Kate Gosselin Posts Rare Photo of Kids in Birthday Tribute: ‘My Forever Babies’

All grown up! Kate Gosselin posted a rare photo of four of her sextuplets in a birthday tribute as they celebrated leaving their teen years behind them.

“No more teenagers in this house! Happy 20th birthday, my forever babies! I love you! Who feels old? I know I do!” the former Kate Plus 8 star captioned the Instagram photo shared on Sunday, May 12.

In the snap, Aeden, Alexis, Joel and Leah stood behind a chocolate frosted birthday cake with candles in the shape of a two and a zero. The foursome smiled for the photo as a pink “Happy Birthday” balloon floated in the background.

The world met Kate, 49, and ex-husband Jon Gosselin in 2000 when their show Jon & Kate Plus 8 premiered in April 2007. At the time, the couple was juggling the chaos of having sextuplets, plus a set of twins, all under the age of 10. During a June 2009 episode, the couple revealed they had separated.

What followed was a heated custody battle between Kate and Jon, 47. Kate was eventually awarded full legal custody of the couple’s eight children, but they shared physical custody. However, Jon told Entertainment Tonight that he didn’t see his children on a regular basis due to Kate’s rules about chores.

“Their chores even supersede my custody,” Jon told the outlet in 2016. “So if they don’t get their chores done, they’re not coming to my house.”

Kate also made the decision to send their son Collin to a treatment facility for behavioral issues in 2016. Collin was later moved to a facility in Pittsburgh and wrote a letter to his father asking for help.

Jon claimed that he had no idea where Collin was at the time because Kate had full legal custody of all eight children at that point.

“I used to go to my kids’ school and have lunch with all of them, and that’s when I would see them — I could see them all collectively,” Jon recalled on Dark Side of the 2000s docuseries. “One day, I look around and say, ‘Where’s Collin?’ And [the other kids] don’t say anything, which really scared me. I’m like, ‘Where’s your brother?'”

Once Collin got in touch with his dad, Jon removed him from the facility, and since 2018, Collin and his sister Hannah have lived with Jon.

On July 19, 2023, Collin opened up about his time spent in different institutions during an episode of Dark Side of the 200s and claimed his mother sent him away in an effort to silence him.

“That's kind of the reason why she sent me away,” Collin claimed when producers asked if he was “trying to say his mom was abusive.”

He continued, “I was starting to tell people what was going on at home, and she caught wind of that and had to put me somewhere where I wouldn’t be able to get the secrets out.”

On July 23, 2023, Kate addressed Collin’s claims in a lengthy message via Instagram.

“I have never wanted to have to do this but I feel I have been backed into a corner and left with no choice,” Kate’s statement read. “Although it saddens me to do so, I need to speak out now.”

The former reality star added that she loved Collin “with all her heart,” and said that he was “placed in a facility” after receiving “multiple psychiatric diagnoses.” Kate also said that the decision to place him in those facilities “was made by emergency room doctors following once of his many attacks/outbursts.”