Is this normal? Jools Oliver avoids playdates because she worries about whether the other mums at their school drive safely and stap their children in

[onceinalifetime]

Interview with Jools Oliver (doesn't want to be in the public eye but launching new book ).

Anyone else this paranoid?

"Jools admits to being a 'total control freak' as a mother, to the point where she avoids play dates for her girls because she worries about whether the other mums at their school 'drive safely and strap their children in'.

She screams with laughter when I mention the hand wash (which has the antibacterial strength to resist MRSA) in her downstairs loo, acknowledging that she is very 'overprotective' of her girls, which sometimes causes friction between her and Jamie.

'I find it hard to let go, even when Jamie has them. He always tells me to stop phoning him to check on them ? I drive him mad! I never bother him when he's at work, but when he has the kids I will ring to say, "Have you eaten yet, because it's one o'clock?" or, "Don't get Daisy's new dress muddy."

'We took them to Disneyland in Paris and Jamie insisted on taking them on rides they weren't tall enough to go on and I said, "I hate you for this."

'But I know they need the balance. They need Jamie to give them some germs, some mud and some danger,' she says, with a resigned expression on her face.

Jools is blessed with an openness and an honesty that, at times, makes you feel as protective towards her as she is to her family. She worries terribly about how she will cope as her children grow older.

No matter how she protects them now and attempts to instil in them sound values (she is a stickler for 'good manners', making the girls write thank-you letters for birthday presents, and always 'minding their Ps and Qs'), she is aware of the dangers of the teenage years.

'Keeping your virginity is important; it's part of growing up properly. I am not religious, but that is one of my main concerns for my girls ? no drugs, no smoking, and please don't have sex, girls, until you are?well, old enough. I don't mean you have to be married, but I just don't want any abortions. It's not that I disagree with those things, it's just that I want them to do what I did, really.'

But the worries of bringing her two daughters safely to adulthood haven't put Jools or Jamie off the idea of extending their family."

Me too onceinalifetime, I reckon she is quite a shy sort of soul. They have known each other since they were very young and who knows? His public persona may be a monster they are not that happy to live with now.

I am overprotective too I think, am always imagining scenarios of doom involving my children!

mud is fine

germs are fine

I wouldn't go to Disneyland but if forced at gunpoint, I would allow my children on whatever rides they wanted and not watch

personally I think Jools come across fine whenever I see her in the press, which is rare imo

true, marina, but it would not hurt her to be a wee bit more humble and not come out with crass, insensitive comments about how other, less priviledged people should parent

I read this article in the Mail on Sunday and thought she was being totally nuerotic. Yes, we all have times when we worry about what our darlings are up to out of sight, but to refuse to allow them to go somewhere because of this is just madness IMO.

My DS loves nothing better than playing in the garden and getting muddy - actually at the first sign of mud/water on his clothes he strips naked, regardless of the weather. Agree with previous comment about Daisy's dress - why dress her in it if she can't get it dirty.

Also I think the extract form the book was pants. She says she wants to hark back to Enid Blyton days and that she hasn't been able to find any 'simple, well-written contempoaray stories'. OK Enid isn't contemporary but maybe Jools should have a look at the book threads on this site and read the reviews of some great kids books before feeling the need to put down the books that are out there.

well if she is doing an interview and asked her opinion, she will give it and not think ooooh I must think of others less fortunate and lie and make something up

she DOES have a priviledged life and pretending otherwise would be laughable

just because she has money doesn't mean she is not a 'normal' mum

what is normal anyhoo? in her circle of (maybe) millionares, she may be the norm

Yes, it's the 'everyone should be just like me' stuff that sends my blood to instant boiling point. She isn't worrying about the gas bill or working shifts at Tescos or worrying about redundancy. She seems to have absolutely no idea about how lucky, lucky, lucky she is and how she ought to be a little bit more - yes - humble and not feel that she has the right to tell other people how to be a parent. As for the book, oh my, that looks craparola. She ain't no Allan Ahlberg, is she?

Normal for whom?

Bet the other school mums will really lover her for that comment though.......

She could say, 'I am very lucky to be able to live the way I do. I really enjoy it but am aware that life is easier for me, as I don't have money worries, have a big house, live in a lovely area and have lots of help, so I couldn't possibly tell anyone else how to do things and I realise that my way of life isn't possible for other people. And yes, I know I got a book deal because of who my husband is. Thank God I've got a great editor!'
Now, that would be honest and endearing.

suey, I am old and skint but clever and basically happy . She is young and pretty dim and lonely. I am sure if I had read all her Great "Improve the Proles" Thoughts in the MOS steam would have been coming out of my ears too.
The quoted comment about being unable to find any good books for children these days, I agree, shows how vacant she is. Poor soul .

Maybe she's just not very bright msdemeanor? I mean, she was a model once upon a time after all....

I don't care what she does or says, she sounds like a better mother than me!

Just one point that really bugs me and that is the title of her first book.

Minus 9 to 1 does not make sense unless she is talking about 9 years before having a baby, or only going up to one month after.

it should be Minus 9 to 12 or Minus 0.75 to 1.

According to a University of Michigan study, antibacterial soaps are no better than regular soap when it comes to killing bacteria. Even worse, Triclosan (the antibacterial agent in typical hand soaps) may even help some bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics like amoxicillin.

After having c-diff I now know that soap and water is the best thing you can use...there aren't any antibac soaps effective against that one. Alcohol gels dont work on it either. Only chlorine bleach - so you just wash your hands for a long time and bleach everything in the bathroom.

To be fair to her Msdemenour, the article n Red magazine pretty much said that.

I agree, she comes across slightly wistful and sad and lonely.

I didn't read the Red magazine article. I find myself rather phobic about interviews with WAGS - eg Sadie Frost, Colleen and Jools. Why on earth would I be interested in what they have to say about anything? They've done nothing.

Oh God Flight I had c diff after dd was born.
Utter nightmare. Surprise surprise we are a soap and water household too.

I think she's great and to be fair if she gave her kids shed loads of crap to eat then we'd all be criticising her for that ...and I must confess to being rather like her in being a bit paranoid where my kiddies are concerned, and my long suffering husband likes them to get grubby and dirty and take far more (calculated) risks than I ever would...but it is about balance so its great that she acknowledges this and that her OH is more laissez-faire.

I didn't and don't read the MOS, but a mate of mine who is a journalist was doing a story on her after she had published her first book. The phone call was all ' but i'm just a normal mum' shite and why are you persecuting me? When it was just being questioned whether she was in a position to spout forth about parenthood.

Get over yourself, love

Marina, sorry

Can I ask you about getting over it please?

Did you have any recurrence, and what did you take? I'm still on vancomycin.

Msdemeanor talks sense.

Disagree with Oliveoil.
What is normal ? Well it is the norm. Joe adverage.
And I am really sorry, but if you are famous, then you are a small % of the population. The life she had growing up may have been normal, but I am afraid that the life she has been leading for the last ..... 5/7/10 years or whatever, since Jamie's fame. I don't think by any strtch of the imagination that this is NORMAL. Comparable with the main % of mums in the Uk?
No. Sorry.
This, I am so normal. I am a normal mum. It just doesn't wash.
You are priveledged. Accept and enjoy.

Oh FFS give her a break. She's written a children's book so she's done a promotional interview. She's talking about how she feels about being a mother to her children. Anyone that thinks that there is implied criticism of their parenting needs to get a grip and look up 'projection' in a dictionary of psychoanalytic terminology.

She says that she knows she's overprotective and that her DH balances that out- hardly scary obsessive lady is she? She's a SAHM who's quite clear that that was what she wanted from life, even before she had her DDs. Yes she's got a lot of cash- I do think that she's probably noticed this- but does that in some way invalidate her as a person? If talking about manners and wanting books to be grammatically correct is a sign of being out of touch and rolling in it, then I'm off to the pedants' board to borrow £100 for a bottle of milk.

I am chuckling at the comparison to Paula Yates. Wonder if we'll soon see Jools ditch "St" Jamie and swan off for crack marathons and kinky sex with Pete Doherty?

And I agree that she is dim and a bit sad. I read her first book and wondered how the hell her husband puts up with her!