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The Sister Wives cast, from Kody Brown and his four wives Meri, Janelle, Christine, and Robyn, to several of their adult kids, had quite an eventful 2019. 

The huge polygamist family moved to Flagstaff, Arizona, after making their home in Las Vegas for five years. Meri’s daughter Mariah Brown got engaged to her college girlfriend, Audrey Kriss. Janelle’s daughter, Maddie Brown Brush, and her husband Caleb moved to North Carolina for his new job and had their second child. 

Meanwhile, the Brown adults dealt with drama with Flagstaff neighbors and ongoing tensions in the family, especially between Meri and Kody in the aftermath of her catfishing scandal. 

Sister Wives Season 14 returns to TLC on Jan. 5. The season promises to be one of the most explosive yet, as the family navigates their big move and a major rift within the family dynamic. At the end of 2019, several of the Brown family members took to social media to reflect on the tumultuous year.

Janelle, Meri, Kody, and Christine Brown
Janelle Brown, Meri Brown, Kody Brown and Christine Brown | Ethan Miller/Getty Images for AEG Live

Mariah called Audrey the ‘light of her life’

Meri’s 24-year-old daughter Mariah came out as gay on Sister Wives a few years ago. Her sexuality made waves within the family and the media. After all, the Browns’ fundamentalist Mormon beliefs within their church (the Apostolic United Brethren) are generally anti-LGBT. But to many fans’ surprise, the Browns welcomed Mariah with open arms and have accepted Mariah’s fiancee Audrey as one of their own. 

Mariah, who is now a graduate student in social work at Loyola University in Chicago, spent Christmas with Audrey, away from the Browns in Arizona. She took to Instagram just before the New Year to express her gratitude for her fiancee, whom she met when they were both undergraduates at Westminster College in Utah. 

The Sister Wives star captioned a cute photo of the couple, “Cheers to 24 years & blessings for the next. As we move into the next decade, I can’t wait to see what is in store for us, for you, and for our future. You are truly the light of my life and it’s my greatest gift that you were born twenty four years ago. I love you so. Happiest birthday, my babylove.” 

Fans flocked to the post offering their support and wondering about wedding planning. Mariah and Audrey’s engagement will be featured on the upcoming season of Sister Wives. 

Maddie Brown Brush also posted about her tumultuous year

Janelle and Kody’s daughter Maddie also had quite the year. Not only did she give birth to her second child (after son Axel), daughter Evangalynn Kodi, but her newest addition with husband Caleb was diagnosed with a rare health condition. What’s more, the couple’s beloved dog Nova died near the end of 2019. 

Maddie reflected on the year and shared her hopes for the new decade in a poignant Instagram post, writing: “2019 was a very eventful year for us! Move across country, had a baby, started a new business, Caleb started a new job, made a bunch of new friends and reconnected with old ones. None of it happened the way I thought it would. Some of the worst situations turned out to be the best thing for us. I have been humbled this year, immensely. I have also been very blessed beyond I deserve. Here’s to praying for an amazing 2020, maybe with a little less major changes.”

On a lighter note, Maddie also shared that she’s diving into the Whole 30 diet this year and hoping to lose the baby weight. Evangalynn’s birth will play a prominent role this season on Sister Wives. 

Kody’s second wife Christine Brown shared New Year’s resolutions 

Although the Brown adults don’t normally post much on social media, the Sister Wives parents shared some holiday photos together in advance of the new season. 

Third wife Christine shared pictures of the kids at the Grand Canyon on New Year’s Eve, while second wife Janelle posted snapshots of several of the older kids with Kody and fourth wife Robyn on the Polar Express holiday train ride in Arizona.

Meri often appears more independent from the rest of the family. Speculations of a separation between Kody and his first wife will play out on Sister Wives Season 14. Still, she shared photos on her Instagram stories of a beautiful New Year’s breakfast she made for the family, indicating that although she and Kody might be on the outs, she’s still very much a part of the Brown family.

Christine also hinted at making some changes in her own life as the new decade approached. “Happy New Year!!” she wrote as 2020 hit. “This year [I] want to simplify my life as far as my belongings go. Really get rid of stuff and only things with a purpose.” Likewise, Meri shared an Instagram stories message about looking forward to “new chapters,” sparking even more fan rumors of a possible separation from Kody. 

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