In the early days of the show, it was clear that the twins were the stars. They were always up for whatever adventure Jon and Kate took them on, and they quickly won the hearts of viewers. Even as they've grown up and changed over the years, Mady and Cara remain two of the most beloved members of the "Jon & Kate Plus 8" family.
The girls even graduated high school this past May and celebrated with their mom, Kate. Kate wrote a heartfelt Instagram caption to congratulate her twins, gushing over how they've grown up over the years We can only imagine what the next 18 years will bring for Madelyn Gosselin! Only time will tell.
Cara is the other twin and Mady's sister She, too, used to have a short bob. The whole group of kids tended to dress alike, and the twins were no exception. Kate loved to have them looking like doppelgangers when the family went out. However, now that the girls are older, they have developed their own unique sense of style.
"When she was younger, it seemed like Cara hated the spotlight."
When she was younger, it almost seemed like Cara hated the spotlight (just like her sister). They both refused to answer questions, but as time moved on, being on TV became almost like second nature to them. Cara showed from a young age that she was very goal-oriented, so it isn't shocking that she's working so hard to improve her life.
Kate describes Cara as being intelligent, gorgeous, kind, logical, responsible, sympathetic, and honest. These are great attributes for any woman. Despite her involvement in media, she stays focused on her college studies, which is great since she chose two really tough subjects — Interdisciplinary Mathematics and Economics.
Every step they made was documented for the world to see. As they got older and started to become aware of their surroundings, they realized that they were different from other kids. They were famous, and their lives were anything but normal. Leah counted it as a blessing. She was the smallest of the group and nicknamed "Little Princess." Even when she was born, she weighed just two pounds! Wow!
Now, Leah has long, straight black hair and is one of the only sextuplets without glasses. She’s growing into quite a young woman (especially since she's officially an adult now). Unlike her siblings, Leah prefers to keep her private life quiet. Ever since the show ended, she tries to avoid social media and the paparazzi that come with it.
"Unlike her siblings, Leah prefers to keep her private life quiet."
Because of that, not much is known about her. Kate posted a photo of Leah in 2018, and everyone went wild with how much older she looked. Who knows what she's headed toward in life, but we're sure she'll be happy and create a fantastic life for herself.
Even though he’s not the smallest sextuplet anymore, he’s still got one of the biggest hearts. Joel is easily the most easygoing out of all of the children, but that doesn't mean he can't get attention when he wants. As a baby, he perfected a whin that got everyone's attention (and not in a good way). Still, he has a sweet smile that melts everyone's heart.
It looked like he was happy spending some quality time with his siblings, and we're happy for him! Because he is so secretive, we don't know much about what he's doing, but we're guessing he probably followed suit with his siblings by going to college. No doubt he has the drive to do it!
Alexis was the first to be born, but you wouldn't know it by her behavior. She was often getting into fights and even got kicked out of school. Later, Kate said they weren't expelled, but that she felt the school couldn't "meet Alexis' needs." Eventually, it was found out to be a lie because Alexis had "caused physical harm to an adult on two occasions."
"She was often getting into fights and even got kicked out of school."
On the other hand, Alexis also had another side of her that was goofy, funny, and super affectionate. Alexis was often the loudest one in the family. She had a short, brown 'do that was easy to manage like her sisters, Leah and Hannah. Alexis doesn't mind showing up in Mady's TikToks, which are the primary snippets we get about her life.
Unlike Collin, Kate didn't send Alexis away to a boarding school. We're not sure why she chose this, but it was clear that she tried much harder with her daughter. Considering Alexis and Kate still have a relationship after the split, Alexis is happier with Kate than she is with her father Jon.
The latest video we have of Alexis is her being excited and happy their show was canceled. That meant her life was free from that point on! It's obvious that she doesn't want to be in front of the cameras anymore...at least to be put on national TV.
As the middle child of the sextuplets, Collin was often overlooked or forgotten. Kate ended up sending Collin to a boarding school, and when it came to pick between living with his mother or father, it's no big surprise he chose his father over Kate. He felt like anything would be better than her.
Collin, like his other sextuplet siblings, is now a full-fledged adult. However, unlike most of his other siblings, Collin is one of the two sextuplets who doesn’t live with and has limited contact with Kate. It was discovered that Kate secretly placed Collin in an inpatient behavioral facility and failed to show up to a custody court hearing.
"Kate secretly placed Collin in an inpatient behavioral facility..."
During one mother's day, Collin posted a heartwarming post to his mother...well, his stepmother, Colleen. He wrote about how she was always there for him and how he appreciated everything she did for him. During this post, he didn't mention anything about Kate. Can't say we don't particularly blame him.
Hannah was the second of the sextuplets to be born on May 10, 2004, at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. She was known as “mommy’s little helper” and always wanted to be with the grown-ups. Her sister, Leah, was her best friend, and together, the girls were inseparable.
As kids, they loved to play dress up and have tea parties. These days, Hannah is a senior in high school. Nowadays, Hannah is one of the few kids that stuck with their father — one of two. She and Collin live with Jon and seem pretty happy with their lives.
As any parent knows, the bond between a mother and her child is special and unique. So it's always a bit of a shock when that bond is suddenly broken. Such was the case with Hannah and Kate. Once as close as any mother and daughter could be, they suddenly found themselves estranged.
Ultimately, Hannah made the decision to live with Jon full-time. It was a difficult decision for her to make, but she felt it was best for her. As for Kate, she was heartbroken by her daughter's decision. But it was Hannah's choice, and Kate has to respect her daughter's right to choose her own path in life.
Being the third sextuplet has its perks. For example, you’re always the smallest. In Aaden’s case, he was also given the nickname “The Professor.” We’re not quite sure how he earned this title, but we suspect it has something to do with a curious personality and quick problem-solving skills.
"Being the third sextuplet has its perks!"
Back in 2013, the young boy stated that he wanted to run in the Olympics. We think that’s pretty ambitious! After all, he’s only the third sextuplet. But who knows? Maybe he really is a “Professor” and will go on to achieve great things. We wish him all the best!
Now, Aaden still has glasses and a very cheerful attitude. The last time Aaden saw his father at the same time as all his other siblings, chaos ensued and the kids who don’t live with Jon no longer speak to him. Of course, Kate and Jon don’t speak either, so the kids don’t have many opportunities to reconcile their damaged relationships at the moment.
Aaden also spent a nice little moment with his siblings recently, water rafting with his two sisters and his brother Joel. We're not sure where Aaden is on his path to being an Olympic gold medalist, but we're sure we'll hear about it soon. After all, he's just now getting into adulthood, so he has plenty of time.
Considering they spent their early years on a reality TV show documenting all their parents’ fights, many of the Gosselin kids seem to be growing up pretty normally. Including the eldest two twins, Cara and Mady. You might not believe it, but these two are all grown up now!
Like many young people in their twenties, the Gosselin twins are currently enrolled in college. However, these twins have attempted to forge their own personal identities by attending different schools. Cara is attending Fordham University, where she’s majoring in math and economics. On the other hand, Mady is attending Syracuse University and hasn’t publicly disclosed what she’s studying.
While most of the Gosselin kids do their best to stay out of the spotlight these days, they will surface from time to time for things like interviews. And in a recent 2022 interview with CBS, Collin Gosselin had some choice words for both his parents and the show in general.
“I haven't reached out to them. I want to respect their space. I'd rather let them do it on their own terms.”
Collin argues that the reality show tore the family apart and that he still doesn’t have a relationship with his mother or several of his siblings. As far as trying to mend these relationships, he said, “I haven't reached out to them. I want to respect their space. I'd rather let them do it on their own terms.”
Collin Gosselin hasn’t had the easiest life, and he’s made public comments several times about how the show and his parents’ fighting has been difficult to deal with. However, despite all this adversity, it seems like this is one Gosselin kid who has his life on the right track.
In November of 2021, Jon Gosselin made the announcement that Collin has plans to enlist in the military in 2023 after high school. While Collin says he’s considering enlisting with the Marines, it doesn’t appear that he’s made a final decision about which branch yet. Hopefully, he will excel wherever he ends up and is able to serve his country successfully.
It seems like just yesterday we were watching six adorable babies crawling all over the Gosselin house on Jon & Kate Plus 8, but everyone has to grow up eventually—including this group of sextuplets made famous through reality TV. They might have been kids then, but they’re fully grown now!
As crazy as it sounds, the Gosselin sextuplets recently celebrated their 18th birthday in 2022. While they don’t do much to keep the public updated about their lives, it’s great that all the kids have managed to reach such an important milestone in growing up.
Since the end of the show (and the breakup of Jon & Kate’s marriage), the Gosselin family has fractured quite a bit. While the show was originally filmed in Pennsylvania, the kids and parents no longer live in the giant house fans grew to recognize. In fact, several of the kids have made quite the move!
"It's rumored that Kate sold their old Pennsylvania home for more than one million dollars!"
As of 2021, four of the six sextuplets currently live with their mother in North Carolina. It’s rumored that Kate sold their old Pennsylvania home for more than one million dollars! Currently, she has custody of Aaden, Alexis, Leah, and Joel at her home, and the older twins also stop by when they’re not busy with college.
While four of the six sextuplets live with their mother, the other two, Hannah and Collin, currently live with their father. While the specific reasons for this unusual arrangement aren’t publicly known, the kids’ decision to live elsewhere seems to be some sort of compromise to ensure that all the kids are happy.
However, we’re not sure how long this current arrangement will actually last. Now that all the kids are over 18, we would expect them to start leaving the nest, regardless of which parent they have been living with. But you never really know what’s going on with this family, and only time will tell!
While Hannah and Collin may be living with their father while the other sextuplets live with their mother, it’s clear that everyone isn’t completely thrilled about this arrangement. Specifically, Kate seems to be hurt that two of her kids have picked their father over her.
In a recent interview, Kate had some vague but unhappy words about Hannah’s decision to live with her father, saying, “Hannah…it was sad for us because…you know, they’re getting older, and they’re making different choices, and they’re doing different things. And she opted to stay back with her dad, actually. Which again, you know, her choice. Whatever.”
Despite the fact that Jon and Kate have been divorced for more than a decade, they’re still playing the blame game with each other and don’t seem to mind pulling their kids into the middle of all their arguing. In May of 2022, Jon had some very choice words for his ex-wife.
“[Communicating with] the children that live with Kate is very difficult because I don’t have an open relationship with them. [Kate] alienated me from those kids. I think it was a poor parenting decision.”
According to an interview with ET, Gosselin believes that Kate is to blame for his strained relationship with his kids, saying, “[Communicating with] the children that live with Kate is very difficult because I don’t have an open relationship with them. [Kate] alienated me from those kids. I think it was a poor parenting decision.”
It can be difficult to figure out what the Gosselin kids have been up to because they’re generally very private people who don’t want to reveal a lot about their current lives. And honestly, can you blame them? If you had been on camera since age three, wouldn’t you end up pretty reserved too?
Apart from who the kids are living with, we haven’t gotten a lot of life updates from them, especially the sextuplets. Kate will post a picture of the kids on Instagram from time to time, but other than that, their lives are kind of a mystery—and we’re sure that’s exactly how they want it!
While Jon and Kate may try to keep their fights between just the two of them, sometimes they get into a spot of drama with their kids as well. In 2018, the former couple went to court over an unpaid debt, and some very interesting claims were raised during the trial.
According to court documents, Jon Gosselin claims that Kate has withdrawn more than $100,000 for a trust fund set up for Hannah and Collin. And in fact, Kate admitted to making two $50,000 withdrawals and claimed she needed the money to stay afloat financially, despite the fact that the money legally belongs to her children.
