Kylie Kelce gave birth to her fourth daughter, Finnley “Finn” Kelce on March 30. Two days later, she recorded a special podcast to introduce Finn to the world and “wrap up” her pregnancy storyline. She also released bonus clips and two pre-recorded episodes as she officially began her maternity leave. After six weeks without a new episode, Not Gonna Lie is back! Kylie recorded a new episode this week to mark the end of her maternity leave. In typical Kylie fashion, she set the record straight about maternity leave, admitted that there are still times when she has no idea what she’s doing as a mom, and shared how her three older daughters are adjusting to their new sister.
“First of all, I just want to get ahead of something — maternity leave is not a break or vacation,” she said. “That is a crazy concept. Do you think I was just kicking up my feet and laying out by the pool and chilling? You’d be wrong. I birthed a child who prefers contact naps. That’s right, I got another Wyatt sleeper.”
Kylie, who shares daughters Wyatt, 5, Elliotte, 4, Bennett, 2, and Finnley, 8 weeks, with her husband Jason Kelce, added that she spends “three to five hours of the day” carrying Finnley wrapped against her body. The Philadelphia native also urged other mothers not to follow her example, sharing the one thing she does that she wouldn’t recommend.
“It’s almost as bad as Googling on your fourth kid when you start scrolling back in your camera roll to see what your other children were doing at this age,” Kylie said. “It’s a bad idea. It’s not a good idea. And I would like to stop doing it, but I can’t.”
Kylie also admitted to “still Googling things” and insisted that she doesn’t have “any advice for parents.”
“I actually still have no idea what I’m doing,” Kylie added. “If I had to describe the change going from three kids to four kids in two words or less, ‘holy s—,’ it’s not terrible. Let’s go with ‘not terrible.’ That sounds better.”
However, the mom of four said she’s doing her best to “soak in all of the” sweet newborn moments with Finnley “like her cute little coos and noises.”
As for Finnley’s siblings, Kylie said that two of her three other daughters have been on board with helping.
“Wyatt and Ellie have been super helpful. They will go and get me diapers,” she said of her eldest children. “They wanna talk to her. She very much locks in on their faces and is distracted from an upset moment by their voices and by how close they get, which is, I mean, one of the cutest things you’ve ever seen in your whole life.”
But, predictably, Bennett or “Benny” as she is affectionately called, isn’t wild about being dethroned as the family’s youngest.
“Benny is the only one who’s not interested in what she’s doing and likes to pretend like she’s not there,” Kylie shared of her third child. “I put Finn down on the floor to change her diaper. And for some reason, Benny stood up and ran straight at me full speed, and I had to put my hand out. Of course, I was ready for it. We’ve done this a couple times now.”
Awww, poor Benny! It must be so difficult to adapt from being the baby of the family to suddenly becoming a middle child. Hopefully, she adjusts soon. I love that Wyatt and Ellie have been so helpful. Wyatt’s probably a pro at this point. My older son turned four just after my younger son was born, and he was also eager to be helpful. When my younger son was still sleeping in my room, I’d tell him that I needed him to lay down on my bed, next to where the baby’s crib was, and show him how to take a nap. Then, they’d both fall asleep. My older son was also a contact napper, which was cute, but also not great for productivity. I firmly believe that baby-wearing is the way to go there.
Anyway, Kylie is 100% correct that maternity leave is not a break or vacation. You spend the first half of it healing from childbirth, the second half trying to figure out some semblance of what your new routine will be, and the entire time not sleeping. Then, just as some babies are finally doing really well with sleeping through the night, they hit that four-month sleep regression mark, and you have to start all over again. Only, this time, most women are back to work. I can’t imagine doing all of that with three older children in the mix. Kudos to all of you out there who have done it.
Screenshots are from YouTube/Not Gonna Lie and photos credit Getty and via Instagram
I like her. She’s very down to earth and tells it like it is.
I am not a mom, but i love Kylie’s podcast.
I love her conversational style, her no bull attitude, her willingness to call out stupid stuff people say (about her family or just in general). Her guests have been AMAZING, it is a nice mix of sports fan, women’s lives, mom stuff, and humor.
And i LOVE that she caps her episodes at 45 minutes.
Hers is the only podcast i listen to every week.
Women can’t win. Have children, lots of them, but don’t take the measures that ensure a healthy pregnancy. I appreciate that she’s out here dropping the truth.
Is it me, though, or do all the kids sound like last names from Jane Austen? Their nicknames are adorable but I’m curious how the names were chosen.
When I first went back to work after maternity leave, THAT felt like a vacation. I have so much damn respect for SAHM’S.
I was a stay at home mom for a year, all on my own, with my first child. That was the hardest year of my life. For the first 6 months, it was a good day when I found time to shower and get dressed in something other than my robe. After realizing that going back to work would mean spending all my pay on child care, I decided to start a consultancy and work from home. It took years to build up business. But it was the best child care solution for me. The cost of living in my city is too high. Women cannot win in this country. We get no support from our government or work; we’re expected to magically be mothers and work full time. Fully subsidized, high quality early childcare, like they have in Europe, is a fairy tale here.
In the U.S., federal law only gives parents 12 weeks of unpaid leave. Many parents end up with paid leave through a combination of bonding paid leave and STD leave, but that depends on the employer.
It’s just enough time to get through the very worst of the waking up every 2-3 hours to eat. Just when the baby gets fun and sleeps through the night you have to go back to work and juggle child care, sleep regression, and performing at work. It just stinks.
FMLA doesn’t apply to all workplaces, either – govt/schools, and private companies with >50 employees.
Kylie also acknowledges that she has lots of support, which is just really kind of her. She just seems really, really nice and normal.
Amen.
Don’t have kids, but as an observer I know a lot of people (men) do think it’s a “break” at least, if not full on “vacation from work”. Which of course led to the policies in place today. It should be a year minimum.