The MAFS favourite gets teary as she opens up about her love story and a scary hormonal crisis

“Manifesting” another Ollie: She hopes a January baby could be on the way!

While most of the matches from Married At First Sight Australia crumbled as quickly as the confetti fell, Jules Robinson and her groom Cameron Merchant are still going strong. Now parents to two gorgeous boys, the couple will this month celebrate seven years since they first met on season six.

“We celebrate our MAFS anniversary more than our actual wedding anniversary, because it was such a huge day that changed our lives in so many ways,” Jules tells Woman’s Day, suddenly dabbing at unexpected tears.

“Cam’s never broken his vows that he said to me. Oh, that’s made me quite emotional!”

life on the central coast

The couple, who live on the Central Coast just north of Sydney, is in the thick of parenthood with their sons, five-year-old Ollie and 13-month-old Carter. Jules says the boys couldn’t be more different in nature.

Jules reflects, “You know how people say how your child enters the world reflects who they are? It’s so true. Carter was born so calm – he didn’t even cry until they put a needle in him 45 minutes later. He’s chilled and happy, with big emotions but a gentle demeanour. Ollie, on the other hand, came in screaming!”

Dad gets competitive

While Cam – who played cricket in New Zealand for Wellington and Northern Districts from 2007 to 2011 – was keen not to become a pushy “sports dad” he initally held back. Jules laughs he changed his tune once he had kids.

“He took me to the AFL when I was pregnant with Carter, saying, ‘The baby can hear – we’ve got to get him into sports!’ Now Carter can catch, throw and kick, Cam’s very happy.v“Meanwhile, Ollie is our little David Attenborough. He’s obsessed with animals and he’s been in a dinosaur phase lately. You could ask him 40 adult questions about dinosaurs and he’d get 38 of them right!”

Life’s undeniably hectic for Jules with her businesses, ambassadorships and family schedule, but she thrives on it.
Married life with Cam has brought kid chaos!

A life less ordinary

“I was always going to have a big, colourful life,” she admits.

“I left school at 15 to become a hairdresser, then moved to London, where I worked for Harrods, Selfridges and Truefitt & Hill, which is the world’s oldest barbershop and has the Royal Warrant, so I cut hair for the Queen’s cousins. Never the princes – even though my mum was like, ‘You track down that Prince William!’”

Since MAFS, Jules has launched shapewear line Figur, fashion label Moira Muse and beauty salon Status Co. She has also written the book Ask Jules: Love Yourself And Live Your Dream. Most recently, she unveiled activewear brand Strong Feels Good.

“Being strong isn’t just about the body – it’s about boundaries, your mind and your whole self,” she says, adding that she’s had a rough ride with hormones.

Opening up about PMDD

“The day I met and married Cam, I said to him, ‘Once a month, you’ll need to put me under the stairs.’ I tried to make fun of it, but after I had Ollie and got my periods back, it just all came crashing down. “I knew that it wasn’t postnatal depression or PMS – it was PMDD [premenstrual dysphoric disorder, a more severe form of PMS], which is so much darker and deeper. I used to have to work my calendar and commitments around it, which was really hard, but now I’ve learned to manage it naturally through supplements, Ayurveda yoga and exercise. “Talking about it has been huge – so many women reached out saying, ‘My family won’t listen to me.’ If I can make just one woman feel less alone, then I’m glad I shared.”

Something else Jules is passionate about is her partnership with toy company tonies. She is involved with their new Toniebox 2, an interactive kids’ audio player.

Positive parenting tools

“Like so many parents, we hit the screen-time danger zone with Ollie,” she admits.

“He was becoming a screen addict, having meltdowns when we turned it off. Honestly, this little box has changed our child. “He’s so much calmer. He loves listening to the stories, using his imagination and playing the games with the figurines. It’s been such a positive influence in our home and I couldn’t rave more about it.”

Despite her busy schedule, Jules has no plan to slow down any time soon. She creates a vision board every year and is “manifesting” another baby.

She grins, “January feels like the right time.”

Adventures ahead

She and Cam, 41, are also booked in for a wellness retreat in Thailand in November. They’re making it known they’d be perfect as hosts for a rumoured Australian version of Love Is Blind.

“I love that show and I truly believe we can do it,” she says.

“I was born with an innate sense of self-worth, which has been crushed and knocked many times, but I’ve always had resilience and been clear on what I want to do. I always think, ‘What’s the worst that can happen? Let’s give it a try!’”