Getty Images, Instagram; E! IllustrationFrom the birth of Kim Kardashian's third child to Kris Jenner's cameo in the most talked-about video of the year, 2018 had a little something for every fan, from your garden-variety armchair enthusiast to the seasoned experts who've never missed an episode and would clean up on Kardashian-Jenner Jeopardy!
Every year we say that it's been the wildest year in the famous family's history, and every year they manage to outdo themselves, sometimes accidentally but, more often than not, by well-crafted design.
At the same time, this was also a year that saw a few of the ties that bind start to fray, even among sisters—only to then see those same ties regenerate, tested but not broken by a Twitter spat, gnarly headlines—or any outside influence, for that matter. When faced with a challenge, the family doesn't panic. They simply close ranks and handle what needs handling, inevitably ending up stronger and more battle-tested than before.
So, with the 15th season of Keeping Up With the Kardashians just concluded and 2019 around the corner, now is the time to take stock of the momentous events—some blessed, some not so much—that changed the family forever.
And, for the record, even when you're the "least interesting Kardashian to look at," people are still hanging on your every move.
Kim and Kanye's third child was born via surrogate on Jan. 15. Being a mother of three could make for "a wild household" at times, Kim said on KUWTK, especially when North, Saint and Chicago—and her husband—all seemed to need her at the same time.
Life may get a little hectic but, as Kim noted on her app in May, her favorite part of motherhood is "when my kids tell me they love me."
After never even publicly confirming that she was pregnant, Kylie Jenner and boyfriend Travis Scott welcomed daughter Stormi Webster on Feb. 1.
"Pregnancy has been the most beautiful, empowering, and life-changing experience I've had in my entire life and I'm actually going to miss it," Kylie wrote on Instagram afterward. "I appreciate my friends and especially my family for helping me make this special moment as private as we could." She also posted an 11-minute video highlighting some of her favorite moments from her nine-month journey that cleared up a few of the questions fans had about her domestic situation...
Those were the first words Travis publicly offered up about his weeks-old daughter when a photographer asked how she was doing. The rapper remains a pretty private guy, considering, but he eventually opened up a bit to Ellen DeGeneres, saying on her talk show, "I never thought I could just love something so hard. It's crazy."
"Creating life was one of the most beautiful moments of my life," Kylie said in a Vogue Australia video. "It's hard to explain why. It's just, when you've experienced it, you understand."
On March 4, Kendall Jenner took a detour to the emergency room after having a bad reaction to a vitamin drip—like the ones you can get on a truck in Vegas to replenish you after a weekend of partying—but that didn't stop her from slaying that very night at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party.
Khloe's first child, True Thompson, was born on April 12. True's dad, Tristan Thompson; grandma Kris, aunties Kim and Kourtney Kardashian; and honorary auntie Malika Haqq were all gathered round to meet her.
When the birth episode aired on KUWTK, Khloe tweeted about the unforgettable day and the tough decision she had to make at the time in light of troubling stories about Tristan published days before she was due: "I chose to put my feelings aside for the birth and to try and have as much positive energy that I could. My only thought was about the birth of my daughter. I wasn't going to let ANYONE disrupt anything less than what she deserved. Joyous love. I chose to be mature & strong for True."
She continued, "I waited for this day for so many years! I know now, looking back that I was in shock because I couldn't believe that this would ever happen to me but I'm still very proud of myself for how I handled everything. True gave me the peace and strength I needed."
Any year that sees the arrival of three new family members has to be a charmed one.
After only being photographed together a handful of times over the course of a year, Kylie and Travis opted to make their red carpet debut at the Met Gala on May 7, wearing his-and-her Alexander Wang.
So Kanye had an interesting April, when some complimentary tweets about President Trump (and then many, many other tweets) earned him applause from right-wing circles and a lengthy text encouraging him to reconsider from John Legend. Trump tweeted his appreciation, writing, "Kanye West has performed a great service to the Black Community - Big things are happening and eyes are being opened for the first time in Decades - Legacy Stuff!"
Needless to say, speculation ran wild as to what Kanye was doing—was he having a breakdown, promoting his album, going hardcore conservative...or something in between?
"He's a free thinker, is that not allowed in America?" Kim tweeted in his defense. "Because some of his ideas differ from yours you have to throw in the mental health card? That's just not fair. He's actually out of the sunken place when he's being himself which is very expressive."
She herself, Kim was quick to add, had "very different feelings & opinions" about the president.
Then in May, Kanye called slavery "a choice" in a chat on TMZ Live, prompting a TMZ staffer to stand up and call him out right then and there. The rapper has since apologized.
Kanye admitted later that he did wonder if he had gone too far at one point, telling the New York Times in June, "There was a moment where I felt like after TMZ, maybe a week after that, I felt like the energy levels were low, and I called different family members and was asking, you know, 'Was Kim thinking about leaving me after TMZ?' So that was a real conversation."
Turning oranges into orangeade, Kim scored a May 30 meeting with Trump—facilitated by first daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner—to plead the case of Alice Johnson, a 63-year-old great-grandmother who had served 21 years of a life sentence for a non-violent drug offense.
Trump commuted Johnson's sentence and she's now a free woman.
Kim acknowledged on The Alec Baldwin Show that Kanye tweeting Trump's praises definitely didn't hurt her chances of getting that meeting. "I've always had different opinions than Kanye," she reiterated. "But when I went there, and when I saw what could be done, I realized that I could get more done if I just stayed focused on the issue I was passionate about instead of complaining."
On Sept. 5, Kim returned to the White House for a listening session about the clemency process.
"I'm still doing me, but I enjoy this," she told Hoda Kotb on Today, meaning she wasn't going to be changing careers anytime soon, but she loved being able to use her platform to effect change. "This has fulfilled my heart. Since I feel so fulfilled, why would I stop that?"
After almost two years of dating, Kourtney broke up with model Younes Bendjima in August, the relationship having simply run its course.
"She knew it was coming and was already mentally preparing herself," a source told E! News. "They have been having issues for the past month and had already agreed to take space apart."
North West made her runway debut at the L.O.L. Surprise! kids show in L.A.'s Pacific Palisades in September. Spoiler alert: She's comfortable having her picture taken.
On Oct. 11, a day that will live in pop culture infamy, Kanye held court in the Oval Office, commanding Trump's and a salivating press corp's attention for a full 10 minutes of nonstop pontificating. Presumably his phone's unlock code is no longer just all zeroes.
While most of the rest of the Kards were in L.A., Khloe spent Thanksgiving with True and Tristan in Cleveland, wanting to make sure her daughter spent her first big holiday with both parents.
Kourtney and Scott have become experts at putting Mason, Penelope and Reign's needs first, no matter their own differences. And most of the time, they're still enjoying each other's company, as they did this year on Halloween, Thanksgiving and countless other family outings. Kourtney even felt ready to finally spend a little time with Scott's girlfriend of a year, Sofia Richie, joining the pair for dinner out at Nobu in November.
They don't really have a title, but Kourtney's been enjoying evenings out with fashion influencer Luka Sabbat.
Kendall Jenner turned 23 and walked in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in November.
Kris Jenner enjoyed her own drop the mic moment with a cameo in Ariana Grande's celeb-packed music video, featuring homages to Mean Girls, Bring It On and Legally Blonde.
Yes, Kris, you are indeed a "cool mom."
As you're well aware, Kim, Kylie, Kourtney, Khloe, Kendall, Kris and all the adorable kids did a zillion other things, too—so feel free to share your favorite Kardashian and Jenner moments from 2018 right here in the comments section.