INTERVIEW WITH JADE GOODY

For those of you familiar with Big Brother will know our much loved Jade Goody. Jade kindly took some time out of her busy day and time away from the children to give me a telephone interview about her parenting experiences.

Jade and I were on the Richard and Judy show in June, where Jade was promoting her lovely new perfume Shh!

JO: Jade you have two lovely boys, Freddy and Bobby. What presents a challenge for you with your children?
JADE: Changing Freddy’s nappy. It makes me feel sick at times. I find that difficult.

JO: How do you enforce discipline with your children? And is it different from the way Jeff disciplines them?
JADE: I tend to ignore them, when they start misbehaving. I put them on the settee, tell them to stay there and turn the TV on. Jeff once put Bobby who was 2 at the time, in a room to discipline him, but he was really crying a lot and I said “you can’t do that Jeff, he’s too young. No wonder he’s crying”. So he listened to me and now he uses the naughty step. So that’s much better now.

JO: How old are your boys now Jade?
JADE: Freddy is 2 and Bobby is 3.

JO: Does Jack get involved in the disciplining of your children?
JADE: Sometimes. When Jack’s got Bobby and Freddy they sometimes play up – and he tells them he’s going to tell mummy. He tells them off verbally, but he won’t do anything about it. He just comes and tells me and then I’ll deal with it.

JO: How do you juggle work and looking after your children? And when you’re at work, who looks after them?
JADE: My mum looks after the kids when I go to work. But now I’m working more, I think I’m going to have to look into getting a Nanny as it’ll be too much for my mum. I really appreciate that she looks after them. And obviously when I’m home I want to be with the kids.

JO: You’ll have to get me Jade when it comes to interviewing Nannies!
JADE: Yeah Jo, that isn’t a bad idea. I think I’ll take you up on that. Thanks.

JO: What lesson did you learn the hard way?
JADE: Up until now, it’s been really good with the kids. When Freddy was a baby, so Bobby wouldn’t get jealous, I got him a doll so I could introduce the brotherly love between them. And I was really lucky, as I didn’t get any post natal depression and they were just really easy babies and easy going kids. They both slept right through the night from 4 months, so no, everything is really good right now. But never say never.

JO: What do you love doing with your children when you’re spending quality time with them?
JADE: My main thing is going on holiday with them. Freddy and Bobby just love the sand and the sea and that whole holiday thing. They’re a big part of my life and when we’re back home, I like taking them to Thorpe Park. I’m lucky that where I live has a nice sized garden and I bought them a bouncy castle. They love playing in that. Bobby loves to draw and read and they both love painting.

JO: What impact did your break from Jeff have on the children?
JADE: It was quite stressful to say the least. Any relationship break up is difficult to deal with, but to be honest Bobby and Freddy were very young. Jeff is a good dad and he looks after them well. We both make the effort to be with the kids together every now and then. It’s about the kids.

JO: What makes you smile the most about each child?
JADE: Well with Bobby it’s his dancing. He stands in front of the television and watches MTV and then he tries to break dance and do the caterpillar – and he’s convinced he can spin on his head! He’s well into all that and he’s got this voice. Like when he talks to me, he says “me go on my bike mummy”.

JO: Like me Tarzan, you Jane?
Jade laughs.

JADE: With Freddy, he’s got a lovely smile and really big teeth. And he’s really into football. His favourite word right now is “hat”. Everything is “hat”, as he loves wearing it.
But it’s really sweet when they’re both sitting on the settee, drinking their milkshakes, stroking each other’s hair whilst watching a video.

JO: What do you do that makes your kids laugh a lot?
JADE: Well with Bobby, I do this thing called “the claw.” I get my hand and in a really dramatic way I say to him “Bobby, the claw is coming to get you” and I start to tickle him and chase him around the kitchen and he laughs hysterically.
And with Freddy, he laughs every time I show and say to him “look at mummy’s jelly belly hanging out.” And he squeegees his hand on my belly.

JO: Do you have a routine?
JADE: No, that’s one thing I lack. The only thing that’s consistent is bedtime for Bobby and Freddy. Freddy goes to bed at 7.30pm and Bobby at 8.30pm. I do this so I can spend an hour alone with Bobby before he goes to bed. But I do need to get more of a routine, because they don’t have any set times when they eat or get up.

JO: How do you reward the kids?
JADE: I give Bobby £2 each week and he loves to go to the shops. He buys a magazine, a drink, a sweet for Freddy and a pork pie for my mum, as he knows it’s her favourite. He’s good like that.

JO: What did your mum do with you that was great, that you do with your kids?
JADE: I didn’t have the best up bringing, but I love my mum very much and she was very good in making sure I shared. I never went without. One of the things I do with the boys, as I don’t like kids who get nasty and greedy, is to encourage them to always share.

Jade’s Favourites as a child :

What was your favourite book?
The Hungry Caterpillar. I’ve just recently bought it for Bobby

What was your favourite toy?
Space Hopper and play kitchen

Who you most looked up to as a child?
My mum. She has a silent strength.

What you most wanted to be when you grew up?
An Air Hostess. It was the first job I recognised as I used to go to Jersey a lot as a kid.

If you had to give only one tip as a parent, what would it be?
As a working mum, I would say, use your time wisely.

Who was your first pin up?
Rick Astley. I had a 6 foot poster on my bedroom door. And then it was Brian Harvey from East17.

JO: Thanks very much Jade. The B4ugo-ga-ga readers are going to love this. I’ll let you get back to the kids.