Trista and Ryan Sutter have the longest-lasting marriage in Bachelor Nation.
The couple, who live in Colorado, got engaged on the first season of the “The Bachelorette” after knowing each other for six weeks in 2003. At the time, she was a 29-year-old physical therapist named Trista Rehn and he, a 27-year-old firefighter.
“This day is a day I dreamed about my entire life,” Trista told Ryan as she handed him her final rose. “I see smiles and laughter, I see babies and grandbabies, I see comfort and safety. I see me in a dress and I see it with you.”
Ryan immediately dropped down on one knee, and proposed, telling Trista that he loved her “with every ounce of who I am."
The couple celebrated their 20-year wedding anniversary in December 2023.
Trista told TODAY.com in 2015 that their successful marriage has a lot to do with what they did after the show ended.
“Whenever I hear of people going on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ right after, it’s heartbreaking to me,” Trista shared.
She added that couples “really need to focus your time and energy on each other,” to get to know each other outside the short-lived “bubble” the series creates.
Over the last two decades, the Sutters have had their share of hardships. Ryan was diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2021. Trista had a health scare in 2017 when she suffered a seizure while vacationing with her family in Croatia.
During the difficult times, the pair, who renewed their vows in 2013, have leaned on each other as well as their two children, Maxwell, 16, and Blakesley, 15.
"I truly don’t know how I got so lucky," Trista began a Mother's Day post on May 12. "#MaxwellAlston and #BlakesleyGrace — thank you for giving me an identity and a purpose for the past 16 years and @ryansutter — thank you for being THE best parenthood partner."
In a series of cryptic posts, Ryan shared that Trista wasn't with the family over Mother's Day but later clarified that all is well.
“Trista is fine. We are fine. We’re great,” Ryan captioned an Instagram on May 18. “Trista is at a place in life where she is a searching a bit.
“An opportunity presented itself that may help her on that quest,” he continued. “With her family’s support, she has taken it. Part of that process means that she is temporarily inaccessible to us.
“I miss her. We miss her,” he added.
Read on to learn more about the Sutter’s kids:
Maxwell, 16
The couple welcomed their first child, a son, in July 2007 after a two-year struggle with infertility.
“When you get married you believe, ‘OK the next natural thing is to have babies.’ When that doesn’t happen you start to question your relationship, you start to question yourself, even God,” she told Fox411 in 2015. “It’s a very difficult thing to not be able to do anything about making a dream of yours come true and questioning whether something is wrong with you. So that was definitely a dark time in my life.”
In 2023, Trista paid tribute to Maxwell on his 16th birthday.
“He has grown into a strong-willed, handsome, patient, fun-loving, independent, no-nonsense stoic who loves hockey, his friends, working out, cliff jumping, teasing his mom, and petting his (dog) Sophie bear and hates attention, pictures, and hanging up his towels,” Trista wrote in a lengthy post.
According to Trista, Maxwell takes after his dad. When Trista appeared on “The Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast in 2023, she said it’s unlikely Maxwell would ever do “The Bachelor.”
“I would be so hypocritical if I told either one of them not to do it. So No. 1, I couldn’t tell them no. It’s how I met their father and how they actually exist,” Trista explained. “I can guarantee you that Max will never go on a show like this. He is so similar to his father. He’s not drawn to that kind of stuff. But my daughter, on the other hand, I could totally see her wanting to do something like that.”
Blakesley, 15
While Maxwell has no interest in being on TV, his younger sister Blakesely is ready for her close-up.
“We’ve actually talked about ‘Dancing with the Stars Juniors’ and she is a dancer and I literally wrote the casting team about it. I know that she would do something like that or I could see her doing it, but Max definitely wouldn’t. He’s not really part of this conversation,” Trista shared on “The Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast.
Along with dancing, Blakesley loves to watch “The Bachelor.”
“Because she came from it!” Trista told Vulture. “She has a pride that’s like, “This is where my parents met and it’s a happy story.” Had we not been successful and gotten divorced, maybe it wouldn’t be a show she would like to watch.”
Trista noted that Blakesley has a “sweet relationship” with former Bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe.
In April, Trista shared a series of pictures of Blakesely in honor of her 15th birthday.
“Whether I am snuggled next to you tuned in to our fave shows, watching with pride as you shine on stage, having a heart to heart about our peaks and valleys or just sharing this busy crazy life, I am so grateful to be your mom,” Trista wrote. “You’ve made me a better person in a more vivid world and with each trip around the sun, your light continues to brighten.”
In true teen form, Blakesely replied in the comments, “Thanks for choosing good photos.”
