After welcoming sextuplets in 2007, Jenny McClendon and her then-husband, Bryan Masche, opened their home to America. 'We were so excited to have our lives documented. But at the same time, it was hard not to think about what happened with the Gosselins,' McClendon, 50, tells TODAY.com, referring to TLC’s drama-filled “Jon & Kate Plus 8.

“I had a hard time with the girls when they were 14, 15, 16, — they were vying for attention, vying for friends,” McClendon says. “But after they hit 17, I was like, ‘Everything is going to be OK.’” Blake, an aspiring race car driver, is “no nonsense” and “knows everything about everything.” Cole, who loves to lift and discuss current events, is a “good friend to everyone.” Grant is the “most chill” of the brothers. “Grant is really coming into his own and it’s amazing to watch,” McClendon says.

The costs of raising kids without grandparental careChildcare costs up to $15,000 per year for one child in the US. Parents without family help are forced to pay, change careers, and never get a break.

Here's The 1 Thing Parents Get Wrong About Raising Confident KidsKelsey Borresen is a senior reporter at HuffPost Life, covering love, sex and relationships. She is a graduate of the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism and lives in Los Angeles.