Julian with Baby Holly and Ella.

DURING my journalism career I had some incredible mentors and people who inspired me. However, there’s one who stood above them all. And I’m not just saying that because we stole a kiss in the office file room. Shhh, don’t tell.

That person is my husband. The father of my two princesses. You know him as The Bloke in The Shed. Yesterday Julian added one more title to his name. He was announced Editor of The Advocate Newspaper and I couldn’t be prouder.

It was inevitable this day would come. He lives and breathes newspapers. On weekends our kitchen table AND the lounge room floor are covered with papers. It near drives me batty at times.

He walks around with his portable radio, ear plugs in, listening to Melbourne radio station 3AW. When you peek over to see what he’s doing on the computer, it’s either a news site or Facebook (where he’s picking up more and more stories these days). Oh, or stupid Supercoach. Really, what is the point of that?

He got the job based on more than passion though. He’s worked hard for it. Right from those early days as a skinny kid (yes, skinny) heading in for work experience every school holidays. It only increased when, out of Year 12, he got his first break. I was fortunate enough to witness the moment he became the paper’s youngest Sports Editor, then Chief of Staff and eventually Deputy Editor.

There’s another factor in the equation too. His family. He’s been brought up surrounded by high achievers. Most of you will have read about his brother, the new CEO of Woolworths. But it doesn’t end there. As the youngest of seven children, he’s surrounded by siblings who have excelled in their chosen professions. And atop them all is a mother who taught them to keep their feet on the ground and a father who showed them the possibilities from sheer hard work. It’s easy to see why it’s been such a natural progression for him.

When it came to this week, let’s just say there was a slight level of stress in the O’Brien household anticipating the interview. Then there was the little fact of some ash cloud causing flights to be cancelled from Tassie to Melbourne – including the one that was to take The Bloke in The Shed to his interview. Slight panic? Yes.

We’re not kidding ourselves. The next six months won’t be easy. Especially because I’m going to have to start doing the ironing myself. The li’l princesses won’t be seeing much of their Dad as he commits himself to getting the paper to where he wants it. For now, the focus will be on quality time with the girls, while quantity just isn’t possible. And, in years to come, that’s what the girls will remember most.

By the way, Julian’s now on Twitter. I know, wonders will never cease. You can follow him at @Julian_OBrien

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32 Responses to FEATURE: I have some exciting news…

  1. Thats Awesome.
    Congratulations!

  2. Jodie says:

    Well done to The Bloke in The Shed. What exciting news for you and your family. x

  3. Congratulations to your clever hubby! As you know my hub just made it to Editor recently and as a result we suffer to see a little less of him, but keep our eye on the big picture. Hope it all goes well as you settle in to this exciting time!

    • Kel says:

      Thanks Donna. Was so hard not to spill the news when I was reading your post the other day. Big congrats to your hubby too. Exciting times for our families ahead, most definitely. 🙂

  4. CaZ says:

    Congratulations Julian!! How exciting and fabulous. Interesting about his family sucess. I think you should interview his mum on 3lil and get her tips on raising hightly motivated and succesful people. I’d read that for sure! I do remember seeing an interivew on tv (oprah maybe) about a book that spoke to the mothers of highly sucessful people. One of the common factors between them all was that they all sat down and ate regular family meals together. That really stuck with me. Again well done ‘Man in the Shed’. Off to follow you on twitter now 🙂

    • Kel says:

      Caz, that is such a brilliant idea. I love that. Julian is also nodding his head in agreement. We’ll look at working on this one soon. Thanks!!
      Funnily, we’ve always been big on sitting down with both girls and eating together as a family as well (a follow on from our own families). Let’s hope it has an effect on our girls’ future success too. 🙂

  5. Congrats to both of you. Great news. (oh, and please don’t call super coach stupid. It’s important.)

  6. Louisa says:

    Congrats! This is really wonderful news 🙂

  7. Glenys says:

    How terrific for you both. Congratulations!. and just in case you were wondering I did manage to get started on my one article Kellie and submit it on time. Cross fingers it gets accepted 🙂

    • Kel says:

      Thanks Glenys. And that’s fabulous news. Well done! I’m sending positive vibes your way that it gets accepted!! Never hesitate to sing out if you ever need a hand! 🙂

  8. What fabulous news. I hope the change is smooth for you all 🙂

  9. Carlene says:

    Great News! What a clever, talented family you have! xx

  10. DanniiBeauty says:

    Congrats to you all! Thats fantastic and a great achievement.

  11. Melissa says:

    Congratulations, to both of you, as I’m sure he could not have acheived this without your support.
    Feeling a little nigel-no-friend that I’ve never heard of Supercoach. Will I regret googling?

    • Kel says:

      Oh, thanks Melissa. That’s really nice of you to say.
      And stay away from Supercoach!!! It’s a fantasy football game, where you pick players to create your own football team. Yes, I warned you… strange!! LOL! 😉

  12. Denyse says:

    That is just great…love the news about the news…so to speak.
    Well-done and much kudos to you, Julian.
    So, gotta love a family with competitive gene pool.
    Remember, I’m the one who lives near where your Woolies bro works!!
    So, what I want to know…is it always going to be a commute….Tas to Vic
    Just had to ask. Feather in your cap…and I am a newspaper reader who can’t quite give up her daily fix, even with an ipad app. Just ain’t the same!
    Go, high achievers! (can you guess,,,same 🙂 Love to all D XXXX

    • Kel says:

      Thanks so much, Denyse. No commuting, thankfully. He’ll be based here in Tassie, which we’re all happy about. Although, I think there’ll probably be a bit of travelling for events and training.
      And glad to hear your an avid newspaper reader too. Can’t start my day without it! Old habits, I guess. 🙂

  13. Congrats Julian!! How wonderful for you! Oh Kel, you can afford a ironing lady I think! A family of high achievers I would say! Imagine what the princesses will do with both you high achievers as parents! When I make it down south I will be looking out for that paper!

    • Kel says:

      Oooh, an ironing lady sounds good!! Maybe I should make a long list of chores for her, so I can sit by the pool and sip martinis!! LOL! Can’t wait to see what the girls decide to do when they grow up. At the moment, Ella wants to be a hairdresser or a doctor! Strange combination! 😉
      And yes, you’ll definitely have to look out for The Advocate when you’re down this way! Great newspaper. But I might be biased!! hehe!

  14. […] his career but aside from this he also excels at being a father and husband as you can read in the Three Li’l Princess’s Blog. Our career moves sometimes take us away from our families but it’s the quality time when we […]

  15. Marthese says:

    A big Congratulations coming your way…It is great to hear great news…especially when one works so hard for it….xxx

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