Finding forever love. Although many Bachelor Nation couples struggled after the show and have ultimately broken up, the original Bachelorette and her husband are still going strong. Trista Sutter (née Rehn) and Ryan Sutter met on night one of season 1 of The Bachelorette — and hit it off immediately. She was very open-minded about the process, despite having her heart broken on season 1 of The Bachelor — something she credits as part of the reason for her success story.
“I decided going in that I needed to give myself wholeheartedly to the experience in order for it to work,” she recalled to Us Weekly exclusively in 2020. “I still believe that for anybody who’s the lead, if a person is not willing to be vulnerable and willing to express themselves and be truly themselves without fear of criticism or skepticism or whatever, I don’t think it’ll work out. That’s just my experience.”
The physical therapist and the firefighter were always true to themselves. On the finale of the show, they got engaged and one year later, got married in a TV special. They now share two children and live in Vail, Colorado — away from the public eye.
In 2015, she shared what she believes is the reason they are one of the few Bachelor Nation couples to make their relationship work for so long: Focusing on growing together and not on the fame that could come from the show.
“It’s just like your job. You have to put in the time and effort and energy that you do into everything else in your life, and I feel like [Ryan and I] do that,” she said on the Today show in 2015. “We’ve had our bumps in the road, just like anyone else, but it’s really about staying focused on each other and dedicating time to each other.”
Scroll through the gallery below for a full timeline of their love story.
After coming in second place on season 1 of The Bachelor, Trista was named the first Bachelorette. On night one, which aired in January 2003, she met Colorado firefighter Ryan Sutter. During week three of the show, he received the first one-on-one date.
ABC
On the season finale, Trista sent home runner-up Charlie Maher and chose Ryan. He proposed during the episode and she accepted.
ABC/CRAIG SJODIN
On December 6, 2003, Ryan and Trista got married. The wedding was broadcast on ABC as a three-part special titled Trista & Ryan's Wedding. The couple were paid $1 million for the special, which filmed at The Lodge luxury resort in Rancho Mirage, California, and drew over 26 million viewers.
ABC
In 2005, Trista joined the first season of Dancing With the Stars. She and partner Louis Van Amstel were the first duo eliminated.
BOB D'AMICO/ABC
After struggling with infertility for nearly two years, the couple welcomed their first son. Maxwell Alston was born on July 27, 2007.
Courtesy Trista Sutter/Instagram
About two years later, they welcomed their second child — this time a little girl. Blakesley Grace was born on April 3, 2009.
Courtesy Trista Sutter/Instagram
On December 14, 2013, Trista and Ryan celebrated their 10-year anniversary by renewing their vows with their children by their sides. The cameras rolled on their intimate Colorado ceremony and aired the following month as part of ABC's The Bachelor: Bachelor Love Stories.
Matt Baron/BEI/Shutterstock
The pair decided to return to reality TV for season 3 of Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars in 2014. “We’ve been asked a lot of times to do different shows and it just never felt right, but this one felt right," she told Parade at the time. "When they first contacted us, we were like, 'Oh, I don’t know, I don’t think so,’ but the more we talked to producers, the more we realized we wanted to be able to strengthen our marriage and to show people you don’t have to be unhappy to want to be happier, you can be in a really good place and want to be in a better place. I wanted to do that for us, but also show people that it’s not a bad thing to work on your marriage."
Gregory Pace/BEI/Shutterstock
On the day after Thanksgiving in 2020, Trista revealed via Instagram that Ryan had been struggling for months with a mystery illness. While the doctors ruled out cancer, they are still trying to find a diagnosis. Ryan also shared via social media that he began feeling "flu-like" symptoms five months ago. "If anything, I feel worse," he said, noting that his symptoms include "almost paralyzing" fatigue, headaches, fevers, nausea, neck and throat swelling and more. “Most days I feel about 70 percent. Somedays I feel a bit better and somedays I can barely get out of bed,” he wrote via Instagram. “I don’t believe I have anything contagious as no one else in my family has been sick nor has anyone I have worked with or associated with been sick.”
Courtesy Ryan Sutter/Instagram
Trista praised her husband's "bravery and resilience" as they celebrated their 17th anniversary amid his health battle. "More handsome today than he was on this day 17 years ago, but not only because I see him through the eyes of the mother of his children. Because he continually works to better himself...and us. Because he is the most humble, hard-working, generous, sincere, kind-hearted human with the biggest heart and even bigger muscles," the former Bachelorette star, 48, captioned a black-and-white photo of her husband on their wedding day. "Because his bravery and resilience is something I personally strive for. And that smile and those eyes. I mean...they pretty much slay me. Happy anniversary, Mr. Sutter and thank you for giving me the best years of my life.
In his own loving post, Ryan thanked his wife for being by his side, "Through good times and bad, sickness and health, blue skies and rain. You’ve stood by me through difficult times, supported me through change and sympathized with me through struggle. You’ve shown me grace and taught me gratitude. You challenge me and inspire me. You exemplify love and are a wonderful mother. You are my light, my reason and my hero. You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me and the love of my life."
Courtesy Trista Sutter/Instagramfrom Celebrity News – Us Weekly https://ift.tt/33EzSlQ
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