--- description: It was the love affair we thought would never die and did. But now Sarah Palin's daughter and her estranged love interest are engaged once again. A look back at their fairy tale romance. title: Bristol and Levi: So Many Memories image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [World](/section/world/) * [LightBox](/tag/time-section-lightbox/) # Bristol and Levi: So Many Memories by [TIME](/author/time/) Mar 12, 2009 4:00 AM CUT by [TIME](/author/time/) Mar 12, 2009 4:00 AM CUT It was the love affair we thought would never die and did. But now Sarah Palin’s daughter and her estranged love interest are engaged once again. A look back at their fairy tale romance. ### High School Sweethearts  Levi Johnston, in a 2006 yearbook photo, begins dating Bristol Palin in high school, before dropping out to pursue an apprenticeship on Alaska's North Slope oil fields. Anchorage Daily News / MCT / Landov ### Together Again?  After a much publicized separation the teenage couple from Wasilla, Ak. are an item once more. The young Palin told Us Weekly that she was, for the second time, engaged to Levi Johnston, Playgirl model and father of her 18-month old boy. EMMANUEL DUNAND / AFP / Getty ### Mom Tapped for VP  Days before the Republican National Convention, John McCain announces that Bristol's mom, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, will be his running mate. Bristol stands alongside her mother at the press conference, holding her little brother Trig. She is pregnant, though the news is not made public until three days later. J.D. Pooley/Getty ### MySpace Confessions  On his MySpace page, Levi talks about his love for hockey and describes himself as a "f---in' redneck." He also discloses that he is "in a relationship," but says he doesn't want kids. Anchorage Daily News / MCT / Landov ### Wedding Bells?  In a statement, the Palin family says Bristol and Levi "are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family." The Palin family also says the couple plan to marry. Joe Raedle / Getty ### McCain’s Blessing  John McCain greets Bristol and Levi arriving in St. Paul, Minn. for the Republican National Convention. Bristol is five months pregnant. Scott Olson / Getty ### A Public Display  During the Republican National Convention, Levi sits with the Palin family in their VIP box. Close-up photos reveal the depth of his commitment to Bristol: on Levi's ring finger is a tattoo of her name. Justin Sullivan / Getty ### Introducing…  After Sarah Palin's blockbuster acceptance speech at the convention, Bristol and Levi appear on stage with the entire family. PAUL J. RICHARDS / AFP / Getty ### Levi Meets the Press  In October, Levi tells AP that he and Bristol Palin are in love. "We both want to marry each other," he reveals. "And that's what we are going to do." Charles Rex Arbogast / AP ### Sarah Palin Becomes a Grandmother  Bristol and Levi's baby is born on December 27, 2008\. The couple add to the cadre of unusual Palin family monikers by naming him Tripp. Two months later, showing off her baby during an interview with Greta Van Susteren of Fox News, Bristol says that she and Levi still plan to marry and that he is "a really hands-on dad." Fox / AP ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/archive/7074458/bristol-and-levi-so-many-memories/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/archive/7074458/bristol-and-levi-so-many-memories/"},"headline":"Bristol and Levi: So Many Memories","datePublished":"2009-03-12T04:00:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T10:45:57.850Z","description":"It was the love affair we thought would never die and did. But now Sarah Palin's daughter and her estranged love interest are engaged once again. A look back at their fairy tale romance.","url":"https://time.com/archive/7074458/bristol-and-levi-so-many-memories/","keywords":["LightBox"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME","url":"https://time.com/author/time/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-lightbox/","name":"LightBox"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/archive/7074458/bristol-and-levi-so-many-memories/","name":"Bristol and Levi: So Many Memories"}}]}] ```