Purple Wiggle Lachy Gillespie reveals 'scary' first weeks of being dad to twins: 'So different and draining'
By April Glover|
He's happily known to children all around the world as the "Purple Wiggle".
But to two little twin girls, Australian children's performer Lachlan Gillespie is simply known as "daddy".
Gillespie welcomed his two-year-old daughters, Lulu and Lottie, with fianc¨¦e Dana Stephenson in September 2020, a whirlwind premature delivery that saw the newborn girls stay in the NICU ward for a week.
Speaking to 9Honey, the Wiggles icon said his girls' seven-day stint in the ward offered him a whole new perspective on life and fatherhood.
So much so, he's participating in the 100km Premmie Marathon Challenge this month to help raise funds and awareness for premature babies.
"They were only about a week preemieˇ we were told mid-pregnancy that something was happening with irregular heartbeat," Gillespie says of his twin daughters.
"It was a little scary. We couldn't get strong, consistent heartbeats in both little ones. That luckily turned out to be nothing, but I really got an idea of how amazing the NICU staff are."
Gillespie remembers watching other parents deal with the unpredictability of welcoming premature babies into the world, not knowing how they could remain so strong.
His own fear of Lulu and Lottie's health showed him just how precarious those first few weeks can be for newborns.
"I remember just across from us was this tiny little baby who had been in there for three months," he recalls.
"It just puts everything into perspective. These parents are coming up to see their baby every day and there's this tiny little thing in the humidicrib. So, in that way, we were really fortunate.
"A week was definitely long enough for us and we had such amazing care, so we could get them home and were as good as can be."
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The 37-year-old, who just returned from a six-week Wiggles tour in Canada, says it can be tough juggling his career with raising toddlers.
"Having twins was totally new, especially if you've never had kids beforeˇ it can be so different and draining," he says.
"But they are just amazing little girls, it's so nice to see them come full circle. I'm so happy they're at an age where they understand what it means that Daddy goes away to do Wiggles shows."
Naturally, Lulu and Lottie are huge Wiggles fans ¨C not unlike most kids their age.
Gillespie sheepishly admits that Lachy Wiggle isn't quite their favourite character though. He says they are obsessed with Tsehay Hawkins, the new Yellow Wiggle.
It was a little scary. We couldn't get strong, consistent heartbeats in both little ones
"One of our songs is called 'Dippy Do Dinosaur Dance' and they always ask for Tsehay's version," Gillespie laughs.
"I think, if I'm honest with myself, she does do it better. So fair enoughˇ but when we do put on the DVDs, they see me on the TV and shout out, 'Daddy!', so that's lovely."
The Wiggles are embarking on an Australian tour in the next few days and Gillespie is hoping his girls can join him at the show in Canberra.
But if they ever miss dad too much, he says, there's plenty of Wiggles footage for them to watch.
"During the Canada trip, the girls got to see me every day on the TV.. otherwise they wouldn't see me for so long - which is really lucky," he says.
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This month, on top of his mammoth Wiggles commitments, Gillespie will be taking part in the Premmie Marathon Challenge to raise money for sick and premature babies.
He says funding and research is vital to ensure the survival and health of babies who need serious care in their first weeks on earth.
"So many babies are born preemie and just to know there is the equipment for them, especially the humidicribs which is a perfect atmosphere for their tiny bodies," Gillepsie adds.
"Sometimes parents just don't know if their baby will be born premature, so it's lovely to know those things are there. And just like we saw with COVIDˇ hospital staff really are God sent."
Becoming a parent has changed everything, Gillespie reveals. And Lulu and Lottie are always at the forefront of his mind when he passionately speaks about premature babies.
"It makes you think about life in so many different ways," he adds. "It's also so rewarding."?
READ MORE: Craig's experience with perinatal anxiety left him shaken?
Some 26,000 babies are born prematurely in Australia each year, with many facing an uphill battle from the moment they are born, suffering higher rates of respiratory, cardiovascular and neurological complications than babies born full-term.
Running for Premature Babies founder Sophie Smith says Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUS) and Special Care Nurseries (SCNs) around Australia rely on fundraising for up to 70 per cent of their equipment.
The Premmie Marathon challenge is free to sign up and can be done at your own pace.
Running for Premature Babies was founded by Sophie Smith and her late husband Ash after they lost their prematurely born triplets to complications after their premature birth in 2006. To date over 8000 babies have directly benefited from the $5 million dollar raised.
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