When Kate Ferdinand first started speaking out about the experience of being part of a blended family she could never have envisaged how far it would grow. "I've got to be honest when I started out, I just felt alone - I didn't know what to do," she tells HELLO! in an exclusive interview. "And I thought, 'I am just going to speak and share my story' and I was really - and still am to this day - overwhelmed by everyone's response and how much is helping them. I really didn't envision that I'd be where I am today. But I'm so grateful I can use my experiences to help others."
© GettyNot only has Kate, 31, continued with her popular Blended podcast but on May 11, she released her first book about families like hers; she is pregnant with her and Rio’s second child together and is also stepmother to his three children from a previous marriage. A manual which includes both Kate's experiences and others like her, it also offers advice from a whole host of experts.
© Getty"I'm so excited about it. It's the book I wish I had when I become a stepmum," she says. "I'm only one story - I'm a full time stepmum and I live with my children who have lost their mum but not everyone has that story; there's so many different ones. I think what I have done is share the things that I did struggle with in the hope it will help others. I've tried to be really open and honest."
© Kate Ferdinand InstagramCurrently pregnant with her and Rio's second child together – the couple also have son Cree, two - she says she is ‘feeling good’ but getting a bit tired. “I'm trying to stay active and do what I can but I'm trying not to put too much pressure on myself. I think in my last pregnancy I wanted to be everything to everyone and I have realised that this time around I can't be. That's helped me enjoy it more.”
© Kate Ferdinand InstagramShe says her older children – Lorenz, 16, Tate, 14, and Tia, 12, from Rio's first marriage - can't wait to meet the impending new arrival, which she will be a girl. "Our house is like a mad house anyway so another little baby is going to make it even crazier," she laughs. "But we're all really excited. We can't wait." Cree, however, is a bit young to really take on board what is happening. He says 'baby sister's in mummy's belly' and kisses it, but I don't think he quite knows that an actual human is going to come out. I think it will be a shock to the system."
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© GettyShe has opted for a planned Cesarean-section birth after having to undergo an emergency one when Cree was born. "From what I have heard, a planned one will be a completely different experience. So hopefully all will go well. When we get there, we get there."
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How To Build a Family by Kate Ferdinand(Happy Place Books, £16.99) is out now.
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