Matt Shirvington reflects on becoming a father
Matt Shirvington has reflected on the moment he knew he was going to become a father, and the "life-changing" decision he had to make about his future.
The Sunrise co-host recalled when his wife Jessica told him she was pregnant 18 years ago with the couple's first child when they were living abroad in London.
The couple then had to decide if they would stay in the UK when their first child was born, or return home to Australia.
Chatting with 7Life, Shirvo said, “We were living in London doing our own thing and we’d always planned to have a family but it was just an amazing surprise.”
“It was a game changer for us because we were living in London and, although we had kind of had family come and go over there, we were away from home.”
Ultimately, Matt and Jess chose to stay in London to welcome their elder daughter, Sienna, and remained there until Jess was expecting their second child.
“Sienna was about two years old and Jess was actually pregnant when we came home and we had our second baby here in Australia,” Shirvo explains.
The proud parents now have three children, Sienna, 17, Winnie, 15 and Lincoln, five.
Acknowledging the age gap with their youngest, Shirvo says it’s a “different dynamic in our family, but a great one”.
Now a seasoned dad celebrating his 17th Father's Day, Shirvo said the arrival of his first child changed his life "completely".
He explained that they went “from being a couple to having someone else in your life that you have to look after”.
“After that it’s kind of like, ‘Well, we’ve done this before we can do it again’... It’s pretty special.”
Reflecting on his years of fatherhood, Shirvo says watching his kids grow up and finding their life passions has been what he loves most.
“I’ve watched my kids grow up and see them have a passion for something and invest themselves and love something so much,” he shares.
“As a parent, you’d do anything to allow them to do it and allow that to blossom."
“That’s the bit that really gets me.”
Image credits: Instagram