Erin Simpson and Zac Franich have always loved the festive season, but now that they’re parents to adorable five-month-old Harrison, it’s even more magical.
“I just love Christmas,” says Erin. “I’m one of those people who thinks about presents all year. I’ve already got a Harrison-themed Santa sack, decorations and a Harrison Christmas teddy bear!”
Luckily, her hubby Zac, 34, is equally enthusiastic. “I’m into it from November onwards,” he admits. “I’m the person who’s happy when they hear Christmas carols in the supermarket. With Harrison
on board, I’m 100% dressing up as Santa this year.”
For Erin, who battled a number of medical issues trying to conceive Harrison, spending the past five months looking after him has been a dream come true.
“Because I’m an older mum, I was ready for it – I was really ready for it!” the former children’s TV presenter laughs. “I mean, I’m 40, so I couldn’t have waited much longer, but it’s the right time for me to
be a mum. Nothing is an issue. Being up at 2am and 4am? I’ve kind of loved it. I’ve loved being home. I love having the time to be with him.”
Zac couldn’t be prouder of the way his wife, who has never claimed to be particularly maternal, has taken to mother-hood. “Watching Erin being a mum is probably the thing that has blown me away the most,” the 2017 leading man of The Bachelor NZ gushes. “She’s just really incredible. I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s like I’ve fallen in love all over again with her.
“I’ve always wanted to be a dad, but the first part was different to how I expected it would be. I couldn’t be as hands-on. I just tried to be as supportive as possible. But when he got to about three months old, he was at an age where I could be a dad, which has been amazing.”
The pair have been proudly watching young Harrison tick off milestones. “He’s sitting and he’s really alert,” tells Erin. “I swear I can have a full-on conversation with a five-month-old. He’s also starting to really push himself backwards, which Mum said is the beginning of the crawl.”
Unsurprisingly, Harrison is also enrolled in swimming lessons as water safety is something particularly close to surf-lifesaving coach Zac’s heart. “Fortunately, Harrison loves the water,” chuckles Erin.
She parented by herself for a bit while Zac, who coaches the New Zealand Surf Lifesaving Junior Black Fins, took the team to the World Championships in Italy. “Athletes need to compete – it’s in their DNA,” Erin says with a smile. “They haven’t been able to race for years because of COVID and it’s really good that NZ is finally on that world stage. That’s how I look at it, although the timing isn’t perfect!”
Erin says she’s lucky that she has some great support from friends and family, including her antenatal group.
“We catch up every fortnight and we’re all becoming a lot closer – we’ve graduated to meeting at each other’s houses rather than just at coffee spots, so the kids can all be rolling around on the floor. Plus, everyone’s up at 2am feeding, so it’s quite a busy time on the group chat. It’s really nice.”
Zac’s grateful that Erin supported him heading to Italy and he can’t hide how delighted he was that the team took out second place behind Australia. However, leaving his wife and baby wasn’t easy.
“Going away isn’t new, but it definitely hits differently when you’ve got a little one at home,” he says. “When we were in Italy, our team manager put together this really cool video where all the parents sent our team good-luck messages, and at the end there was one with Erin and Harrison. It caught me way off guard. I was getting ready to give a rousing speech, but instead I started bawling my eyes out.”
Both Erin and Zac come from big families, and they’re looking forward to including Harrison in the upcoming Christmas celebrations – lunch with Zac’s family and dinner with Erin’s.
“Zac’s is very traditional – Gran does all of the cooking!” marvels Erin.
“Mum, Dad, my uncles and my aunties have started doing some dishes,” counters Zac with a laugh. “We’re very close-knit. My mum and dad live next door to my grandma. My aunty, her husband and kids live in front of them. My brother, his wife and two kids live behind my grandmother, and there’s another uncle and aunty who live five minutes away.”
Erin’s mum Suzie is one of seven, and their get-togethers are always huge and creative. “Every year, there is a different theme and a different menu,” she tells. “Last year, we were meant to have fish – they went out on the boat that morning to get the dinner, but the boat broke down, so we had takeaway fish!”
“We’re fortunate to have a really close extended family,” shares Zac. “Christmas is a time of being together with the people you care about. We’re lucky we’ve got a lot of people who fit into that box. Erin’s the same. Her family is massive and her extended family is massive as well. That’s part of why we get on so well – we both come from a similar background and have really similar family values.”
The pair also have three separate friend groups they like to celebrate with leading up to Christmas. And they’re planning a lovely beachy summer holiday as Erin’s family has a bach in Whitianga, while Zac’s whānau has rented a place in Whangamata- to accommodate his sister Brearna, who is visiting from Perth with her fiancé Jimmy and 18-month-old son Albie. It will be the first time since COVID that they’ve managed to spend time together.
“We’ll be floating between the families in the Coromandel, which is wonderful,” says Erin. “I’m really looking forward to it, but I keep reminding myself to be realistic. Harry still has three naps a day. He’s
a big boy and he feeds a lot. I’ll be spending a lot of time in spare rooms!”
