Copyright ok
Former reality star Charlotte Dawson bursts out laughing when we ask her to sum up her life as a mum-of-three – and the word she lands on is “outnumbered”. The influencer and TV personality, who turns 33 this week, is currently enjoying life with another “new best friend”, her six-month-old daughter, Gigi Dawson Sarsfield. And while she’s relishing bringing an avalanche of pink into the Blackpool home she shares with her fiancé Matt Sarsfield and their two other children - sons Noah, four, and Jude, two – she happily admits it’s also “absolute carnage”. “Having two was lovely, but having three is a bit like hell,” she says, throwing her head back in laughter. “I’ve realised that when you have three kids, it’s like you’ve got 10 because you’re outnumbered, whatever way you look at it. “It’s amazing of course, don’t get me wrong, and seeing the way the boys are with Gigi, I just couldn’t ask for more. I have always, always wanted a girl, I craved a girl. I think it’s because me and my mum are so close and I wanted that relationship with a daughter of my own. I wanted a best friend. I’m really trying to just enjoy the moment because everyone is constantly talking about how quickly the time goes when they’re little, but oh my God, it’s hard.” Charlotte’s honesty and robust sense of humour have made her one of the nation’s favourite “mumfluencers” in recent years. “As I’ve grown up, I’ve realised that we’re all different and fabulous just the way we are and you have to embrace it! If you’ve got jelly on your belly, shakey shake it. If your tits are down to your bunions (Barry and Bill), let them be! I just like to have a laugh about it, and accept who I am and I think everyone should do the same,” she says. Her 1.5million Instagram followers, in particular, expect nothing less than the truth, and ever since Noah’s arrival in January 2021, she’s kept them entertained with a plethora of funny videos about everything from body confidence and breast feeding to food fails and partying (or lack of). But of course she’s only human, and she’s the first to admit that she can’t always stay in that happy and hilarious mindset. When the OK! team arrives to get a first exclusive peek at baby Gigi’s pink princess nursery (for which delighted Charlotte makes no apologies), she is clearly absolutely loving life with Gigi and the boys – but also admits, there have been tough moments. “I’ve really struggled with these last few months, and I’ve had a bit of baby blues,” she tells us. “But I’ve just had to get on with things because I’ve been so busy, with three children you just have to crack on. I’ve had so many low days, and I’ve had to take myself away and have a cry.” Charlotte, who is the daughter of the late comedian Les Dawson, suspects the lack of sleep has hit her harder this time around. That, and also having little time or energy to devote to her relationship with former professional rugby league player, Matt. “It’s so hard for both of us because we’re just full-on with the kids. I know it’ll get easier and we’ll get that back, but finding time for myself, Matt and the kids is a lot,” she shares. “I wouldn’t change a thing, and the kids are just the most loving bunch and always there with kisses and cuddles, but it’s still a lot!” She and Matt, 34, haven’t properly shared a bedroom since Noah was born, which Charlotte says wasn’t ever their plan. But now that Noah is in school and Jude in nursery, they’re determined to redress the parents-couple balance. “We had a moment the other day where we just burst out crying together because we’re tired and there’s a lot of demands on us. But we both said, ‘We’ve got this’. And I genuinely believe we have.” The first step in their plans is settling Gigi into her own room with the support of a sort of doula and breast-feeding expert who also helped her get Jude into a routine. Gigi is breastfed (“she’s constantly on the udders, she’s milking me dry,” Charlotte laughs), so her parents are aware it might be a slow process. “Let’s just pray,” Charlotte grins. “I don’t know if she’s not sleeping because she’s right next to me, or something else. But the lady who helps is brilliant. We’ve never left our babies to cry, so that’s not going to happen, but I think if we don’t try to give it a go and start now, I won’t do it.” Charlotte has gone “all out with the pink” in the nursery too. “Everything has got to be pink, everything,” she says, adding that even Noah and Jude’s old jumparoo was donated to charity because it was blue and grey. The result is a girlie paradise. There are ballerinas on the walls, a light-up “Gigi” LED sign, and even a giant pink bow. Charlotte’s pink boucle chair and matching footstool provides the perfect setting for a feed. At less than a year old, little Gigi even has her own walk-in wardrobe complete with miniature handbags, dressing table and shoes (even though she’s not walking yet, Charlotte laughs), all her clothes carefully colour-coded on their hangers. As well as the “secret door” into the glittery pink en suite, another of Charlotte’s favourite touches is the addition of a poem she wrote for Gigi in tribute to her own dad Les, who died in 1993 when she was just eight months old. “It says that her grandad is in heaven, and explains that she got sent to me to be my best friend,” she tells us. Near to the poem sits a framed photograph of Charlotte and Gigi next to the lifesize bronze statue of legendary comedian Les. The statue stands in the family’s former hometown of Lytham St Annes, in Lancashire, and has understandably become a sort of symbolic way for Charlotte to link her past to her future and her children. “It’s a really special photo,” she says. “Having the statue nearby is so special – it’s a chance to give him a cuddle, even now. This year is Gigi’s first Christmas, and she’ll get to see him for Christmas cuddles too, which is so exciting. The poem My Grandad Les in Heaven is in all their nurseries, and it’s such a special way for them to know and remember him and always have him with them.” Gigi was born on 8 March, International Women’s Day, and Charlotte is taking it as a sign that she’ll be “fearless and brave”. Her arrival also marked a sort of end of what was a difficult time for Charlotte and Matt. Last summer, it emerged Matt had exchanged inappropriate messages with another woman a few months earlier. When she announced her pregnancy during an exclusive photoshoot with OK! a short time later, Charlotte said “the hurt, the disappointment and being pregnant on top of it all” had been “absolutely horrible”. After asking Matt to leave their family home while he worked on himself, the pair reunited and, according to Charlotte, are now stronger than ever. “I’ve really learnt how strong I am,” she tells us. “We’ve had a tough couple of months and years but I can honestly say Matt and I are back as a family, and we’re stronger than ever. We’re both really tough people, and as long as we’re both working together towards the same goal, we know we can get there. “I went through a lot last year and I feel like Gigi came at the right time and got me through it. I’m strong anyway, and I was very hormonal, but there was something about knowing I was having a girl that made me even stronger. And you know what? I feel really proud of the work we’ve done and where we’re at now with our family. "It’s not easy. Mum life is hard, the hardest job in the world. But it’s also the most rewarding. I can honestly say I’m just proud of my family and everything we’ve achieved. Hopefully 2026 will be even bigger and better!” The couple are currently working out if they might finally say their I Do’s next year, but the chances to discuss it are few and far between. “I haven’t got any dates planned yet, or started any planning, but it’s definitely the next exciting thing on the list,” Charlotte says. “I’ve been thinking about the venue – I’d love to get married abroad because I don’t like the night to end. Weddings abroad usually feel like a big holiday that last days, and I just love the idea of it carrying on and on because I hate saying goodbye.”
