Christine Lampard and her husband Frank are expecting their second child, with their daughter Patricia set to become a big sister in April.
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On why she chose to keep the news to herself until she was over 20 weeks along, she said on Loose Women: "It wasn't even that it was a big secret, most people that I know knew certainly but it was a lot to do with every time I went to do the little Instagram post, Boris [Johnson] would beat me to it and announce something dreadful on the news and it never felt like it was an appropriate moment to share a little bit of family happiness…
"Suddenly another week went by and you know what I am like anyway, I am very cautious and bit kind of low-key and no fuss. It sort of suited me to tick things along, to get to a point where you felt relatively safe, if you can do it at any point in a pregnancy. It just felt nice to get past the 12-week phase and then suddenly it was past 20 [weeks]."
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As her due date nears, we take a look at the tips and tricks Christine will likely use to raise her baby, based on what she's said about two-year-old Patricia.
Pass on your passions
Football is a huge part of her husband Chelsea manager Frank's life, so it's only natural that their daughter will be exposed to the sport as she grows up. And at the age of just one, she appeared to already be showing some natural talent! Christine recently shared an adorable video of Patricia playing football with Frank in the park, which she captioned: "Daddy's girl." How impressive was her aim as she kicked the ball to her superstar footballer dad?
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It will be tough sometimes
Instead of promoting just the perfect parts of her parenting journey, Christine has also let her fans know that there is bound to be difficult times, too. The 41-year-old found it particularly difficult following the first coronavirus lockdown, as she described Patricia as becoming "very clingy" after the family spent so much time together at home.
The Lorraine star is expecting her second child
"My little one is very clingy and has zero interest in socialising at all," she explained whilst discussing whether lockdown has brought parents closer to their children. "I have been her world," she added. "I found it quite difficult I have to say. Even coming in today, it was like, 'Oh my gosh, you're leaving me?' It's difficult to negotiate with a one-year-old. She was very panicky almost."
Don't listen to criticism
Back in 2019, the Irish presenter was mum-shamed by a stranger in a coffee shop. However, she told Loose Women viewers that she didn't take the hurtful comments to heart - an important lesson considering most of us are our own worst critics!
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She explained a man approached her and said: "I just want to let you know, I think you should burp her a bit more." Christine said the comment appeared to come out of nowhere, as her daughter was happily sleeping. "I wouldn’t mind if she had been screaming the place down, and I had maybe genuinely done something wrong – I get that – but I didn’t think I had, and she was sleeping!"
Christine made Annabel Karmel's yoghurt pancakes for Patricia
Make meals fun
Squeezing in that extra portion of fruit or vegetables isn't always easy, but Christine has a very clever way to encourage healthy eating in her household - and it looks delicious! The doting mum made her daughter a stack of yoghurt pancakes using fruit to create the shape of a bear. She took inspiration from celebrity chef Annabel Karmel who revealed the yoghurt recipe is a "healthy twist" on normal pancakes. Children or not, we want to try them!
Enjoy every moment
While some people focus on the big milestones, Christine has also been embracing making memories on a daily basis. Making the most of her family time, she recently enjoyed a stroll in the park and stopped to feed some pigeons with her daughter. Captioning the image, Christine wrote: "Feed the birds", before adding the hashtag "#MaryPoppins."
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Many of Christine's fans were in disbelief at how quickly little Patricia has grown. One commented: "She looks like a big girl now. Lovely picture x," and another added: "Omg she's walking that time has gone so fast. Bless her." So imagine how quickly it goes when it's your own child!
The Loose Women star makes daily memories with her daughter, such as feeding the birds
Try not to feel overwhelmed
Easier said than done, right? Perhaps advice aimed more at first-time parents, Christine opened up about feeling overwhelmed as she approached her due date in 2018.
When asked whether she planned to breastfeed her baby, she said: "Of course you want to, to the best of your ability! But some women really struggle. The baby needs to be fed. I am in the middle, where I will need to do what I need to do." She added: "There's a lot to learn, isn't there? For a first-time mum?" Ultimately, everyone's parenting experience is different, particularly when it comes to matters such as breastfeeding.
Routines are important
When Christine returned to Loose Women following her maternity leave with Patricia, she revealed that she had already got her little girl into a routine. While it's not always practical to follow the perfect time schedule every day, the new mum revealed it helped ease some of her anxiety.
She said of the five-month-old: "I have got into a sort of routine now. I am brave enough now to take her out and get her out on my knee, but in the early stages I was a bit worried about it, thinking 'what if I don't have everything, what if she starts crying'."
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