The 29-year-old and her partner Nathan Gooley welcomed identical girls Myrtle Mae and Emerald Lois Sveen-Gooley on Sept. 29.
While the foursome is now safely nestled in their home in rural Tasmania, it was a bumpy start for the new family.
Bonnie – who played Ricky on the long-running Seven drama – spent four days in hospital after giving birth while her newborn twins spent almost two weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Royal Hobart Hospital after being born almost a month premature.
“Because of the distance we are away from the hospital we were able to stay at the Ronald McDonald House for that amount of time,” Bonnie explains. “It made just a huge difference. It was nice being so close to the girls and getting the maximum time with them in those critical first weeks.”
What was it like to meet them for the first time?
It was amazing hearing both of their cries when each of them was born. They were just big forces of nature – big personalities.
How did you choose the names?
We wanted to meet both the girls before we settled on the names. Both of our girls, at very early stages, seemed to be very aware of their surroundings and Emerald to me, invokes the Emerald City from The Wizard of Oz and that sparkle, and she carries that in her personality.
Nath being a Coffs [Harbour] boy, he spent a lot of his childhood at Emerald Beach and I think that’s one of the best beaches in the world. Myrtle is a bit of a family name. My Auntie Maree – it was her nickname growing up. It’s also my favourite Tasmanian tree species.
Nath and I were enjoying them out in the Tarkine when we did the Tarkine Trail back in April, when I was 14 weeks pregnant
How are you finding motherhood?
It’s the best. It’s definitely far from perfect, but it’s the most heart-opening, profound experience I’ve ever undergone. The most important thing is to have some sense of routine.
I most definitely would not be able to do it without Nath helping me and carrying an equal load. That’s the only way we’re really making it work.
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