Paula's mini-me - 'IT'S JUST YOU & ME, KID!'

NOTHING BEATS HAVING ANA BY HER SIDE THROUGH THE UPS AND DOWNS

- Karyn Henger 

They’re often mistaken for sisters, and Paula Bennett and her daughter Ana Aitcheson think it’s hilarious.

“We probably are more like sisters,” Paula, 51, laughs. “But I also like that we are mother and daughter because it doesn’t matter how old Ana gets, she still needs her mum to be a mum.”

The former National MP and deputy leader, who retired from politics last year, was just 17 when she became pregnant with Ana, now 33, and she raised her alone, which meant she often felt like it was just the two of them against the rest of the world. As a result, they share an incredibly tight bond.

“I used to say to her, it’s just you and me, kid, so we’ve got to stick together,” recalls Paula.

Adds Ana, who is married with three children, Tia, 13, Nate, seven, and Hunter, five, “And she always used to say, ‘As long as we’ve got each other’s backs, we can do anything.’”

Barely a day goes by where the mother and daughter don’t talk to each other. They speak on the phone multiple times a week “about anything and everything”, and get together at least once a week for a glass of wine.

“If I haven’t spoken to Ana in three days, I get a physical ache,” Paula admits.

“One time I hadn’t heard from her for a day and when I texted there was no reply. A day later I phoned and there was still no answer, and a couple of days after that I tried again and still nothing. Finally, I emailed her and asked her why she was grumpy with me, and she phoned me straight away – it turned out her kids had blocked me while they were playing on her phone!”