Gwyneth and Chris' vital stats:
- Gwyneth Kate Paltrow, born September 27, 1972
- Christopher Anthony John Martin, born March 2, 1977
Gwyneth and Chris' children:
- Apple Blythe Alison Martin, born May 14, 2004
- Moses Bruce Anthony Martin, born April 8, 2006
In October 2002, Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow met Coldplay singer Chris Martin backstage at one of his gigs. Their whirlwind romance was followed a quick engagement and a super secretive wedding on December 2003, in Southern California, where only Gwyneth’s mum, Blythe, was present.
Not long after Gwyneth and Chris tied the knot, the loved-up couple announced they were expecting their first baby together.
After the pregnancy news was made public, Gwyn was surprised with very generous baby gift (a Silver Cross Balmoral pram), when she appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Gwyn admitted she was finding it hard to answer all of the baby related questions being fired at her! “The Jewish part of me is superstitious about talking about it, so when people say, ‘Are you going to find out the sex?’, ‘Do you have weird food cravings?’ or ‘How does your mum feel?’ I don’t want to answer those questions!”
Less than a year after Gwyneth and Chris wed, they welcomed their first baby together on May 14, 2004. Their baby, a girl, was born in a London hospital, weighing 9lb 11oz. Chris and Gwyn named her Apple.
Proud dad Chris Martin said after the birth, “We are 900 miles over the moon and we’d like to thank everyone at the hospital who have looked after us amazingly.”
The couple’s baby name choice raised a few eyebrows, so Gwyn spoke to Oprah Winfrey - as you do - about what inspired them to name their daughter after a fruit! “It sounded so sweet and it conjured such a lovely picture for me, you know, apples are sweet and they’re wholesome. It’s biblical and I just thought it sounded so lovely and clean!”
Apple’s godparents are actor Simon Pegg and Chris’ Coldplay band mate Jonny Buckland.
In 2005, the couple announced they were expecting their second child. Although Gwyn had reservations about revealing too much during her first pregnancy, she was clearly more relaxed the second time around and happily talked about her pregnancy cravings.
Speaking about how she ditched her mega strict macrobiotic diet, Gwyn said, “I wanted French fires, grilled cheese and yoghurt, so my strict diet kind of went out of the window. I couldn’t look at brown rice – it made me throw up.”
On April 8, 2006, Gwyn and Chris welcomed their second baby, a boy they named Moses. Moses was born at the Mount Sinai Hospital, New York. Talking about her second unusual baby name choice, Gwyn admitted their baby son was named after a song Chris wrote for her before they married.
After Gwyneth’s second pregnancy, she admitted she suffered from postnatal depression and felt “like a robot”.
Gwyn also revealed how she struggled with her post-baby body. “After my first pregnancy, the weight had come off a little better but after the second one, it was really stubborn. It was really hanging on,” she said. “I didn’t mind the big boobs. But I hated the stomach roll, the back fat and the post-pregnant butt." Gwyneth hired personal trainer Tracy Anderson, who helped her lose her so-called “stubborn 20 pounds.”
After taking time out from filming movies, Gwyn made a comeback and her career has been riding high ever since. As well as a string of blockbuster films, Gwyneth has embraced a new career path as a budding celebrity chef and foodie, releasing a book of recipes. She also launched a lifestyle website GOOP, all about her everyday life as a ‘normal’ mum. However, this was heavily criticised by other ‘normal’ mums.
Returning to work wasn't all smooth sailing for Ms Paltrow. Gwyn revealed she suffered form working mum guilt and that her heart broke when she had to leave her “sobbing” son to go to work.
In 2011, it was revealed that Gwyn and Chris were looking for a £60,000 tutor for their two children and that she wanted to raise them as Jewish. Also in 2011, the mum-of-two caused a little stir when she said she was all up for post-pregnancy boob jobs.
Gwyneth has recently joined Twitter. Since she signed up, the previously private actress has been shedding more light into her personal life with tweets on her children in particular. “Just leaving super fun production of the Wizard of Oz. Apple saw the sign and called it wizard of ounce. Brilliant,” Gwyneth tweeted. She also shared worries about her kids being addicted to video games. “How the f do I get these kids off the Wii? I swore I would never have one in the house, now they freebase Mario,” Gwyneth tweeted.
Gwyneth’s husband Chris is notoriously private and is rarely seen out with Gwyneth. However, he did reveal a little bit about his feelings in an interview a few years back.
“I always felt it would be great to be with a very powerful woman because it would keep you in your place,” Chris admitted. “Being married to someone very successful and very powerful basically keeps you hungry to improve. You’ve got to be hungry. If your wife went out with Brad Pitt, you’d want to improve yourself, if you know what I mean!”
