Travel Guides’ Jono Fren and wife Dani share raw post about reality of parenthood
Travel Guides stars Jono Fren and wife Dani Fren have shared a candid and honest post about the realities of parenting after welcoming their first child in April.
“Three months into motherhood, here’s the honest version...” new mum Dani penned against a series of personal photos.
Dani said there were moments when they thought "What have we done!?" after become first-time parents. Instagram/@dani.fren21
In the Instagram post, Dani captured the ups and downs of baby Theodore’s first three months, reminding fans they are “not alone” if they too find parenting “overwhelming”.
“The first few days felts like complete survival mode,” she revealed. “The first month was absolute shit”.
Dani was he first to admit the new parents had “absolutely no idea” what they were doing when they welcomed their son Theodore home for the first time.
“There were definitely moments when we thought ‘what have we done!?’” she wrote as the photos continued.
But the parents explained, it wasn’t because they didn’t love their newborn son, it’s because everything about their lives changed overnight.
“Recovering while sleep deprived, trying to work out what each cry meant, nappy changes, pressures of feeding, hormonal changes and constantly questioning everything we were doing, all while everyone was wanting to visit and see the new baby,” Dani listed.
“Your whole identity shifts instantly and it’s a lot to process,” she explained. “You miss your old life more than you expect, then you feel guilty for even thinking that.”
Jono and Dani revealed they found the first few months as parents very challenging. Instagram/@dani.fren21/@jonofren21
But around the five-week mark, Dani and Jono reached a turning point as parents. Things suddenly didn’t feel like “survival mode” any more they revealed.
“It started to feeling like connection,” Dani wrote alongside a snap of the mum holding baby Teddy while he flashes a sweet little smile.
The travel stars said they now can’t imagine their lives without their son: “He makes it so hard to remember how hard it was in the beginning.”
"This little guy has completely turned our world upside down in the best, hardest, funniest and most unexpected way," said Dani. Instagram/@dani.fren21
As the post came to an end, Jono and Dani issued a reminder to newborn parents to be kinder to themselves during this “overwhelming” time.
“If you are wondering whether you are doing enough or why it feels so overwhelming... you are not alone,” Dani wrote.
“Give yourself grace. Trust me, it really does get better.”
Their little tot is three months now! Instagram/@thefrenfamily
Jono and Dani welcomed their first child in April 2026.
“He’s our whole world,” said the new parents as they announced bub’s arrival and confirmed his adorable name.
The tot’s arrival marks the first grandchild on Jono’s side of the family, making parents and Travel Guides stars Cathy and Mark Fren grandparents for the first time.
The couple, who met in 2019, tied the knot in June 2021 in a gorgeous outdoor ceremony in the Hunter Region of New South Wales.
Jono and his family return for a spectacular new season of Travel Guides.
This week, they jet-set on a family vacation to Indonesia joined by both familiar and new faces.