‘WE JUST FEEL SO BLESSED’
The ‘Home and Away’ favourite and her husband reveal their joyous news – they’re finally expanding their family
Penny Mcnamee’s baby joy
Penny Mcnamee and her husband, Matt Tooker, can’t stop smiling. And for the best possible reason. The couple, parents of 3-year-old son Jack, are expecting their much longed-for second child. Quite simply, they’re over the moon.
“We feel this real thrill that Jack is finally going to have a sibling, because we weren’t sure he was ever going to,” says an elated Mcnamee, who plays Dr Tori Morgan in Home and Away.
Former high-school sweethearts, the pair always planned to have a family of their own. Like many young couples, however, they never really considered that the road to parenthood may not be an easy one. Until, that is, they started trying to conceive for the first time.
To 35-year-old Mcnamee, who experienced fertility issues resulting from endometriosis – undiagnosed until recently – the news that they are expecting a baby in March is everything they’d been hoping for. Even if the discovery did come at a rather, shall we say, inopportune moment.
WHO sat down with the actress and her 36-year-old husband to find out why.
Congratulations! You must be so thrilled. Mcnamee: Thank you. We really are. We’re just feeling very grateful, blessed and excited. When did you find out? Mcnamee: Would you believe on the day of the Logie awards. [ Laughs] Oh my goodness! Tell us about it.
Mcnamee: I was putting on my dress at four in the afternoon, and I had a gorgeous lady helping zip me up. I’d had four dress fittings over the two weeks before, including four days before the Logies, and the dress had fitted me like a glove. But, all of a
sudden, it felt like it was a size too small and we ended up having to ask two other women to help. As these three women were battling to zip me up, I had this moment of thinking “I must be pregnant!” I just knew in my heart. Were they diplomatic? Mcnamee: I didn’t say anything at the time [ laughs], but they were all being very polite. I had to lie on the floor with these three women doing me up from the back. I then had to leave the Logies about an hour before the ceremony finished because I couldn’t breathe in my dress. Did you manage to tell Matt that night? Mcnamee: I told him my suspicions, but I couldn’t confirm it that night because I wasn’t going to do a drive-by the pharmacy at 11pm. So I had to wait until the next day when I got the test. Sure enough, I was pregnant. What went through your mind? Tooker: It was a long journey for us, so honestly, it was mostly relief. A lot of hugging and a few tears. You’re now four months pregnant. How are you feeling? Mcnamee: It’s funny with your second child. You really pop out a lot quicker. I think your body and your muscles remember what to do, so I’m already showing. All my clothes are way too tight for me now. So it definitely feels real, then? Mcnamee: It really does. I think after we had our first scan at the 12-week mark, that’s when I felt like “OK, now I can start to get excited and I can start to believe it”. Before that, I think I was trying to keep a lid on my emotions. Were you teary during the ultrasound? Mcnamee: Yes, we both were. I think the main thing I felt looking at the screen was “Oh wow, that’s Jack’s little brother or sister!” Have you found out the sex? Mcnamee: No, and we didn’t find out with Jack either, so we’ll keep it a surprise. A part
of me is tempted to find out from a practical point of view, but at the same time, I loved the moment of finding out that Jack was a boy after giving birth. It was like this really sweet reward. Does Jack understand that he’s going to be a big brother? Tooker: When Pen said, “I’ve got a baby in my tummy,” Jack asked, “Right now?” Mcnamee: That’s one of the blessings of having quite a large gap between the kids. Jack knows exactly what’s going on and he’s really excited. He loves feeling my tummy every day and giving his name suggestions. What sort of brother will he be? Mcnamee: He’ll be so beautiful. Jack’s a really kind little boy. He’s very empathetic and nurturing. When I go to pick him up from preschool, they’ll tell me stories like how one little boy was still asleep at afternoon tea time, and Jack went and got a bowl of food and saved it for him. I’m hoping that will continue with his own sibling. Maybe ask me in a year’s time. [ Laughs] Have you had any cravings? Mcnamee: Yes! I always have weird cravings – for honey toast and tinned pineapple and fresh peaches. Go figure. Tooker: Our cupboard fills up with pineapple and lots of bread. Have you started thinking about names and preparing the home? Tooker: We’ve both got a couple of frontrunners [for names], but we’re likely to only pick one [when] the little one is here with us. The real nesting hasn’t kicked in as yet, but we’ve cleared out a spot in our room where the little one will sleep to start with. Have you got a birth plan? Mcnamee: With Jack, I walked in and asked for a cheeseburger and an epidural – and I’ll probably be doing the same thing again. I had a fantastic birth first time around and I will hopefully have the exact same experience again. I’m all for pain-free births. Do you hope to have an even bigger family? Mcnamee: We’d probably like to, but we won’t be sad if we don’t. We’re just incredibly grateful to be having a second. You have in your head who you think they’re going to be like or what they’re going to look like, and they just come out this completely original, unique person that you have to get to know. That’s the most fun and exciting process.