Sunshine Coast family looking forward to reuniting after two years

A Sunshine Coast mum has revealed the only thing her three children want for Christmas is to see their dad, who they have not seen since he moved to Victoria for work at the end of 2019.

A Sunshine Coast mother has revealed the only present her children want for Christmas is to see their daddy.

Cassandra Riddell has been a single parent ever since the father of her three children moved to Victoria for work at the end of 2019.

“The last two years have been horrific, our youngest child has never even met her father,” she said.

She said “it’s going to be the best Christmas present ever” for Katy, 7, Maverick, 3, and Sapphire, 1.

Cassandra Riddell with her children Katy, 7, Maverick, 3, and Sapphire, 1. Picture: Steve Pohlner

“I was one and half months’ pregnant with our youngest child but by the time he found a solid job, Covid-19 had already hit.

“Unfortunately in the last two years there have been a lot of ‘firsts’ for all three children which you can’t get back – Katy had her first day of school, Maverick his first haircut and every milestone in Sapphire’s life to date,” she said.

The children will often video call their dad but Ms Riddell said “it’s just not the same – it’s horrible.”

She said the only thing on Maverick’s Christmas list from Santa is ‘my Daddy’.

She said when the borders were open for a couple of months earlier in the year, it was either too difficult to get time off work or too expensive for the family to travel south.

“I haven’t told the kids that he’s coming home yet so it’s going to be a big surprise for them when we are at the airport and it’s him who walks off the plane,” she said.

“He will fly in the week before Christmas … I have been waiting two years for this moment and I know as soon as my children see their daddy at the airport I’m going to be in floods of tears.”

Ms Riddell’s youngest daughter was born in July of 2020, a very different experience to her last two pregnancies.

Katy and Sapphire are looking forward to a family reunion two years in the making. Picture: Steve Pohlner

Not only was it her first pregnancy without a partner by her side, to make the situation worse at 12 weeks Ms Riddell thought she was having a miscarriage.

“I had some complications with my daughter Sapphire at 12 weeks – I actually thought I was going to lose her,” she said.

“Luckily she was fine but if I didn’t have my mum, dad and brothers around I would not have got through that experience.”

Without the support of her family, Ms Riddell said the last two years would have been “too hard”.

“It’s going to be a very different Christmas this year – my children are going to be over the moon.”