorry for the pain, humiliation and betrayal I caused my wife through my choices,” Clark continued. “I understand that an apology doesn’t repair what I broke and forgiveness is not something I deserve or can ask for.”
Clark, who had Bates’ tireless support when he began nursing school in summer 2025, stressed that he planned to take responsibility for his actions by “getting help.”
“[I am] doing the work to change and become a more honest and accountable man, regardless of [the] outcome,” Clark concluded. “I ask for privacy and grace for Katie as she processes this in her own time.”
Hours earlier, Katie — who has yet to publicly address Clark’s omission — discussed her recent pregnancy loss.
“I will spend the rest of my life missing you,” Katie wrote via Instagram on Friday, January 17, alongside various moments from her pregnancy.
Katie is one of Gil and Kelly Jo Bates’ 19 children, who began courting Clark in 2020 after meeting via mutual friends one year earlier.
“Travis and his family are active in their local church and also travel together to sing, so our families have been able to visit at nearby concerts and church events,” Katie told Us in March 2020. “Travis and I are so thankful that the Lord, not only allowed our paths to cross, but that we have been able to begin this new phase of our journey together.”
Clark proposed in April 2021, marrying Katie in December 2021.
“This day has been worth all of the waiting, all of the dreaming and even worth all of the work of wedding planning, with its occasional stresses and anxieties,” Katie and Clark told Us after their nuptials. “It’s been worth every moment, and we really can’t believe we are actually married! We know we still have a lot to learn about marriage and relationships, but we are excited to spend our lives learning and growing together.”
Katie gave birth to the pair’s first child, daughter Hailey, in 2023. Their son, Harvey, followed the next year.
