Bristol Palin Shared That Her Oldest Son Moved Back to Alaska to Live With His Dad

In June 2011, Bristol Palin released a memoir titled Not Afraid of Life: My Journey So Far. The daughter of former Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin was 20 at the time, and was raising her son Tripp Johnston entirely on her own. She and her son's father, Levi Johnston, ended their engagement in February 2009, two months after Tripp was born.

Bristol reflected upon her experiences as a young mother, and wrote about how difficult it was having her time as a teenager end so abruptly. While promoting the book, she spoke with Dr. Drew about those feelings: "I was on the fast track to adulthood just in an instant because of that one decision."

A lot of time has passed since then, and with it came two more children — and loads of changes. What are Bristol Palin's kids doing now? Here's what we know.

In a now-archived Instagram story from August 2024, Bristol revealed that Tripp had made the difficult decision to move back to Alaska in order to be with his father. Bristol relocated to Texas in 2017, which is around the time her third child was born. Despite the fact that temporarily losing Tripp was heartbreaking for the conservative influencer, she wrote in a caption that she understood why he did it.

"If you know Tripp, you know he lives for hunting/fishing," she said, "and I honestly can't blame him for wanting to be back home."

She goes on to say that this is not what she wanted, but it isn't about her.

"He's almost 16 years old, and that relationship with his dad is a lot more important than my own selfish desires of having him with his mama forever!"

Bristol ended the bittersweet message by stating she wasn't ready to say more just yet.

According to E! News, Bristol gave birth to her two daughters within three years of each other. Sailor Grace Meyer was born in December 2015 while Atlee Bay Meyer showed up in May 2017. A month after Atlee was born, Bristol and her then-husband, Dakota Meyer, celebrated their first wedding anniversary. A little over a year later, Dakota took to Instagram to explain why the couple was splitting up.

In a series of archived stories framed as an "ask me anything," Dakota said Bristol "wasn't happy with me so it's for the best." When asked if they were separated or divorced, Dakota replied, "Happily divorced." He also revealed that he has split custody of their daughters, and sees them every other week for a full week. "Both of my girls have got me through so much," he wrote, "but Sailor is what turned me into a man and made me not just want to be better, but to make the commitment" to be the best dad ever.

Sailor and Atlee both make frequent appearances on Bristol's Instagram and appear to be living a happy, joy-filled life. There are first day of school shots, pictures of various adventures, and of course sisters being sisters. By that we mean, someone is always messing with the other one. Perhaps their antics will make up for Tripp's departure.