Kate Ferdinand reveals her son Cree has started having ‘head-swinging’ tantrums

Kate Ferdinand has revealed her son Cree has begun having ‘head-swinging tantrums’ as she detailed the struggles of being a ‘strict’ parent to her stepchildren with husband Rio.

The former TOWIE star discussed the daily perils of raising her blended family on the Parenting Hell podcast, while detailing the changing dynamic with Rio’s three children Lorenz, 15, Tate, 13, and Tia, 10, as they reach their teen years.

Kate, who has openly discussed the perils of being in a blended family, explained that as her stepchildren get older she’s started to ‘moan at them constantly’ about chores, drawing up a responsibilities chart to keep them in line.

She said: ‘Cree is at nursery now because I have started working sooner than expected. He rules the roost in this house. He has started with the head swings and tantrums. He bashes his heads on everything

‘He is so loud. He is full of life. Everyone in this house fights for attention. He is loudest out the lot. Which is saying a lot as it is a loud house.’

Kate revealed that since Cree has started nursery, Rio’s older children have begun taking a school bus after she struggled with juggling the multiple journeys.

‘When we are both here we share the role. It is quite equal, he is really good. Really really good with the kids,’ she said.

Kate also admitted that having such a large age gap between Rio’s eldest son Lorenz and Cree can prove challenging, saying: ‘It is impossible but we all stay together and at one stage some of you are going to be bored

‘It is impossible.. the big kids… we can entertain Cree for an hour and then we can get on with what the big kids want to do

‘Or I try and do stuff with him in my days off in the week. And then do things with the big kids.

‘But he gets bored and they can bored. What can you do? You’ve just got to get on with it.’

Detailing the perils of raising teenagers, Kate admits she and Rio agreed she would carry on the ‘strict’ mentality introduced by his late wife Rebecca Ellison.

She said: ‘From the beginning Rio said their mum was strict and you can do the same. I have been firm but fair. I moan at them constantly

‘As you see a mum would that is what I do. I cook for them. Hug them. Love them. I am strict. I drive them mental. They leave their stuff everywhere and all I do is moan. It is being a normal parent.

‘We have a chart on the wall. It gets very political at times. They have to do washing up, surfaces and clearing the table and make their beds

‘They share clearing up and clearing the table. If you have seen the amount kids eat. They eat double the amount of a man. The amount of food I have to cook is crazy.

‘They probably can’t stand me. They wipe the surfaces, but they don’t do it properly. I say we are going to keep coming back to this.’

Kate added: ‘Where they are getting older, it is a really deep relationship. We talk about in depth things… we have our deep night chats. Every night they come in my room. They are 13 and 15, they think they are 20 and really grown up. It is funny.

‘They do confide in me on a lot of things. I have never thought about if it is because I am Kate and not their mum. I am really open. We share everything with each other. We have created that space for communication.’

She continued: ‘It is hard to keep the kids grounded. They do have jobs. They have to clear up after themselves

‘We don’t give them everything they want. We try and keep them grounded in that sense.

‘They are so well mannered and they are so polite. But this is the life they have lived in they don’t know any different.

‘But we need to teach them how to live without us. They’ve got social media but private accounts. As a generation we are obsessed with socials. You just end up going on it all the time. They are on it all the time.’

Kate added that Rio’s children are asked to leave their phones outside their bedrooms on a charging point to prevent them from staying on them ‘all night.’

Asked whether she’s ever looked at their devices, the star added: ‘They know I do. I will tell them. I say I looked at your phone and saw this

‘You have to keep an eye on them. You don’t know who they are talking to or with socials what is going on.’

Kate was a guest on Parenting Hell to discuss her own podcast Blended, which sees her interview guests about their own experiences.

This comes after the star recently launched her own support platform for families meshed together by fostering, adopting, loss or other circumstances, following her own experiences as a step-parent.

Taking to Instagram to announce the launch of the platform, which she also named Blended, sharing an image of the logo along with a heartfelt caption.

She wrote: ‘As you all know we are a blended family, I am a step mum to my 3 beautiful big kids Lorenz, Tate & Tia who unfortunately lost their mum at a very young age, & now a biological mum to our beautiful blessing Cree…

‘The icing on the cake to our extra special family. Being a step mum to 3 children who have been through so much & a husband who’s wife passed away brings a unique set of challenges…

‘There have been many times I have been left feeling lost, confused and not sure where to turn. When I first became a stepparent I felt very isolated & alone, I just didn’t know who to talk to…

‘As my journey continues I’ve realised there is a real need for a place to connect & get advice from people going through similar experiences. I am definitely not a guru, this is as much for me and it is for you guys…

‘So here we have it @blended a safe space for us to all share our blended family experiences and support each other along this journey…

‘I’m hoping to share some personal experiences along the way as well as help and advice from professionals. There will also also be lots of discussions, general chit chat & quotes to make us feel better. Lots of love Kate’.

Beneath the post, Rio penned: ‘So Proud of my Lady. Warms my heart seeing you so passionate about this. You are a blessing.’