Let's start with fashion, shall we? When I first started filming QE, in season 1, I said something along the lines of “I don’t care that much about fashion, as trends come and go. I'm more interested in style”. That one comment seemed to resonate with many, and I think made me more relatable to the general audience, but I think it turned many in the fashion world off, and gave them permission to not take me seriously.
What got edited out of the show is when I went on to talk about how much I have always loved fashion, and feel so thrilled by the drama of it all, but how that doesn’t really make sense for the heroes we help on the show, as they don’t have lives that would require them to care what Dior sent down a runway, but rather what styles make sense for their own lives.
I still feel that way. Fashion can be (and for me is) wonderful, but what really matters is how you style out those fashion pieces. We have all seen those famous/rich folks who wear head to toe designer, but the styling is so shockingly bad that no one would ever take them seriously. That’s not what anyone wants.
I do sometimes wear something a little more playful, or out there, and I know people think I’ve lost my mind, but I love playing with fashion and style, and never want to be predictable. I love switching it up every now and then.
So, when I was asked if I wanted to feature in Oscar De La Renta’s new campaign video, I was completely floored. I never expected that any designer would want to be seen anywhere near the likes of me. I can’t tell you what a proud moment it was for me. The 18 year old me, who had just started fashion college, was DYING inside. It was one of the many pinch me moments I’ve experienced these past few years. With that, and being invited to one of my favorite designer’s shows last week (Altuzarra), I pray this means I can finally dip in to the fashion world, without worrying that I have no right to be there.
Now, on to baby stuff. Ismail is now 7 months old, mostly sleeping through the night, and getting happier and happier in the daytime. We seem to be through the long week/month stretches of difficulty, and most days are just so damn joyful. It’s magical. So, it might sound crazy to you all, but we think we’re ready to start planning to give him a sibling, and go right back to the tough part. The plan was always to have more than one baby, but we wanted to have them no more than a year apart. With Ismail coming 2 months early, and all of the stress of the NICU stuff and trying to get him caught up on getting to a regular size and weight, we decided to wait a while.

Surrogacy takes a really long time, and we’ve already started to get the ball rolling, but we are for sure at least 6 months away from getting our surrogate going, which means the kids will be at least 18-24 months apart, which wasn’t quite the plan. We’re learning to just be patient and reminding each other of how fortunate we are to even be in a position to possibly have another baby.
As we get closer to being pregnant again, I’ll be sure to give you updates, but for now, we’re praying that all lines up, so we can have our next one next year. Fingers are so tightly crossed.
I'm currently on my way to Philly, to speak at a University for the evening, and then straight back home tomorrow. I'm trying so hard to only be away 1-2 nights every couple of weeks, so I can be home to help Rob, and to be there to soak up this most amazing time with our baby boy.
I’ll be back on here next week. Have a great one, and stay safe. xx
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