Adam and Danielle Busby are an open book. The couple have opened up their home and family to viewers ever since they became some of the most popular TLC stars thanks to their series OutDaughtered. There is no doubt that a lot has changed for the couple since they welcomed daughter Blayke followed by the only all-female set of quintuplets, Ava, Olivia, Hazel, Riley, and Parker, and of course, things weren’t always so hectic. While fans have learned a lot about the Busby’s since they made their TLC debut in May, 2016, there was a lot of their relationship before that that viewers were not privy to. Check out these things you didn’t know about Adam and Danielle Busby’s love story and relationship:
12. How They Met
Before the pair ever thought of being parents or reality TV stars, they were just trying to get by with the same part-time job, working at Target in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Danielle detailed how their romance began by explaining that they practically worked “side by side” for months before Adam finally uttered his first words to her, “hey beautiful”. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the most impressive opening line to Danielle who shared, “My thoughts at first were…’oh wow! You never talk to me and now your trying to hit on me….real smooth.'” Despite her apprehensions the two began spending their lunches and breaks together and eventually he worked up the courage to ask her out on a date!
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11. First Date Gone Wrong
Much like Adam’s first pickup line attempt, their first date definitely didn’t go smoothly. Danielle joked that Adam “begged” her to go out with him and the plan was for him to pick her up when he was done work. As planned she said she went home to get ready and figure out what to wear only for Adam to call and tell her he wasn’t coming to the date and had decided to hang out with his friends instead. Despite his cancelled first date, she gave him another chance and they planned a dinner to Casa Mañana, but yet again it was not what Danielle had in mind! Instead of heading right out to dinner when he picked her up, he took her back to his family home where he was living at the time, and when he was ready she learned that the whole family was coming on the “date” because it was his sister’s birthday dinner. “For some strange reason this Adam guy asked me “officially” to be his girlfriend later that night and wait for it….I actually said yes!” she shared on their blog.
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10. The Engagement
Although the relationship didn’t start as expected, there was obviously a very strong mutual attraction between the pair and after becoming official the night of their first real date, the pair went on to date for two and a half years and by then they both knew they wanted to be together forever. “I started to fall in love with [Adam] when I realized how much joy he had for kids, just like I did,” Danielle revealed. She added that with her birthday approaching after two and a half years of dating, Adam asked her what she wanted for her birthday and she replied, “a necklace, bracelet or a right hand ring,” but she didn’t actually expect him to be ready to propose! In a complete surprise, Adam ended up proposing on Christmas Eve that year, the day after her birthday. “He was so nervous and acting so strange and he was getting on my nerves because he was acting so weird. Little did I know, he was getting down on one knee at that moment,” she explained. “Complete shock to me!”
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9. The Wedding
Although the proposal came as a shock to Danielle, it took the couple no time at all to get a wedding in order! Only seven months after the Christmas Eve engagement, the pair were married on July 22, 2006 in a small ceremony. “Boy, oh boy, was it a challenging [wedding] to plan,” Danielle said. “This was right after Hurricane Rita wiped out Lake Charles and pretty much every venue was damaged.” Instead of a popular venue, the pair found a small chapel to be married in and all that mattered to them was that their family and friends could be there. “We were young and in love, so we didn’t really care about where and what it all looked like,” she explained. “We were just looking forward to the day we would officially commit in front of God to be together forever.”
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8. Infertility Struggle
Years before the pair even thought about starting a family, Danielle admitted that one of the reasons she fell so fast for Adam was his love for children. Following their wedding, both knew they wanted to be parents and after moving to Texas they thought it was the perfect time to start a family, only to be faced with infertility struggles, something that never occurred to them. “Adam and I both adore kids and we never ever imagined WE would have issues,” Danielle said on their blog. The pair tried to conceive naturally for six months before they went to see a doctor. Eventually they learned that Adam’s testosterone, sperm count, and motility were low and Danielle did not have regular ovulation which caused a struggle on both sides. Eventually both were put on a drug called Clomid and they decided to pursue Intrauterine insemination (IUI) and after five cycles they still did not have any success. Danielle admitted that the whole journey was very trying for both of them and on their relationship, and they decided to stop trying and take a break to refocus. Before long, Danielle felt the urge to at least try one more time, and she tried a new drug called Fermara. On the day of their last procedure, they became pregnant with their first daughter.
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7. Journey to Parenthood
After becoming pregnant following an arduous infertility struggle, Adam and Danielle welcomed daughter Blayke Louise on April 5, 2011 and despite the difficult beginning, Danielle had a great pregnancy! “I was blessed with a great pregnancy,” she wrote. “I actually loved being pregnant. Such an incredible feeling and miracle to have a baby growing inside you.” Since they both knew that they would likely have trouble getting pregnant again they waited a few years before trying again, and Danielle once again opted to go on the drug Fermara. On their second cycle the couple received a positive pregnancy test, but they had no idea what exactly was in store for them. Incredibly, on their first ultrasound the doctor couldn’t find anything, but a week later a lot had changed, they saw one sac and a baby, and on the third ultrasound they got life-changing news. “There were clear as day 3 sacs we could see on the screen at one time and then ONE more kind of off to the side. So now we were looking at FOUR babies. Adam is about to pass out and I am laughing!” Danielle shared on their blog. It wasn’t until their fourth ultrasound did they see that there were two babies in one sac which meant there were quintuplets. Due to the risks associated with quints, Danielle delivered all five babies, Ava Lane, Olivia Maries, Hazel Grace, Riley Paige, and Parker Kate on April 8, 2015 at 28 weeks which required the girls to spend their first few months in the NICU. The Busby’s brought home their last daughter, Ava, on July 6, 2015.
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6. Getting Help
Fans of OutDaughtered know that the show centers around Adam and Danielle juggling a very hectic schedule to raise their six daughters all on their own, but in 2017 they came under fire for allegedly lying to fans. Viewers took to the internet to proclaim that what the series wasn’t showing that the pair actually had a nanny who they described as a “family friend” so that fans wouldn’t see they had a nanny. Both Danielle and Adam denied this, and while they don’t have a nanny, they do get babysitters like all parents do for date nights. With six kids though they said they sometimes hire two at a time so no one is left with all six girls, but added, “They’ve been sleeping through the night since they’ve been six months old, so after they go to bed at 7 p.m., that’s pretty much when Adam and I would go out on a date or go do something. So the babysitter just basically has Blayke up, and Blayke loves that… we still are very nice to our babysitters and usually try to leave once [the kids] go to bed.”
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5. Careers
Welcoming a new baby puts stress on any relationship, but welcoming five is a whole other story, and apparently there was some tension about whether or not Danielle would go back to work. In the end the couple decided that they would live off of Adam’s sole income as an accounts manager for a major company. “It’s been a big drop because I used to work full-time and we had two incomes coming in,” said Danielle. “We had to make the call when I was pregnant, to make [the kids] a priority, and it took me away from my job.” Of course, the couple did open a Rush Cycle location together, which means Danielle isn’t completely devoid of the workforce after previously working as an independent beauty consultant.
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4. Scheduling is Key
With a young child and five toddlers, it is fairly difficult for Danielle and Adam to make sure to take some personal time for their relationship as a couple and not just parents, but they are adamant that one thing that makes it work is a schedule! “I think the biggest thing we feel — and what we tell other people — is scheduling is key. I know it might sound tedious and weird, but you’ve got to make time for it,” Danielle said of scheduling in alone time. “Most Fridays or Saturdays, one of them is date night for us and one of them is family night. We found that we need to be out of the house to catch up and not get distracted. We enjoy each other and love each other and want to hang out together, it’s just we have to plan it,” she added.
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3. Strange Allegations
Adam and Danielle Busby have faced some serious challenges together and have always stuck by each other and their family, but as always they are often faced with harmful or just strange allegations. For quite some time, fans were adamant that Adam was cheating on his wife, especially after the episode aired where he did not even call his wife on Valentine’s Day and seemed to be working late a lot. Of course, this wasn’t true and Adam was actually struggling with postpartum depression. After the harmful cheating rumors were laid to rest, another rumor surfaced that Adam is secretly gay, which also is not true, and comes from fans trying to stir up drama for the couple.
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2. Adam’s Struggle
As Adam’s behavior began to change following the birth of the quintuplets, many thought he was cheating, but he later revealed he was suffering from postpartum depression and decided to speak out to try to help end the stigma especially for men when it comes to mental health. “I don’t know why, I just don’t feel like myself,” Adam told his father. “I mean, I definitely don’t feel like the Adam that I used to be with work, with friends, relationships. It’s caused some issues between me and Danielle, just because sometimes I want to check out.” He later said in an interview, “We knew that signing up to have our family documented for OutDaughtered that every aspect of our lives was going to be showcased on television. Because of this, we wanted to make sure that we were as real as possible,” he said. “This meant not only showing the fun and exciting times of being a parent, but also the hard times, the stressful times and the messy times. I’d be doing an extreme disservice to our fans if I hid this from the public and wasn’t honest with them,” he added. “I know I’m not alone and I want others to know they aren’t either. I want men to feel comfortable opening up about their feelings and expressing the struggles they’re going through. I want to help end the stigma surrounding mental health. The worst thing that you can do is stay silent and try fix things on your own.”
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1. Making Money
One thing that many fans have a question about when it comes to Adam and Danielle Busby, is just how much money they are making. The pair have not been only to take on the financial struggles of welcoming five babies at once, but also Danielle not returning to work, and of course buying a nice, large home. Of course, the couple have talked about financial difficulties, especially after Adam bought an expensive drone in season two and when they talked to a financial advisor they realized college alone would be almost 2 million dollars and to manage that, they’d need to save around $6,000 a month. While their net worth is unknown, it is speculated that Adam makes more than $80,000 a year, but more importantly they reportedly get a quite a nice paycheck from TLC. It is estimated they make anywhere from $25,000 to $40,000 per episode which can equal $1 million per season.
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