Saturdays singer Frankie Bridge has had a rollercoaster of a time as a mum. Having her first child with footballer husband, Wayne Bridge, was harder than she ever imagined but they went on to have number two. Here, Frankie shares the wisdom she’s gained as a second-time mum...
I don’t love being pregnant.
It’s amazing how many women I’ve said that to who have agreed and then thanked me for being so honest. I’m so jealous of women who do love it but I think we put ourselves under so much pressure to enjoy the experience and not everyone does. Either way it’s important to be honest and not feel like we’ve failed in some way if it’s not as incredible as we expect.
For me, not putting myself under pressure, was even more vital as I went through periods of depression in the time before being pregnant with my first baby, Parker, now two.
I knew I had a higher chance of getting post natal depression because of this and, understanding myself, I realised piling pressure on to have the ‘perfect pregnancy’ was a possible trigger for it.
Of course I was scared I’d get post natal depression but I did everything I could to make sure I had a structure in place to nip it in the bud if it did happen.
Wayne, my family and my GP were all aware and I knew what to look out for. I’ve spent a lot of time learning about myself and I’ve accepted I can’t please people or get things perfect all the time. I took both my pregnancies day by day and was really lucky to get through it all OK.
He was allergic to the protein in cows’ milk and so he was a very crying, unsettled, pukey, constipated baby
That doesn’t mean having Parker was easy though! He was allergic to the protein in cows’ milk and so he was a very crying, unsettled, pukey, constipated baby.
I don’t even remember the timeline but it took us a long time to figure it out. I felt like the paranoid new mum running to the doctor all the time but I had a gut feel things weren’t right.
When he cried he seemed in pain and he never looked comfortable. I just wanted to make him better and eventually we got him on to some special formula which sorted everything out.
By the time he was eight months old and eating solids he was much better. Wayne and I even started thinking about number two.
When I got pregnant with my second son, Carter, Parker had just turned one. He wasn’t running around that much but as my pregnancy went on he got more and more active. It was exhausting!
Thankfully Carter didn’t have any of the problems his brother did and from the start he was so chilled. He has to fit in with what we’re doing and I call him my angel baby as he just does.
To be honest I’m glad I had the harder time with Parker as it would have been a massive shock with baby number two otherwise.
Carter is seven months old now and he and Parker are so cute together
Carter is seven months old now and he and Parker are so cute together.
Parker gets in the cot with him and kisses and cuddles him while Carter grabs his hair. It’s hilarious and I love watching them together. I’m really close with my sister so I hope they have a similar bond growing up.
We’ve just recently started Parker at nursery and he’s loving it. I dropped him off last week and he ran off so happily. It was obviously a good thing but I was devastated!
With the amazing support we have from the boys’ grandparents neither of them really need to go to nursery but I wanted Parker to learn to interact with other kids and about things like sharing. He loves following the older children around and the bigger girls seem to mother him.
It’s such a cliché but he loves balls and cars and especially trains which is perfect as I’ve just started working with Thomas & Friends for a new campaign around friendship, teamwork and racing. It means Parker has a lot of new Thomas the Tank Engine toys!
It’s great for me to start doing a bit of work again and whenever people ask me if we’ll have a third baby I’m very undecided.
For Wayne, he’s done, but I think I’d like another. For now though I want to enjoy my boys, get back into working and then when they’re at school we’ll see. I guess it’s watch this space…!
Frankie has partnered with Thomas & Friends for its #TeamThomas campaign celebrating friendship, teamwork and racing. Visit thomasandfriends.com and the Thomas & Friends Facebook page for more details and to join in with the fun weekly activities.