Gemma Atkinson shared a sweet video to Instagram on Wednesday that perfectly illustrated the joys and challenges of being part of a bilingual family. The actress and her partner, Strictly pro Gorka Marquez, share Mia, who was born on 4 July. The dancer, who hails from Bilbao, has been adamant that he wants Mia to understand her Spanish heritage, while Gemma is from Greater Manchester and so teasingly implied that Mia's first language should be English.
The couple announced they were expecting back in February
It's obviously too soon for Mia to be talking in either language, but Gemma and Gorka each joked that they each wanted their native tongue to be first in the new video, which saw them take it in turns to sing numbers to the tiny tot as she sat in her carrier and shot looks to the camera, already seeming bemused by her parents.
The clip started with Gemma noticing that Gorka was singing numbers to Mia in Spanish, prompting her to interject, "No! One two three four five," Gorka then looked at the camera and sang louder, and Gemma repeated the numbers in English again as Gorka nuzzled Mia's stomach and kissed her on the cheek. Then they swapped, with Gemma singing in Spanish: "Uno dos tres," and Gorka continuing in English: "four, five six…" As the couple both laughed, Gemma added: "We can't even do it!"
Gorka and Gemma are doting parents to baby Mia
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The little girl has already showed that she has inherited her dad's talent, with Gemma previously uploading videos of Mia appearing to dance in time to music. Her mum is also a talented dancer, though, making it to the final of Strictly with Aljaz Skorjanec in 2017, where she and Gorka met. Earlier this week, the actress announced that she would be returning to the show to take part in this year's Christmas special.
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The 34-year-old said: "I had the absolute best time on Strictly and it completely changed my life so I am absolutely overjoyed to be returning to the dancefloor this Christmas with a new challenge, and of course to be back with the gang!" It remains to be seen whether she will be paired with Gorka, and the possibility that the couple could compete against each other on the dancefloor is still on the table.
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