“The last few years have been unreal and surreal.” – Sarah to In Touch Weekly

Bristol Palin didn’t know what she was in for when she made the life-changing and controversial choice to have a baby at the young age of 18. But after she gave birth to her son, Tripp, in December 2008 — and broke up with her boyfriend, Levi Johnston — the reality of single motherhood quickly set in. “I remember sitting on a black recliner, just bawling my eyes out,” Bristol tells In Touch. “I was just rocking Tripp to sleep because he had been screaming for so long. I was just like, ‘What am I going to do? This is as bad as it gets.”

Though raising an infant has been challenging, Bristol has the unconditional love and support of her family — especially her mother, Sarah Palin. After all, no one can better understand the complicated decision to have a baby under difficult circumstances. Just a year earlier, at the age of 44, Sarah carried her son Trig to term, even though she was told during a sonogram that he would be born with Down syndrome. Now, the mother and daughter are sharing a unique experience— raising baby boys together under the same roof. In an exclusive interview at the family’s home in Alaska on January 10, Sarah and Bristol plopped down on the teenager’s bed and opened up about the joys and challenges of raising Tripp and Trig. With Trig’s birth, Sarah’s vice presidential run and Bristol’s very public pregnancy during the campaign, “The last few years have been unreal and surreal,” Sarah tells In Touch.

For the full exclusive, including heartwarming photos of the family and complete interview, plus the Palins’ joys and challenges of raising their sons, check out this week’s issue of In Touch, on newsstands Friday.