The Truth About Riley Busby

OutDaughtered's Riley Busby should get used to making headlines. Her family definitely took the world by storm when they received national recognition for welcoming the first set of all-female quintuplets in the United States. The Busbys instantly became outdaughtered when the quints were born, and they haven't been the same since. When Ava Lane, Olivia Marie, Hazel Grace, Parker Kate, and Riley Paige were born, the Bubsys became a family of eight. Parents Adam and Danielle Busby and big sister Blayke soon learned to adapt to a new level of chaos.

Of course, the truth about the quints on OutDaughtered is that the five adorable girls are just as interesting as you might think. And the same goes for Riley Busby, who viewers of OutDaughtered definitely know as being the leader of the pack. Still, Riley has a lot going for her, and it's interesting to learn all about the Busby quint, who stands out in more ways than one.

Danielle Busby had quite a day on April 8, 2015, when she gave birth to all five of the quints via C-section when she was 28 weeks along, as noted by Country Living. The quints were each obviously very tiny, and they had to stay in the neonatal intensive care unit, or NICU, for about three months. Still, cameras were standing by when Danielle gave birth to her five daughters, and Riley Paige was the fourth to be born, as noted by the TLC website. 

According to the family's It's a Buzz World blog, Riley Paige was born weighing 2 pounds, 4 ounces, and she measured just 14.2 inches long. Even though Riley — and all her sisters — were small when they were born, her birth was super quick. According to the blog, the quints "were out and off to the stabilization area within 4 minutes!" Obviously, OutDaughtered's Riley has grown a lot since then, but she was once just a little human, and that's pretty incredible. 

Even though the quints all share similar features — Ava Lane and Olivia Marie are actually identical twins, as noted by TLC — each has her own special characteristics, and Riley Busby is no different. In fact, when Riley and her sisters was only one month old, mom Danielle Busby took to her It's a Buzz World blog to reflect on how much the quints had changed and how they were growing into their features. "Riley reminds me of me the most," she wrote. "She has fair skin like I did as a baby and she is the only one who has skin like this." 

As fans of TLC's OutDaughtered know, Danielle has dark brown hair, and, as the quints have grown, their features have really only lightened, as they all — except for redhead Hazel — have blonde hair. Even though Riley doesn't have her mom's dark features like her brown hair and brown eyes, she still has almost porcelain skin, which is definitely something she got from her mom.

Anyone who has watched OutDaughtered knows that Miss Riley Paige is somewhat of a firecracker. In fact, on an episode of OutDaughtered, Adam and Danielle Busby explained how they were adjusting to dealing with the quints when they got into their "terrible twos." In the episode, they said Riley was a lot to deal with. "It's Riley's personality to be terrible," Danielle said in the episode with a straight face, clearly exhausted by her daughter's antics. 

Even on Riley Busby's biography on the TLC website, she is described as being more than just a little cheeky and theatrical. "She is a little drama queen and knows how to manipulate everyone around her to get what she wants," the site noted. Riley has a lot of personality to her — that much is clear. While both Adam and Danielle have a hard time dealing with all of it, it's just part of what makes Riley Paige who she is. And as fans know, she may be sassy, but Riley is also cute enough to make anyone forget her hysterics. 

On Season 5 of OutDaughtered, Adam and Danielle Busby were faced with a pretty tough decision as one of the quints — Riley — tested above her age group at school. Riley Paige Busby ended up skipping pre-K and going straight to kindergarten because she did so well on her placement test, as seen in an episode of OutDaughtered. In another episode, Adam and Danielle revealed they were a little uneasy at having Riley be so smart. "I'm not sure I can handle a smart kid," laughed Danielle, clearly amused at the situation. Danielle continued, "I'm starting to wonder if she's bored, and if that's why she always acts up."

Of course, Adam and Danielle weren't too surprised at Riley placing above her sisters on the placement test. In the Season 4 premiere of OutDaughtered, the Busbys revealed that Riley was seriously clever. "I think she's smarter than all of us," Adam said. Riley Busby has the smarts to match her sass, and Adam and Danielle are just trying to keep up. 

It's no secret that Riley Busby is a bit of an intellectual (well, as intellectual as any kid could be). But what fans of OutDaughtered might not be aware of is that Riley's smarts have caused some drama for the family. A big plot point on Season 5 of OutDaughtered was the fact that Riley placed higher than her sisters in their school's placement tests. Fans absolutely had some thoughts on how the Busbys handled the situation, and Adam and Danielle Busby had to deal with quite a few parent-shamers on social media. According to People, one Instagram user commented on Danielle's post of the kids' first day of school, "Why does it seem like the entire family revolves everything around Riley?" 

Danielle told the magazine that she and Adam had thought through their decision carefully. "Riley's above and beyond with her intelligence," she said. "Knowing where she's at right now, this was our decision based on her. Of course we looked at the family and how this change affects everyone else." Riley may be a grade above her sisters, but that doesn't mean her parents love her any more than the other quints. 

Even though OutDaughtered star Riley Busby might have taken after her mother when she was a newborn, the youngster quickly grew to take after her dad in plenty of ways. In fact, Riley is definitely a daddy's girl, and she loves to get any and all of dad Adam's attention. In a blog post celebrating the quint's first birthday on the It's a Buzz World blog, mom Danielle Busby wrote about how Riley is obsessed with Adam. "She is probably the Daddy's girl out of the bunch," she wrote. "She will pitch a F.I.T if Adam comes home and doesn't tell Riley hi before the other babies." 

But that's not all Danielle had to say about Riley's connection with Adam. In a blog post celebrating the quint's second birthday, Danielle explained how exhausting Riley was. "Oh Riley! You are your Daddy's daughter for sure!" Danielle wrote. "Thank goodness we only got one of you in the quint bunch." Clearly, the kid just can't get enough of her father. 

Riley Busby may be smart, but, according to her mom, she still lives her entire life to get attention. On the quints' second birthday, Danielle Busby wrote a little paragraph on her It's a Buzz World blog about each quint, and, when she got to Riley, there was one thing she absolutely couldn't leave out. "She is the social butterfly in the bunch and needs...let me rephrase that...she requires attention," Danielle penned. 

Additionally, on an episode of OutDaughtered, when Danielle and husband Adam Busby were talking about how the quints had transitioned into their "terrible twos," Danielle explained that Riley was probably the worst out of all the quints. "She's so smart, she's so cute, and she does it for attention mostly," she said in the episode. Clearly, Riley knows what she's doing when it comes to getting attention, and all those smarts are being put to use... though maybe not in the way Adam and Danielle would have hoped. 

It's no secret that Riley Busby is a bit of a troublemaker, and she isn't the "easy" quint by any means. In an episode of OutDaughtered, Adam and Danielle Busby explained how each quint's personal characteristics had started to shine through, and, when they described Riley, there was a pause. After Adam said, "Riley," he sighed before continuing, "She loves just to antagonize. ... she will take toys away, she picks on the other girls."

Another episode of OutDaughtered featured a perfect example of Riley causing some trouble. According to People, the episode showed Danielle trying to clean up after the quints when Riley spilled her milk on the floor. That caused Danielle to have to put her in time out. "Riley is notorious for spilling her milk on purpose — she does it all the time," Danielle said in the episode, as reported by People. Riley Paige is definitely a troublemaker, but somehow that's just part of her charm. 

With all her bold behavior, smarts, and never-ending desire for attention, Miss Riley Paige clearly tests her parents' patience now and again. In fact, Riley Busby has taught her parents a whole new meaning for the word "tolerance," and Danielle, for one, won't forget it. Specifically, in a 2018 Mother's Day blog post for her It's a Buzz World website, Danielle explained how Riley was constantly pushing boundaries, but she, of course, loves her anyway. 

"You amaze me daily!" Danielle wrote to Riley. "I don't know how I have a little girl like you but you truly are amazing. ... You have taught me what the true meaning of having patience is (lol) and you constantly make me think outside the box." Previously for the quints' second birthday, Danielle wrote a blog post and described Riley as testing her patience in a different way. "She has NO fear and is a [daredevil]," the OutDaughtered star penned. Riley for sure knows how to push her parents to the limits, but that's just Riley being Riley! 

Believe it or not, but Riley Busby is actually pretty responsible, though not always in the best way. According to Danielle Busby, Riley is honest to a fault, and she will usually end up being the first to tell on her sisters. In a post for the quints' second birthday on the It's a Buzz World blog, Danielle explained that Riley was already ratting out her sisters. "She loves to tattle tell, even when it's her fault and she instantly blames it on someone else," Danielle wrote. "If someone does something wrong, she is first to tell us."

And that didn't change when Riley turned 3. For the quints' third birthday, Danielle wrote another post for the It's a Buzz World blog and said that Riley was still a tattletale. "We always knew one of the quints would be the 'tell all' / tattle teller..well this is Riley," the OutDaughtered star shared. "She may not always be telling the truth but she will [for sure] tell you when someone else is doing something wrong,." 

Riley Busby might be a quintuplet, but she's actually pretty easy to tell apart from her sisters on OutDaughtered. Although she shares many of the same physical features as her sisters, telling Riley apart really comes down to two things: her head and her eyes. In a video on the It's a Buzz World YouTube channel, mom Danielle Busby went to each quint and explained how she can tell them apart. When she got to Riley, she said, "She has a tiny head ... and her eyes are really big." Then, Danielle told Riley to "show daddy your eyes Ri Ri," asking, "Where's your pretty eyes?" Riley then batted her eyelashes.

Besides her physical features, Riley also has a personality that makes her stand out. "It's Riley's world and if you don't think so you better go somewhere else, lol," Danielle wrote in her It's a Buzz World blog. "She hears the word 'No No' so much that if you say that to another baby she instantly gives her 'most annoying sound in world' (the chewbacca growl)." So, if you hear a Chewbacca sound, odds are, it's Riley Paige.

Fortunately for the Busbys, there are moments when Riley Paige shows that she is not only well behaved but also honest. Sure, she might get in trouble, pick on her sisters, and make messes, but at her very core, Riley Busby is honest, even if that means she gets in trouble. 

On an episode of OutDaughtered, Riley was caught having made a mess in her closet. At first, dad Adam Busby asked her sister Parker who did it, and Parker basically blamed everyone but herself for the mess, including Riley. But when Adam went to Riley to ask who made the mess, she admitted it was her and Parker, taking responsibility. Even though he was frustrated at the mess, Adam appreciated Riley's honesty, and he even thanked her for telling the truth. Riley Paige may be dramatic, but there's no denying the fact that she is still very honest, no matter who she may get in trouble in the process.

While all the quints have some attitude and spunk, Riley Busby has a huge personality. Just watch one episode of OutDaughtered, and you'll get it. Even though parents Adam and Danielle Busby love that Riley is unique and has such notable traits, it drives them a little crazy sometimes. In a blog post on It's a Buzz World, Danielle wrote about how the quints are different from each other, and, with Riley, it's all about her charisma and temperament. "She is a handful, to say the least," Danielle noted. 

Danielle then went on to say that Riley is also kind of the alpha of the quints because her personality is larger than life. "She is the leader of the pack, buuuuut not so much in a good way, haha," she explained. "She is bossy, sassy, and 'knows it all.'" Sounds about right! Riley is anything but mild-mannered, and her family loves that about her. 

While Riley Busby definitely came into her personality more and more as she got older, that doesn't mean she wasn't always the sassy Riley the Busbys have come to love. In fact, even when she was a baby, she was the rowdy one. In an It's a Buzz World blog post written when the quints were only five weeks old, Danielle Busby wrote about how little, baby Riley was acting up already. "Does she know how to get what she wants!" she penned. "This girl wants to lay on her belly ...like always..lol. And she will do what she has to to get her way...my precious stubborn one." 

On early episodes of OutDaughtered, there was also no denying the fact that Riley Paige was a firecracker. Riley may be young, but, with her personality and intelligence, she is clearly going places.