'Like Kelsey Parker I had a baby after losing my husband, it brought up so much pain and joy'
'Like Kelsey Parker I had a baby after losing my husband, it brought up so much pain and joy'
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There’s a wall of photos in Peta O’Brien-Day’s dining room. In the colourful Ikea frames are shots of family and friends, birthday parties and holidays. But two pictures are particularly precious. "They capture the days my children were born," explains the brand strategist and copywriter, 41, from Hungerford, West Berkshire. In one she holds a tiny Ethan, now 12, and in the other it’s newborn Erica, now five. "There’s Mark in the first," Peta explains, "and Nick in the second. My two husbands and the two great loves of my life.".
Just like Kelsey Parker, who lost her husband Tom at 32 in 2022, Peta has navigated the heartbreak of being a young widow. And like Kelsey, who has just announced her third pregnancy, Peta found love again. She met her first husband Mark O’Brien in April 2005, when they were both students at University of Bath. "I was at a party when I looked up and saw a very tall, very smiley Welshman, with the most gorgeous arms I’d ever seen in my life!" she laughs.
"We talked for hours, he asked for my number and within weeks we both knew that it was love." Engaged in October 2007 the couple said their vows in July 2008. "I was 25 and he was 26, but while we were young, we didn’t have any doubts.". The couple were thrilled to be expecting their first child in March 2012. "Mark was so excited about becoming a dad and I couldn’t wait to be a mum." The birth of their son Ethan didn’t go to plan. "After an uneventful pregnancy I was in labour for 75 hours, and when Ethan got stuck, I was rushed in for an emergency caesarean. I ended up delivering under general anaesthetic and losing four litres of blood.".
