Christine Lampard lifts the lid on life with Frank and their four kids – and reveals the big change she’s had to make
HOUSE-PROUD Christine Lampard had a pristine home at all times – until she had kids.
The 43-year-old TV presenter, who is married to football manager Frank Lampard, admits she had to relax after becoming a mum to Patricia, four, and 21-month-old Freddie.
She is also step-mum to Frank’s two children, Luna, 17, and Isla, 15, from his marriage to model Elen Rivas.
It’s a blended family, which she loves, and she says she feels “very lucky” with how it’s all turned out. But learning to roll with the punches after having her own babies did not come easy to the super-organised Loose Women star.
She says: “Before having children I liked things done a certain way.
“I’m quite stuffy around the house. I like things to be in order. I like knowing what’s coming up, but certainly having children has chucked that out of the window.
“I’ve had to absolutely relax on everything. Some days, one of them might not feel well or something unexpected pops up, and at times it is just hard to get out of the house.
“I remember when my little girl was born I thought I’m never going to leave the house. There was a list of things I had to remember just to be able to walk around the block.
“My brain isn’t capable of dealing with everything, but weirdly when your second one comes you have to force yourself to be much more relaxed.”
Christine confesses it was her own mum Mina who made her realise she would need to go with the flow to cope while looking after two tiny tots.
She explains: “My mum said to me before I came back from the hospital with Patricia, ‘There will be days when you have to do this, that or the other and it won’t happen. But you’ve just got to go, that’s what it is’.
“Even when it comes to work, when one of them is unwell — well, I just can’t go to work then, which is not something I would have ever considered. I’m not someone who takes a day off at all.
“Things change and your priorities change. I’m much more relaxed about the mess that is my house.”
She adds of Frank’s children: “The girls were four and two when I came into their lives and now they are young women all of a sudden, talking about going to university.
“We are in such a different place now. For me it was all about being their friend and being there when they needed you to be there. That was it.
Start boozing
“You’re not their mum, you’re not their dad, but you are there if they need and want you, and that is I find the best way to navigate through everything.
“And it’s worked for me because now they are two little mates who will text you and say, ‘What do you think of this?’. We are very, very lucky.”
Christine and Frank have been together since 2009 and have been married for seven years.
But they have spent most of 2022 in a long-distance relationship, with Frank based in Liverpool managing Everton while Christine is in London with their four children.
The pair will be reunited over the festive period — and are planning to start boozing at 10am on Christmas Day.
Christine says: “I love getting merry at Christmas. I keep looking at the clock to see what the most appropriate time is to get the mulled wine out — 10am I reckon.
“I cook better with the mulled wine out, I don’t stress as much. The more the merrier. As long as I’m still responsible I have no problem with it.
“My family is coming over from Ireland and we will all be together. My mum will help a lot, as much as I’ve told her to relax.
“Frank will probably walk past occasionally and stir a pot, which winds me up, and then he walks off and that’s his role done.”
Although often apart, the couple do try to make time for date nights. Christine says: “We love going out to eat, that’s our favourite thing to do.
“We managed to get a little lunch in Sunday last week before he went back up to Liverpool and it was so gorgeous. Everything was so festive.
“We just talked about everything without someone needing to go to the toilet or a nappy being changed.
Frank is very relaxed. He couldn’t care about the mess or any of that business. He thinks it’s all very funny. He’s much more relaxed than I am.
“A couple of hours to be grown-ups. Our date nights and what we want from them have changed quite a lot and we are quite content with being on the sofa.”
While Christine loves being a mum, she confesses son Freddie can be a handful.
She says: “My little boy is like a whirlwind, I have never come across a child that can demolish things so quickly, literally in seconds. I will walk into the living room and it’s like a bomb has hit it. I have to take a deep breath.
“I try to teach him to put things back and he’ll maybe put two things back. It is a shambles. He’s incapable of drinking anything without spilling it everywhere.
“I guess that’s just children, but I’ve had to take a deep breath and go, ‘this is what it is’. It could be worse. He will find the danger in every single situation. He will seek it out.
“It’s the polar opposite to my little girl. I never had to tell her not to stick her fingers in the plug socket. You can not keep your eyes off him for a second. He’s very funny and he knows he’s being naughty and he gives you a little look.
“Frank is very relaxed. He couldn’t care about the mess or any of that business. He thinks it’s all very funny. He’s much more relaxed than I am.
“He’ll be the one making dens in the living room, with cushions and blankets, and I’ll be like, argh, I have to tidy this up.
“Frank was the youngest of three, so he was quite a shy wee thing, so he remembers. And our little boy certainly isn’t.
“I wasn’t a boisterous child at all so I’m not quite sure where he’s getting it from as yet. Maybe he will calm down at some point. It’s not either of us.”
‘Glowy skin’
Having just signed up as the face of beauty brand No7, Christine says her most important beauty tip is looking fresh faced even when she’s had no sleep.
She adds: “One of the ranges we came up with, No7 HydraLuminous Foundation, is about skin looking healthy and glowy even though you might not feel that way.
“Anything that can make you look like you’ve had a good night’s sleep irrespective of the fact you haven’t is good.
“A neutral lip is my go-to every day. Glowy skin and nice, neutral lips so you look healthy even if you feel like crap.”
- Christine Lampard is the face of No7’s Christmas offering this year. Leading skincare brand No7 is back this festive season with a range of Christmas gifts, full of popular skincare and cosmetic products at reduced prices.