EXCLUSIVE — Jessica Rowe is searching for her next adventure.
The mother, “crap housewife”, podcaster, TV presenter and now children’s author has accomplished so much in her time in the spotlight, but she tells nine.com.au that she’s looking towards the future.
As Rowe’s children, Allegra, 19, and Giselle, 17, approach adulthood, the podcast host and wife of Nine’s Peter Overton is taking the time to think about what’s in store for her next.
“I suppose this next stage of my life is thinking about ‘what is it that I want to do?'” she said.
“I loved seeing Madonna on the Coachella stage. Not that I’m going to be on Coachella stage… but I just think that was such a moment for saying ‘it’s never too late to begin this next chapter of your life.’
“I’ve often thought about doing an acting course… my daughter Giselle goes, mum, how long have you been talking about doing that? Stop talking about it, enrol.
“Perhaps I need to take some of my own lessons that I say to my kids about, go for it, and just do it, book the course, do whatever it is… when I think about other parents, I would love for them to do that too.”
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I eagerly asked her if she had gotten any acting tips from her close and personal friend Nicole Kidman, to which she chuckled and said no.
“That’s a long way off, this is just me talking to my girls about what’s next,” she said.
During our chat, she said one of the best parts of becoming a parent is seeing her children grow into “incredible and smart” young women.
However, like all mothers, Rowe was (and still is) subject to unsolicited parenting advice when it came to raising her daughters.
“I think the thing is for all parents, it’s wonderful being a parent, but it’s also the hardest thing you could do. Everyone has a view… but you know your child better than anyone else,” she said.
“If people come up with unsolicited advice, just think to yourself, ‘talk to the hand’, I’m not going to buy into that.”
She added that becoming a parent can feel overwhelming at times, but it’s important to give yourself some grace.
”You just have to do you… it took me a long time to embrace that and say ‘you know what, I’m enough,'” she said.
“You are not going to be perfect. There are going to be times when you get it wrong. I still get it wrong. But that’s okay because we’re human.
“We have flaws, we have vulnerabilities, but you’re enough, and there are a bazillion ways to get it right… You just have to do what’s right for your family.”
As she looks to the future, she’s already ticking off things on her bucket list – one of them being to write a children’s book.
Rowe was approached by Kleenex to write I can’t wait, my first school poo! to help kids overcome the all-too-common fear of going to the bathroom at school.
“I’m someone who feels very strongly about helping parents and kids have uncomfortable conversations… one of those conversations is very much around doing your first poo at school,” Rowe said.
“I like to have conversations like this with humour, and I think that’s a really wonderful way to often get into these sorts of topics.”
Kleenex research found 70 per cent of children are holding in their bowel movements at school, which can lead to a range of issues, including anxiety, an upset tummy or unexpected accidents.
“What I think is so fabulous about this book is it’s a really hands-on way to help parents, teachers and kids have these conversations,” she said.
“I know as a parent, often you need a way in to bring up a conversation like this, and what better way than having a book where you can point to lovely pictures and have a laugh!”
The book will be available for free across 120 early education centres, libraries and allied health professionals across Australia. It’s also available to download for free on the Kleenex website.
After adding children’s author to her list of accomplishments, Jesse Rowe says she’s excited to see what her next adventure will bring.
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