Woman's Day
Broadcasting star Carly Flynn has always lived her life a mile a minute. Not long ago, she was working six days a week and training to be a yoga teacher, as well as being a hands-on mum to Tilly, six, and Jude, five.
But since welcoming her gorgeous little boy Freddie last month, the 39-year-old has allowed herself to drift into the slow lane – and she’s loving every minute of it.
“Right up until I gave birth, I was feeling quite daunted about having a third child,” she tells us as she settles on to the sofa to feed her newest bundle. “But from the minute he arrived, I felt a real sense of completeness. He’s really made us slow our lives down and a lovely calm seems to have descended in the house. It’s wonderful.”
It’s certainly a serene scene that greets Woman’s Day when we arrive at Carly’s beautiful home on Auckland’s North Shore. The big kids are at school and her cameraman husband Dave is heading off to work.
Carly is thrilled to introduce us to her little man, who has the same dark hair and olive skin as his older brother and sister.
“There’s no doubt he’s a wee Flynn,” Carly smiles as she plants a kiss on Freddie’s head. It’s five weeks since her bonny boy arrived on his due date, after a false start a week earlier. “I farmed the kids out to friends and was about to dash off to hospital, then it all stopped!” she recalls.
But on the morning of March 3, Carly was at home after taking Tilly and Jude to school when labour began in earnest. “It was great timing – I’d got the kids off, Dave was home, it was a beautiful day and I’d had my morning coffee. I was ready to go!”
With contractions quickly becoming intense, Dave, 40, flew into “a bit of a flap” and insisted they head straight to the hospital. First, though, Carly called the school, so that Tilly and Jude could be told their baby brother or sister was on the way.
“The teacher then sent us a video of Tilly’s reaction when they told her – it was so lovely,” tells Carly. “She was saying, ‘Go, Mum!’”
Carly also called her Taupo-based mum Shelley, who dashed out of the hairdresser and went straight to North Shore Hospital, where she arrived just in time to see her new grandson enter the world.
“It was such a nice feeling when she walked in,” recalls Carly. “I had Dave and Mum by my side, and it was finally time to meet our baby.”
Meet Freddie Jack Alexander Flynn
Born: March 3, 2017
Weight: 3.5kg
Carly and Dave, who have been married for 10 years, had kept their baby’s gender a surprise and were thrilled when they saw their third – and final – child was a boy.
“We really didn’t mind what we were having, so long as everything was healthy and happy,” she says.
“But I am really happy for Jude that he gets a brother. And it’s kind of bonding for me and Tilly to be the girls of the family together. It all feels right, somehow.”
Carly readily admits she took some convincing to have a third child, partly because of her tough experience with Jude as a baby. Their little boy was deeply unsettled for many months, leaving Carly and Dave pushed to their limits. “It was the hardest year of my life and I was extremely nervous that it might happen again,” confesses Carly. But as soon as Freddie arrived, she knew all would be well this time around.
“He was my biggest baby, and he just seemed chubby and healthy, which instantly gave me confidence. He latched on straight away and was very settled. I kept him on me for the first hour or so, rather than handing him over to be weighed. That’s the lovely thing about doing it for a third time – you learn you can take your time with things.”
The proud mum, who felt “a sense of completeness” when Freddie was born, is slowing down the pace and taking time to enjoy baby number three.
A few hours after the birth, the smitten parents packed up their baby boy and headed to Birthcare in the city for two nights. En route, they made a special stop in the driveway at home so Tilly and Jude could meet their brother.
With her eyes welling up, Carly recalls, “It was incredibly emotional. The kids were so excited and I was in floods of tears.”
The family has quickly adjusted to its newest member and Carly – who returned to her Saturday Fresh show on RadioLive recently – says it’s a joy to see the older kids with their brother.
“If I’m cooking dinner and Fred starts to cry, Tilly or Jude go straight to him and settle him. It’s amazing having these helpers. They’re not quite so keen when it comes to nappies, though,” she laughs.
And the yoga guru – who has a popular lifestyle blog – can’t believe how well she’s bounced back after the birth. She practises yoga every day and feels great. “I’m actually incredibly proud of this 39-year-old body,” she says. “It still amazes me what we women are capable of!”
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