When it comes to The Bachelor Australia couples, 2017 contestants Matty J and Laura Byrne are undoubtedly one of Australia’s favourite reality romances.
After capturing both each other’s and the nation’s hearts on screen, their romance has only continued to blossom and in 2019, the couple welcomed their first child into their growing family.
As the pair continue to mark their daughter’s latest milestones, we take a closer look at Matty J and Laura Byrne’s family life.
How many children do Matty J and Laura Byrne have?
Matty J and Laura Byrne are the proud parents of two daughters, Marlie-Mae and Lola Ellis.
Announcing the arrival of their first child on June 6, 2019, Matty wrote to Instagram, “Still letting the last 24hrs sink in… they’ve been the most rewarding, loving and emotional I’ve ever experienced. Becoming a Dad was better than I ever could have imagined.”
Described by her parents as a “sassy, funny, sensitive, wonderfully quirky kid,” Marlie-Mae is known for her energetic spirit. Since welcoming their eldest daughter, Laura has frequently shared humorous anecdotes about Marlie’s adventures, including her reactions to birthday celebrations.
For instance, during her third birthday party, Marlie initially resisted going to her own party, but eventually warmed up when it came time for the piñata
Lola Ellis Johnson, born on February 4, 2021, is the couple’s second daughter and has already shown her own unique charm.
Laura humorously announced Lola’s arrival by joking about her previous predictions regarding the baby’s gender.
” I said I would eat my own poop if you were a girl, and yet HERE YOU ARE! Already teaching me the worldly life lessons that come with being a mama,” Laura wrote on Instagram in Lola’s birth announcement.
“Lola Ellis Johnson, you had us all fooled!” Matt wrote in his own announcement. “Nana, the neighbour and even the postman thought you were going to be a boy. Playing pranks on us all already… I love it!”
“I also love that I’m now well and truly outnumbered by 3 beautiful and rambunctious girls at home. Welcome to the family. ❤️”
In 2023, the parents spoke with Mia Freedman on the No Filter podcast, sharing insight into how they share the responsibilities of caring for their two children.
“Matt is the primary carer,” Laura shared. “As soon as Dancing with the Stars finished, that’s when he really picked up all the pieces at home. He does the daycare drop-offs, he does the pickups, he does the dinners. He does all of that because my career has continued to grow.”
“There’s definitely been periods where [parenting] it’s fallen on me, and there’s definitely been periods where it’s fallen on Matt. At the moment, in our parenting arrangement, it falls on Matt,” she continued, adding, “I wish there were more dads like Matt in the world because if there were, it would be a better place. And I’m proud – I’m so proud of that.”
Throughout their journey to become parents, the couple also spoke candidly about their pregnancies, sharing that Laura had sadly suffered two miscarriages.
“Pregnancy after miscarriage is weird and crazy and wonderful. It brings with it all the joy, but also a niggling anxiety that something might go wrong and the painful reality that it could,” she wrote for Kidspot after falling pregnant with Marlie-Mae.
Sadly, Laura suffered a second miscarriage in between the birth of Marlie-Mae and their second daughter, Lola.
“Just two months ago, Matt and I went through our second miscarriage and that still feels raw and very bizarre to even say out loud,” she said on her podcast, Life Uncut.
“It’s not something I’ve really spoken about, not something that I’ve talked to many people about, but I feel very, very passionately that miscarriage is a conversation that needs to be had in an open forum.”
