James and Ola Jordan were delighted to welcome their baby daughter Ella in February - but having a newborn during the coronavirus lockdown has certainly had its challenges. In the first of their exclusive new Strictly Parenting columns for HELLO!, Ola has revealed the emotional rollercoaster she has been on as she tried to exclusively breastfeed, and then moved to mixed feeding as it became apparent that little Ella needed more to eat than Ola could produce. As if that's not stressful enough for any new mum, the current shopping situation has meant getting hold of formula milk is not a simple mission - and she and James have had a nightmare trying to source supplies.
WATCH: James and Ola's nursery tour
Ola explains: "Ella's still on the bottle a little bit, because I'm not making enough milk. I love to breastfeed and I was really set on breastfeeding entirely. But unfortunately, I'm just not making enough. I found it really hard because I really wanted to breastfeed her fully. And to make matters worse, we have been running out of milk as well. It doesn't matter about us - we can go without anything, we can go without food but she can't, she doesn't understand." James added: "That has been quite scary when you go into a shop and one time I went to five different shops and there was no formula at all anywhere."
James with baby Ella
The new dad revealed that a close family friend helped them out, explaining: "I was like, 'What am I going to do?,' but luckily because we've got a good support system with friends and family, one of my friends went out and he was searching around all the shops with his son until he found some, which I thought was amazing. He was out half the day trying to find formula. I've known him for ten years, he's a really close friend and I would say that touched me more than anything over the ten years I've known him. It meant a lot. He's got his own children at home and he went out and went searching for milk for my baby."
While bringing a new baby in isolation is full of challenges no new parent expected to have to face, James and Ola are making the best of a bad situation, and enjoying every moment with their much longed-for baby girl.
READ: James Jordan shares adorable new photo of daughter Ella
"People are dying in hospital on their own which is absolutely horrendous, not being able to have family members to go in, so we're not complaining," says James, sadly. "But obviously it's strange times for all of us. Everyone has got their own thing that they're dealing with at the moment and for us, you know, having our first baby, we're so excited to have her, but then she can't see anyone. We bought all these amazing outfits for her and no one gets to see them! We've got a pram that we're probably not even going to get to use - the early one, where they lie really flat. But it is what it is, everyone's dealing with the same challenges."
The happy couple welcomed their daughter in February
"It's a strange time for us as it is for everyone else. With a new baby just being at home and not being able to see anyone, we can't go out, we just go out to the garden really," agrees Ola. "She hasn't got to see anyone which is sad, but everyone's in the same position. We do a lot of FaceTiming with all the grandparents, aunties and uncles and everyone - we're lucky enough that we all have the Internet and we can do FaceTime. My mum and dad were meant to be coming over from Poland, they'd be here right now. They'd be here for Easter to see the baby and it's sad for us that they're not, but you have to be positive and hopefully they'll be able to see the baby soon."
READ: Former Strictly star Ola Jordan reveals overwhelming birth experience with baby daughter
"You've got to keep your humour, and you've got to keep your positivity," adds James. "There's so many worse things happening right now. Ola's uncle just died in Poland. And no one was able to go to the hospital and hold his hand when he was dying. No one's able to go to the funeral at the moment, it's happening in this country and all around the world. So we count our blessings.
The pair welcomed beautiful baby Ella in February
"If this happened 50 years ago people would probably be going insane but because with technology today, FaceTime, Skype, Houseparty, you can really get in touch with everyone and communicate - it's hard. But I think it makes you appreciate your friends and family and the little things," he adds.
"It brings you down to earth and makes you realise the important things; your family and your health," agrees Ola.
Come back next week to see how read the couple's next instalment of their Strictly parenting column