When Cosima De Vito cuddled her beautiful baby girl for the first time, her eyes welled with tears. The Australian Idol superstar – who made the top three in the first season in 2013 – had been waiting her whole life for this moment and at 11.45am on January 31, it finally arrived.
“Giving birth was the most beautiful experience,” Cosima, who’s named her baby Amelia, tells Woman’s Day exclusively.
“When the nurses let me hold her, she had her little fingers in her mouth and she was sucking her knuckle – it was surreal. I’ve done a lot in my life, but this is my greatest achievement yet.”
Cosima and her husband Gus are besotted by their daughter Amelia.
The new mum describes the day as “perfect”, but it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the 41-year-old. During her long and excruciating labour, which finally ended in an induction, the only things getting Cosima through the pain were her husband Gus De Romanis, 53, and her dream of a water birth. But after dipping her toe in the spa, she knew immediately something wasn’t right.
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“I really wanted a water birth but I couldn’t stand the feeling when I was submerged,” she explains. “It was horrible! I was really upset because I’d been building it up in my head for nine months.”
Cosima made the top three in the first season of Australian Idol in 2013.
Devastated her plans had to be changed, Cosima and her husband of three years, who is a butcher by trade, jumped at the opportunity of Gus holding a mirror during the birth, so they could both see their child being born in real time.
“Gus was scared to watch her come out, but as soon as I said, ‘You’re a butcher, for God’s sake!’ he was ready to go,” says Cosima with her trademark huge smile.
“It was the most extraordinary experience to watch it happen.”
Cosima and Gus exchanged vows in front of 124 guests at Holy Name of Mary in Hunters Hill, Sydney in 2016.
Single for 10 years but desperate to become a mum, the Perth-born singer had prepared herself for a future as a single parent – and had even made an appointment at an IVF clinic – until she met Gus. Now Cosima feels like she’s the luckiest woman in the world.
“I’ve always loved children and it’s been one of my biggest dreams to have one of my own,” she says as she cradles her little daughter in her arms.
“There was nothing that was ever going to stop me from giving birth!”
The talented singer has always had dreams of becoming a mother.
Now three months old, Amelia is a dream baby, rarely crying and often giggling… especially when her mum sings to her!
“When she was in my tummy, I would sing to her every day – and since she’s been born, it’s continued. Her face lights up and she smiles at me when she hears my voice,” the doting mum says.
“I want her to grow up with music in her life. It’s something that will support her during hard times and will always be there for her.”
Cosima and her fellow contestants of the first season of Australian Idol, including Guy Sebastian, Paulini, Shannon Noll and Rob Mills, have all had successful music careers.
With Amelia growing and changing every day, her parents have started thinking about what she’ll be like in 10 years. Despite having a chart-topping career in music, Cosima isn’t too fussed if her daughter doesn’t have a set of pipes like hers.
“It would be beautiful if she was into music as much as I am, but I don’t care if she can’t sing, it doesn’t bother me. I would definitely love her to learn an instrument, though. I hope she gives the violin or piano a go.”
And while they certainly have their hands full at the moment, Cosima and Gus are already talking about a second baby!
“We would love to have a little baby boy but if I can’t because of my age, that’s OK,” says Cosima.
“Either way, my life is complete.”
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