EchoVib

Catching Up With The Busbys

The normally bustling Busby home is suspiciously quiet during TODAY.com's early morning video chat with parents Adam and Danielle Busby.

The Busbys' rare all-girl quintuplets, who are now 9 years old, had split up: two at a sleepover and three upstairs. The Busby's oldest daughter Blayke, 13, was still asleep.

Things have certainly changed in the Busby household.

The 'OutDaughtered' family today

TLC's "OutDaughtered" series has followed the Busbys since the quints' birth, highlighting the difficulties of raising a 5-year-old and five newborns. The Texas family took a two-year hiatus from filming shortly after the pandemic, but they're back in action to show fans the new challenges of raising six young girls.

"It's still hard," Danielle shares, though she's relieved that her days of changing diapers ended years ago. "What's hard is that we have six individual children that are all over the place and wanting to go different directions," making managing schedules and activities a Herculean task.

The quints are no longer a package deal. Danielle says that the girls tend to play together with their group of friends, but the girls are in two different classes at school and "we really do encourage a lot of them to kind of divide at times," she says.

"I tell their friends' moms, 'You don't have to invite the quints over. They are five different kids.' And that's what's hard now. It used to just be Blayke and 'the quints' as one. But now it's just Blayke, Ava, Olivia, Hazel, Riley and Parker."

Let's catch up with each of the Busby kids as they begin forging individual new paths for themselves.

Blayke Busby, 13

Blayke is going into eighth grade in the fall. She's always loved volleyball and basketball, and this year she "fell in love with tennis," Danielle says.

"She's obsessed with doing her eyelashes," Adam interjects.

"Oh gosh, she carries that eyelash curler everywhere she goes," Danielle adds.

Ava Lane Busby, 9

Ava, who loves to dance, is becoming "goofier" and "goofier," Danielle says.

She's also emotional and places a lot of emphasis on making sure that everything is fair, which is a challenge in a big family. The Busbys are trying to teach her that "there's days that you get to do something fun and days that we have to let someone else do something fun." 

Olivia Marie Busby, 9

"Since they were little babies and toddlers, Ava and Olivia had the same personalities" in showing their sweeter side, Adam says. The girls are identical twins. "Ava was a little bit more 'drama queen' and Olivia was a little more 'goofball,' and now it's switching a bit."

Olivia has become more affectionate over the years, and she and Ava are "the social birds of the group," says Danielle.

Hazel Grace Busby, 9

"Homegirl is just singing and dancing 24/7," Danielle says. But her form of entertainment may not look familiar because "Hazel's just in 'Hazel's world' all the time," says Danielle.

She's also extremely helpful, Adam says. "You never have to tell Hazel twice. If you tell the girls to go upstairs and pick up their room, five minutes later, they're all still around and Hazel's upstairs doing their chores. She has a smile on her face and likes to do it, and all the other girls know that, so we have to make sure the others don't take advantage."

Hazel's eye issues, which have been a reoccurring plot point on the show, have been continuing to improve. "She's going to have a great shot at doing normal things in life, like driving a car," Adam says.

Riley Paige Busby, 9

Danielle says that Riley is "the mini-Adam and the mini-Danielle. She's the extreme of our two extremes."

When she's not playing soccer with a big smile on her face, Riley is extremely witty and seems to often become the class clown.

"She's constantly asking questions. She just does not stop," Adam says, adding that she likely gets her sarcastic side from him. The Busbys are amazed that Riley can make them laugh so genuinely.

Parker Kate Busby, 9

A soccer player, Parker is competitive and has a more mature sense of confidence, which may stem from her height. As the tallest of the quints, she often thinks she's "stronger and bigger and better," says Danielle.

"Which, in a sense, she is," laughs Adam.

"She's ultra talented at a lot of things," Danielle says, "and she's learned that whatever she puts her mind to, she's probably going to succeed at it." For example, Parker overcame previous anxiety and performed in the school talent show with friends, not with her sisters.

'OutDaughtered' on camera ... again

Ever since returning to filming, the Busbys have made a concerted effort to make sure the process doesn't hold the kids back from extracurriculars, sports or friendships.

"It's been a challenge schedule-wise," Adam says.

The kids "love our crew and love to pick on them and get behind the camera," says Danielle. "We try to make it as normal as possible, even though it's really not normal to have a TV show."


ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbvDmrBnm5%2BifLGt0Z6lratfmLKtscGroK2xX6TCtbDArp6hrJWnsqV50K6gp6ylpbmmwNJmpaivXZfCtK7YrGSrm56WfnaBkHBr

Lorie Orum