Rachel Riley may be known for her impeccable skills on Countdown but away from our TV screens, she is a doting mum of two. After meeting professional dancer Pasha Kovalev on Strictly Come Dancing in 2013, the couple went on to welcome daughters, Maven, three, and baby Noa. But, are more kids on the cards?
© InstagramHELLO! caught up with Rachel following her recent record-breaking achievement with Weetabix, which saw the mathematician lead the largest-ever goal celebration by dancing at BOXPARK Wembley. The event coincided with the Lionesses' first World Cup match against Haiti.
Asked if she and Pasha are hoping to add to their family one day, Rachel, 37, told HELLO!: "We're happy where we are. If I had all the help in the world and all the staff in the world to keep having babies…but I think we're happy with two.
© Shutterstock"We're just starting to get out of the woods and they can play together now. They can be left together for a little bit, it's starting to get a little bit easier. So I think we're on that note."
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Explaining what a typical morning in her household looks like, Rachel said: "The big one [Maven] comes in with me with the little one [Noa] and says like, 'Hello' and it's cuddles, cuddles, cuddles. And then it's generally 'Can we go to the park, can we go to soft play, can we go to the beach?'
© Instagram"And then it's, you know, 'I want noodles. I want toast.' It just feels like it's constantly tidying up, feeding, and taking them to the park. I have two children and I took four vehicles to the park with me the other day to make sure they were happy!
© Instagram"I had a pushchair, a scooter, a push bike and a cycling bike. And it's just like one person with two kids – two toddlers – and I'm just bag lady. And honestly, a ten-minute walk takes about an hour. So by the time you've got there, you have to turn around and keep feeding them again."
Rachel added: "I think parenthood is so repetitive. But it's fun because you get to see how much they've come on. So we just got this bike for Christmas and already she's [Maven] just cycling by herself everywhere. So it's special. It's nice."
© InstagramMaven and Noa's personalities already shining through, and it looks like they're following in their mum's footsteps. "My three-year-old is literally asking for maths videos for kids on YouTube," Rachel reveals.
"There's one that's a dance with numbers up to 100. And she's looking for numbers on the side of the road, like the speed signs or the road signs and she's shouting the numbers out, you know, getting excited about it and counting. Even the baby's going '1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11.'
"And they're both really active. My three-year-old's riding a bike and she [was] on a balance bike and a scooter this week. It's just going before my eyes. But it's fun watching their little personalities and letting them try stuff, but it's just keeping them out of the road!"
Speaking about her latest project with Weetabix, Rachel opened up about why she'd decided to lead the largest-ever goal celebration. "There are families here, not just little girls but also mums, dads, sons, women, friends – like everybody," Rachel explained.
"And it's just a bit of fun doing a celebration dance. I love a dance! It's over the other side of the world so it's morning, it's like family-friendly and it's perfect. Having two little girls of my own, I know they'll have any excuse for a little dance and it makes them feel part of it when they get to join in and learn the dance."
© WeetabixTo check out Rachel Riley and Weetabix breaking the record for the biggest football goal celebration dance head to https://www.instagram.com/weetabixofficial. Readers can also head down to WeetaBOXPARK on Friday 28th to watch the England vs Denmark match, all while enjoying a free Weetabix brekkie.Tickets are FREE and can be found here: https://www.boxpark.co.uk/wembley/events/wwc2023-england-v-denmark/date/4623/2023-07-28/2023-07-28/
