Natalie Suleiman has allowed history-making composition The Octagon to step into the spotlight for the first time after years of private life.
It's been 16 years since the single mom gave birth to eight kids at once, earning her the nickname “Octomom” — and now she says the teens are ready to tell their family's story.
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Slimane, 49, shared a rare photo of the youngest of eight together on Instagram on their 16th birthday on Sunday.
“Happy 16th birthday to Noah, Isaiah, Nariah, Maliah, Jeremiah, Josiah, Jonah, and McKay!” My mother wrote from 14.
“You are loved, valued and appreciated more than words can express!
The photo showed the Octlets smiling in front of their home in Orange County, California, with a boom microphone peeking out over the top of the photo — likely from filming their upcoming projects.
“I am so blessed to have you all in my life, and excited and grateful for the journey we are about to embark on,” Solomon wrote.
A Lifetime movie about the family is set to premiere in March.
“Today, my family and I are getting our lives back,” Suleiman, who just became a grandmother, tells PEOPLE of the docs.
“I was like, 'I want to keep them safe and protect my kids, and, well, they're older now,'” she said.
“They're 16 years old and they're making the decision to really do it.”
After making headlines for giving birth to the first surviving Ostuplets in 2009, Solomon fell out of the limelight in 2013 due to backlash.
“It wasn't until he was about 4 years old, that I was finally able to escape all of that, and the attack that I felt from the world…and all that global disdain and condemnation, of being the target of misplaced hate,” Solomon said.
“I can escape and finally return to the life I knew before.”
Suleiman said she made difficult decisions to help her family make ends meet, including posing for nude photos and starring in an adult film.
“At first it was the full-on bandone,” she said of her sudden fame.
Octomom and her children rise to fame
Natalie Suleiman, also known as Nadia, rose to fame as an octomer after giving birth to the first surviving octomere in history.
Soliman first began IVF treatments at the age of 21 in 1997, when she was married to Marco Gutierrez.
The couple had four sons and two daughters together before divorcing in 2006.
In 2009, Soliman found she had six embryos from an anonymous sperm donor left over from her previous treatments. She asked to transfer them all into her womb at once.
However, Beverly Hills fertility specialist Dr. Michael Kamrava transferred 12 embryos into Solomon's uterus – leading him to revoke his license two years later.
Suleiman became pregnant with eight of the dozens of fetuses.
She gave birth to the occultids, six boys and two girls, on January 26, 2009.
Now the mother of 14 years, Soliman has publicly struggled to support her children financially as she plans to return to school to finish her master's degree in counseling.
She faced backlash for her parenting and even received death threats while working to make ends meet.
Soliman has worked to earn money by posing nude for photo shoots, collaborating with tabloids for stories, and appearing on shows including Dr. Phil and Oprah Winfrey Show.
She stepped away from the spotlight in 2013 and led a more private life, apart from posting sporadic updates about vegan meals and her children's birthdays to her Instagram account.
In September 2024, Sulaiman is months away from hitting her octaves at the age of 16.
In January 2025, Suleiman announced that her family was taking back control of her story through documents and a new lifetime employee to be released in March.
I Was Octomom, the movie, debuts on Lifetime on March 8.
Confessions of an Octomom, the first time the kids have spoken, premieres March 10 on Lifetime.
“There were, of course, all the details of death threats and fear on my family's lives.
“On the other hand, I had to keep sacrificing my integrity over and over again to survive and provide for my family.”
Suleiman previously said her daughter was excited about her transition to a private life.
“There was definitely a catalyst — my girls, especially my eldest daughter Amira,” Suleiman said in 2016.
“She was about 10 years old, and she was starting to incorporate my traits and behaviors.”
“After I noticed my daughter starting to emulate me, I saw her going down the same potentially destructive path, and I realized in that moment that I would rather be homeless in my truck with all 14 kids than continue down that path.
“It wasn't what I wanted for my kids,” she said.
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Now, her children have joined her as the family prepares to pull the curtain on their crowded home.
“My children will be participating for the first time,” Suleiman explained, adding that she didn’t want to talk at first.
However, Sulaiman's 16-year-old daughter Naria told PEOPLE she's “super excited” about the new doc and the movie.
“Our mother will finally be able to tell her side of the story, because I feel like it was very unfair how she was bullied and hated to become her mother,” Naria said.
“She had to sacrifice a lot for her children.”
I Was Octomom, the movie, debuts on Lifetime on March 8. The documents, called Confessions of an Octomom, were released on March 10.
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