09 Friday Sep 2011
Posted in Celebrity Baby News
≈ Comments Off on Celebrity Baby News: Ricky and Rianna Ponting
Cricketer Ricky Ponting, the former Australian cricket captain, and his wife Rianna, welcomed their second daughter, Matisse Ellie, on September 8. Matisse Ponting joins big sister Emmy, aged 3.
Ricky flew home for the birth of his daughter after the first Test win against Sri Lanka. He is expected to return for the third Test, which begins in Colombo on September 16.
(Story and photo from The Daily Telegraph, September 8 2011; photo shows the Pontings with daughter Emmy)
08 Thursday Sep 2011
Posted in Celebrity Baby News
Soccer player Matt Smith, the captain of Brisbane Roar FC, and his fiancee, Aicha Bendjelloul, welcomed their second child at at the end of August. Owen Edward Smith was born August 27 at 7.52 am, and weighed 7 lb 6 oz (3.34 kg). Owen joins big sister Ava, aged 3.
Matt and Aicha both emigrated from the United Kingdom, and became Australian citizens a couple of years ago.
(Photos from The Courier Mail, September 7 2011; and Townsville Bulletin, December 31 2009)
03 Saturday Sep 2011
Posted in Sibsets in the News
Tags
celebrity baby names, celebrity sibsets, english names, famous namesakes, name meaning, surname names
Russell Crowe is a New Zealand-born Australian actor who began his career on Australian soaps, and he won the Australian Film Industry Best Actor Award for his role in Romper Stomper in 1992. In 1997 he gained the attention of Hollywood when he took a leading part in LA Confidential, and since then has starred in movies such as The Insider, Gladiator, Cinderella Man, and A Beautiful Mind.
He also has a less-publicised but doggedly determined career as a rock singer. An enthusiastic sports fan who follows team sports in Australia, the UK, the US and Canada, he is also the owner of the South Sydney Rabbitohs team in the National Rugby League.
Russell Crowe is married to former actress and current singer-songwriter, Danielle Spencer, who he met in 1990 when they both had roles in the Australian film, The Crossing. In an interview, Danielle revealed that their relationship was slow to get going, and that they remained friends for several years before romance eventually bloomed. Neither was Danielle in any hurry to settle down, and they didn’t get married until April 2003.
Danielle wasn’t sure whether she wanted children or not, and says that she could have kept procrastinating about it, but Russell was already certain that he wanted children, and according to his wife, once he gets an idea in his head, he’s pretty tenacious. Danielle says:
“I fell pregnant on our honeymoon, and the decision was made for me”.
Russell and Danielle’s son Charles Spencer Crowe (called Charlie) was born in December 2003, showing that Russell didn’t have to wait too long at all after his wedding to have the family he wanted. And in July 2006, Charlie was joined by his younger brother, Tennyson Spencer Crowe, so Danielle must have been well and truly talked into the having kids lark by then.
Tennyson Crowe is named after English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Oddly enough, Lord Tennyson has a connection with Australia, because his son Hallam became the second Governor-General of Australia. He was popular with Australians, who were impressed with his modest manner and frugal ways (his predecessor had been considered a spendthrift), and there are several places in Australia named after him. His wife Audrey was also well-liked. The English surname Tennyson simply means “son of Tenney”; Tenney is a medieval form of the name Denis.
Alfred Tennyson’s older brother was called Charles Tennyson Turner; he was also a poet, and the two were very close. Charles married the sister of Alfred’s wife, so they were brothers-in-law as well as brothers, fellow-poets, and close friends. If you’re wondering why they have different surnames, Charles changed his surname to Turner when he inherited the property of his uncle, the Rev. Samuel Turner.
Even though Charles is such a well-known name, and Tennyson a rare one, somehow this sibset really works. The connections within the Tennyson family and the connection with Australia makes this very meaningful, with echoes of an earlier pair of brothers speaking to us.
(Story from babycenter.com, photo from exposay.com; picture shows the Crowe family April 12 2010, when Russell was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
31 Wednesday Aug 2011
Posted in Celebrity Baby News
Breakfast radio host Jodie Oddy, and her husband Greg Oddy, welcomed their daughter Payton on Tuesday August 30, weighing 3.27 kg. Payton joins big sister Taylor, aged 10, from Jodie’s first marriage to cricketer Greg Blewett.
Jodie does breakfast radio for Mix 102.3 in Adelaide, and Greg Oddy is an ice hockey player who currently plays for the Adelaide Adrenaline. Jodie and Greg were married in Bali a few months ago, where Taylor was a bridesmaid.
During her pregnancy, Jodie used her pregnant belly as a billboard to raise money for the Flinders Medical Centre’s Neonatal Unit and managed to raise over $25 000. Jodie is now on maternity leave.
UPDATE
Jodie has revealed that Greg chose the name Payton, which he heard while playing hockey in Canada. Payton is #67 in Canada, and the more usual spelling Peyton is #34. Jodie seems to think the name is rare here, but there were 18 babies named Peyton born in South Australia last year, and it is #96 on the Top 100.
She also revealed that her older daughter, Taylor, was named after Taylor from the TV soap opera, The Bold and the Beautiful.
(Story and photo from The Sunday Mail, September 17 2011)
29 Monday Aug 2011
Posted in Celebrity Baby News
Channel 10 news presenter, Rebecca Morse, and her husband, Channel 10 news reporter James Wakelin, welcomed their third daughter on August 17. Her name is Frankie, and she weighed 3.7 kg at birth. Frankie Wakelin joins big sisters Grace, aged 8, and Milla, aged 2.
Rebecca will be taking the rest of the year off on maternity leave, and will be back on TV early in 2012. She feels their family is complete now.
This is the second celebrity baby girl called Frankie for this year; the first one was the daughter of swimmer Michael Klim. Frankie Klim and Frankie Wakelin are both the third child in their families.
UPDATE: Rebecca revealed to an Adelaide gossip columnist that Grace and Milla helped choose their sister’s name. Frankie was one of the names on their shortlist, and when they read it to the girls, their eyes lit up, so they knew it was the right name.
(Story and photo from The Sunday Mail, August 27 2011)
24 Wednesday Aug 2011
Posted in Celebrity Baby News
There’s been a mini baby boom at the National Rugby League recently, with three baby girls being born to players and their partners in the past week or so. I’m putting them all in one entry together to save space.
Last week, Brent Tate, centre for the North Queensland Cowboys, and his wife Lani, welcomed their second child, a daughter called Macy. Macy Tate was born at 3 am on Tuesday August 16, and she has an older brother called Kyden, who turns three on August 26. Brent and Lani were married on Australia Day in 2007.
On Friday August 19, Brett Morris, winger for St George Illawarra Dragons, and his partner Kate Milliken, welcomed their first child; a daughter named Emily Isabelle.
On Monday August 22, winger for the Melbourne Storm, Anthony Quinn, and his partner Frances Imwold, welcomed their first child; a daughter named Summer Hope.
03 Wednesday Aug 2011
Posted in Celebrity Baby News
Host of morning TV show, The Circle, Chrissie Swan, and her partner Chris Saville, welcomed their second child yesterday, Tuesday August 2, at 5.30 pm. He was born at St Vincent’s Hospital in Melbourne, and weighed 3 kg (6 lb 6 oz). Chrissie Tweeted the news, and the baby’s birth was also announced on The Circle‘s Facebook page. Chrissie and Chris called their son Kit, and he joins big brother Leo, aged 2 and a half.
Chrissie first became known as a popular contestant on reality TV show, Big Brother, in 2003; she came runner up to Regina (Reggie) Bird. After working in breakfast radio, she became one of the four hosts of The Circle last year. This year, she won Most Popular New Female Talent at the TV Week Logie Awards.
Chrissie and Chris have been together for four years, and Chrissie affectionately refers to her partner as “The Chippie”. I’m not sure whether that means he’s literally a carpenter or not.
Kit can be a short form of Christopher, so seems like a cute and fun way to be named after his dad, and maybe his mum as well, who also has a “Chris” name.
30 Saturday Jul 2011
Posted in Sibsets in the News
Tara Brown has been a TV journalist at Channel 9 for almost twenty years, and since 2001 has been a reporter on 60 Minutes, where she has proved a skilful and sensitive interviewer. The first person she ever interviewed for the show was actor Mel Gibson.
For twelve years she has been married to John McAvoy, the head of factual programming at Channel 9, and in October 2008, she and John welcomed their first child, Jack Cooper. Tara was unsure at the time whether she would return to work, but she must have decided that motherhood and journalism weren’t incompatible, because she was soon back on our television screens.
As she was already in her forties when she had her first baby, Tara and John did not expect to have any more children, but they always hoped.
In April last year, Tara was on the road covering a tour of rock band Powderfinger. Already fatigued from covering a flood in Queensland, the usually calm Tara began feeling uncharacteristically irritable and tired. Then she began suffering from constant nausea. Was she exhausted? Was she stressed? Did she have a virus? Was she just sick of being around Powderfinger?
When she got home, she took a pregnancy test and discovered that she was expecting another baby. She was shocked but also delighted, feeling very lucky.
Her second son, Tom Oliver, was born in December last year at Sydney’s North Shore Private Hospital. He was 53 cm long and weighed 3.35 kg. Days overdue, he was induced, and labour was so quick that Tara says there was literally no time to administer any pain relief.
Tara stresses that although Tom wasn’t planned, he was very, very much wanted; just as much wanted as Jack, who she describes herself as being “madly in love” with.
This is the second celebrity sibset I’ve featured, and it’s another one where the oldest child is called Jack! I do find the combination of Jack and Tom rather cute – it’s a nicknamey sibset straight out of a child’s storybook.
(Story and picture from nine.msn, June 29 2011; full story in the July issue of Women’s Weekly).
26 Tuesday Jul 2011
Posted in Celebrity Baby News
Former AFL footballer Kym Koster, and his wife Sarah, welcomed a new baby son a week ago, named Jed Hardy.
Kym explains that they were looking for a baby name that seemed boyish and strong, and wanted something “a little bit original”. “We don’t know of many Jeds out there,” said Kym. He has already bought Jed his own tiny football to play with.
Jed Hardy Koster joins big brothers Josh, 13, and William, 10, from Kym’s previous marriage.
Kym made his AFL debut for Footscray in 1994, and transferred to the Adelaide Crows in 1996. He retired in 2000 and now runs a successful cleaning business. Last year he won Man of the Year from Men’s Health magazine.
(Story and picture from Adelaide Now, July 26 2011).
25 Saturday Jun 2011
Posted in Sibsets in the News
First cab off the rank for sibsets in the news are the children of Michael Ennis, who is the hooker for National Rugby League team, the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs. Since 2009, he has also been hooker for the New South Wales Blues in the State of Origin series.
This story appeared in the sport section of The Daily Telegraph, dated June 17.
It shows Michael with his three children, all suitably dressed in Blues jerseys – Jack, aged 4; Kobyfox, aged 2; and baby Randy, who is 11 months old.
Michael and his wife Simone have picked interesting, and unexpected, names for their kids as a sibset. Jack is a perennial favourite, and #4 in New South Wales. Randy’s name has never been on the Top 100, and his middle name is Wolfe. Kobyfox seems to be a unique combination of the names Koby and Fox. I wonder if Jack has an animal as his middle name.
The point of the story is that none of the children are old enough to remember the last time New South Wales won State of Origin, way back in 2005. Having lost, then won, games in the series, New South Wales is hoping to win the third and deciding match against Queensland in Brisbane on July 6. Michael, well-known for being a “hands on” father, is planning to fly his whole family to the game, so that hopefully they can watch their dad, and their state team, win Origin for the first time in their young lives.
Let’s hope it’s a Blues win next month, so these kids can finally experience a New South Wales victory!
Waltzing More Than Matilda 