Alex McCord and Simon van Kempen
Parenting advice from the stars of 'The Real Housewives of New York City.'
by April Peveteaux
February 13, 2009
Last year the Real Housewives moved to New York and the inseparable, unflappable duo of Alex McCord and Simon van Kempen stole the show with their extravagant shopping sprees and French-speaking toddlers. Housewife Alex and husband Simon (sometimes referred to as "The Sixth Housewife") are back for Season Two — which airs February 17th on Bravo — along with precocious kiddos François and Johan. They are again at the center of the socialite storm as gossip column wars and trips to the Hamptons kick off the explosive season. Currently the van Kempens are putting their unique take on parenting together in an upcoming book, The Urban Parent: Family Adventures from a Real House in New York City. Babble sat down with reality tv's conjoined couple and gleaned advice on potty training, keeping married love alive and circumcision. — April Peveteaux
Were you comfortable with how François and Johan were portrayed on the show?
Simon van Kempen: The footage that they're going to use is the footage that's going to be the most dramatic. The most dramatic isn't always the most flattering.
Alex McCord: Beautiful children, behaving beautifully doesn't necessarily make for good TV. We have to take that with a grain of salt. We're very aware in person of how our children behave, how they act on a day-to-day basis. You can't really blame the producers for wanting to include the over-the-top dramatic moments.
Simon: My real hope [for Season Two] is that they show us reading stories to the boys at bedtime. But who knows what they use. We hope we learned from some of the things we might have done in Season One. We don't control what you see; the producers do.
©2009 April Peveteaux and Babble
About the Author
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April Peveteaux is a writer, editor and sometimes performer. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband, son and daughter. |
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