Christmas looks a little different for Jules Robinson and Cam Merchant these days – and that’s just the way they like it!
“Last year, we decorated a metre above the ground,” Jules jokes of needing to keep the Christmas tree decorations out of two-year-old son Ollie’s cheeky little hands.
Decking the halls of their Sydney home is just one of the special traditions the couple have started since they fell in love on Married At First Sight Australia in 2019.
“Cam created a gratitude jar when we first met and we put our gratitudes into it throughout the year, then on Christmas Eve, we open them and read them,” shares Jules, 40. “We want to continue that with all our children in the future. It’s a lovely thing to instil in a kid – for them to have gratitude and also to make Christmas more than just about presents.”
“It’s definitely a team effort,” Jules says of co-parenting with Cam.
Expanding the fam
When it comes to gifts, there’s one thing on both of their wish lists – a little brother or sister for Ollie!
“I’m an only child – I had a great childhood, but I’d have loved a sibling,” Cam, 38, tells Woman’s Day.
And Jules jokes that while she momentarily thought she may have been “one and done” during the family’s recent trip to Bali, she also dearly wants another child.
“We would love to have had an announcement, but it hasn’t happened,” the reality star says. “But if there’s a will, there’s a way! We’ll do everything in our power to have another baby, so fingers crossed we’ll have an announcement next year.”
Jules says the struggle to get pregnant again has been exacerbated by fans. “So many people write on my social media, ‘Time for a brother or sister,’ and I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, I’ve given it a good shot!'”
And while Jules knows all the baby buzz “comes from a place of love”, the bubbly redhead confesses, “When you’re that person trying, it just puts even more pressure on you.”
Ollie’s busy mum is also in the middle of writing a memoir.
In the biz
There’s been plenty of success for the couple in other areas, though. As well as ringing in their fourth wedding anniversary last month, Jules says she’s had “an amazing year careerwise”.
“To be featured in Forbes Australia was incredible,” admits the star, whose inclusive shapewear and fashion brands Figur by Jules and Moira Muse saw her win gold at the 2022 AusMumpreneur Awards.
“I’m just so proud of her,” gushes Cam, who’s also been busy with his mental health advocacy work with charity Gotcha4Life and creating his new podcast Rock Bottom Was My Foundation, which will see him interview celebrities and business people about their “wins and losses”.
The couple are also preparing to open the doors to their new Sydney hair and beauty salon, which will double as a cocktail bar and where they’ll give a nod to their history by running speed-dating nights.
“We’re a big lover of love and we want everyone else to enjoy that,” says Jules, who still marvels at everything that’s come the couple’s way since they took a shot at romance on MAFS.
“It’s amazing that four years have passed and everything we’ve done since then,” muses Jules, who looks forward to a “quiet” poolside Christmas Day with Cam and Ollie at the family’s second home on the Gold Coast.
