Penny McNamee - ‘She's An Easy Baby'

The Home And Away Star Introduces Her Gorgeous Daughter, Neve.

- Ali Cromarty

What a gorgeous little girl!” the whole New Idea crew coo on set of Penny McNamee and 1-month-old baby Neve’s photo shoot. Penny’s eyes light up when she cradles tiny Neve, who was born March 2, for everyone to see. Already mum to 4-yearold Jack, the Home and Away star reveals she’s feeling calm and at ease having done this once before. “The second time around is so much easier! You just know what to do,” she explains. “If there’s some little issue with feeding or with your recovery, you’ve done it before, you know how to fix it.

“Going from one child to two, it’s been a fairly easy adjustment to be honest. She’s a fairly easy baby, I can read her quite well, which makes it easier. I can tell if she’s tired or hungry. Also, I’m lucky I have time off from work so I can be a full-time mum.”

But it wasn’t always so easy. Penny and her husband of 10 years, Matt Tooker, had a tough battle after Penny struggled to fall pregnant with Neve. After having surgery, Penny was diagnosed with endometriosis, and while the condition impacts fertility, five months later, the 36-year-old fell pregnant with her daughter. “We just felt such relief and gratitude,” she said after announcing her pregnancy late last year.

Here, the gorgeous actress shares the details on how they chose Neve’s name, why she was convinced she was having a boy, and plans for more babies.

How was your pregnancy?

It was pretty good! I was sick for the first trimester and trying to hide that from my castmates, which was hard.

Did anyone figure it out?

No, they didn’t know. I kept it very quiet. The first people I told were the costume department because I was starting to fill out a lot. I also told our producer too before my 12-week scan.

When did you finish work?