Really interesting scenes with Dad and two middle kids in today’s vlog at a restaurant. Rhi took Zara back to the hotel. Tiredness or tantrum or something. It’s like watching two completely different kids. So much giggling. Authentic interactions with Dad. Raw, un staged and natural. He has a much better on-screen presence than Rhi does and I really enjoyed it. The kids really come into themselves when Rhi isn’t around… which is both lovely and sad.
i don't watch many of their vlogs, but i watched the segment where the dad is filming with the older of the three kids, without Rhi - and the contrast is striking. it's much more of a chilled atmosphere, laughing and joking and playful and the kids are smiling naturally and talking far more freely, sharing food with each other quite happily, without the stilted answers and forced smiles. i think the main difference was that the kids were allowed to talk naturally, and their dad would pause and actually listen and not cut them off or dismiss them, in the way that Rhi often does. with her, i often get the impression that her performances are very scripted, and she asks the kids specific questions, which they respond to as they have been told, but if they then dare to "interrupt" her whilst she is talking to the camera or speak without having been asked a question, she becomes visibly frustrated and quickly dismisses them. with their dad, the conversation seems far more natural, with the kids allowed to talk freely and give their opinions, whereas Rhi will often have already decided that "William/Bella/Zara won't like that" with certain foods etc, which obviously then causes the kids to be reluctant to try new foods or to reply with anything other than "i don't like it" because she has already decided. for them, with Rhi quick to compliment them for "trying it" - because she is so desperate to reinforce their autism and make a point of the fact that she is a mother of three kids with ASD.
it's actually lovely to see the relationship they have with their dad behind the scenes - which is often hidden when Rhi is filming - and show how the kids are when they are relaxed and having fun, without everything seeming so forced and contrived. it's a shame Rhi doesn't learn from that footage, because their vlogs would be far more watchable.