A Timeline of Jon and Kate Gosselin’s Relationship
Jon and Kate Gosselin had a lot happen in their relationship. The middle and end of their lives together played out on TV thanks to their hit reality series, Jon and Kate Plus 8, about them raising their eight children. Ahead, get details on how they met, their marriage and divorce, plus what they’re doing now a decade after they called it quits.
1997: Jon and Kate met at a picnic
Jon and Kate Gosselin met on Oct. 5, 1997, at a company picnic. Kate’s friend happened to work at the same hotel as Jon, who recently returned from backpacking across Europe. Kate attended the picnic with her friend where she met Jon.
“There was this guy walking across the grass. He had sunglasses on,” Kate recalled in an early video clip of Jon and Kate Plus 8. “I was like, ‘I’m not leaving here until I meet him.’ I declared that.”
Jon stopped dating other people
The two hit it off right away and their relationship got serious very quickly. Jon who had been seeing another woman ended things with her almost immediately after.
“She was gone the next day,” Kate recalled about the woman Jon had been seeing.
With Jon free to pursue a relationship with Kate, they went all in and began spending time together and were rarely seen apart.
The couple married in 1999
Less than two years after they met in 1997, Jon and Kate were married. They paid for their wedding on their own, which for the young couple who were 22 and 24 respectively, proved to be a challenge. Although having a low-budget or “cost-effective” wedding at Kate put it, that didn’t make the ceremony any less magical than a more lavish wedding.
On June 12, 1999, Jon and Kate married in the backyard of their friend’s 1920s mansion in Wyomissing, Pa., surrounded by family and friends.
Kate and Jon became parents
After their wedding, “baby fever” kicked in for the newlyweds. Upon learning Kate had polycystic ovarian syndrome, which can make getting pregnant very difficult, she and Jon turned to fertility treatments for help.
They welcomed twin daughters, Cara Nicole and Madelyn “Mady” Kate, in 2000.
They went from 2 kids to 8
Four years later, Kate and Jon found themselves expecting again. This time they had sextuplets, or six children, to expect.
On May 10, 2004, the couple became the parents of eight children when they welcomed three daughters — Alexis, Hannah, and Leah — and three sons — Aaden, Collin, and Joel — into their family.
Their family dynamic of two parents raising eight children became the idea behind their hit show, Jon and Kate Plus 8.
‘Jon and Kate Plus 8’ premiered in 2007
On April 10, 2007, Jon and Kate Plus 8 premiered on TLC. The reality show about the family really hit its stride in 2008. The show became a household name. By that point, Kate’s asymmetrical bob haircut had made her a fixture in pop culture. The couple became so well-known they were a go-to Halloween costume.
Divorce announcement in 2009
After 10 years together, Jon and Kate announced they were getting a divorce during a special hour-long broadcast of Jon and Kate Plus 8.
They publicly announced their separation and filed for divorce in a Pennsylvania court the same day, according to People. In the months prior to their announcement, there had been allegations Jon had cheated on Kate.
In the end, Jon decided to leave the show while Kate continued on with the series as Kate Plus 8 until it came to an end in 2017.
Divorce made official six months later
Jon and Kate’s divorce happened quickly. Within six months of their public announcement, they were officially divorced.
Kate’s now on ‘Kate Plus Date’
In the years after her divorce, Kate continued to work on TV. Once Kate Plus 8 wrapped, Kate returned to TV once again, this time with the focus being on her love life and not her life as a parent.
Jon has a girlfriend
Thanks to his Instagram, we know Jon Gosselin has been working as a DJ and spending time with his girlfriend of three years and children as of late. Even though his marriage with Kate ended in divorce, today Jon’s happy with his life.
