Working mothers are amazing,” cheers actress Tandi Wright, as she flops onto one of her big leather sofas and takes the first sip of her morning coffee. “I just had no idea until I became one,” she laughs. Despite admitting she’s constantly exhausted, the former Shortland Street star is positively glowing as she talks about becoming a mum to Olive two years ago.

“I wouldn’t call her a cruiser,” jokes Tandi. “She’s super alert and wants to know everything that’s going on. She’ll be running this household by the time she’s five!” Tandi (39) and her partner of seven years, writer Michael Beran, were delighted when they conceived soon after making the decision to start a family. They then became parents-in-training when they relocated to the United States so Tandi could look after her 18-month-old nephew, Nicholas.

“I couldn’t work as an actress when I was pregnant,” explains Tandi, “But my sister, Justine, who is a film editor, was on a job in LA and needed childcare. It was brilliant because I got a sense of the stamina required.”

The actress took a very natural approach to pregnancy and labour and describes it as the most “extraordinary” experience of her life. “Giving birth was the hardest thing I’ve ever done but also very empowering. I had
my mum, Dinah, and Michael there rubbing my back and I was a whisker away from having an epidural before she arrived.

Then holding this lovely little creature for the first time was the most wondrous feeling,” sighs Tandi. “It was so primal – I felt like an animal with her cub.” The next surprise for the couple was discovering their new baby was a little girl. “We were so sure we were having a boy that neither Michael nor I thought to ask for the first five minutes. When we found out, Michael burst into tears – he was so happy.”

Thankfully, however, the pair had prepared a shortlist of girls’ names and tried each one for a day before settlingon Olive. For her middle name they selected Violet, which was also Tandi’s grandmother’s middle name. In the tender first few weeks after Olive’s birth, Tandi and Michael were purely focused on bonding with their little girl. “It was all about just being there and keeping that baby alive – it didn’t matter if you were tired or if you looked like something the cat dragged in,” Tandi laughs.

And soon, Tandi found a whole new world opening up to her. “I really got a sense of being part of a community. All these other mums were checking up on me – dropping off casseroles and hand-me downs. I felt like I’d joined this fantastic club. Olive has been an excellent social-networking tool – I’ve met lots of great women from different walks of life.”

When she did contemplate work again, the actress was careful to only take on small, manageable parts requiring a day here or there, during which time Michael would take over the parenting reins. “I’m lucky because Michael works freelance as well,” tells Tandi, “so we tag-team with Olive. Financially, it’s tough, but I think the first few years are so important.

“Already I look at this little person who races around with such confidence and I think we’ve done a good thing,” she says proudly. “We’ve worked hard to ensure she has good self-esteem – and for girls that’s so crucial. I want to be her rock so she always feels safe.”

Taking on a lead role in TV One’s new futuristic drama This Is Not My Life has been Tandi’s first foray back into full-on work and she admits it’s been a test. There’s also the strange sensation of trying out a different style of motherhood, playing desperate housewife Callie Ross. “Callie wants to be the perfect wife and mother and always be in control. Personally, I have relinquished a lot of that now,” admits Tandi. “I just go with the fl ow.”

There are various plans for more work afoot but the question of another baby still hangs in the air. “We’re not sure yet,” admits Tandi. “I would love for Olive to have a sibling because I have two great sisters myself. But then there’s the environmental aspect to consider – the world is already overpopulated.”

Meanwhile, there’s no doubt motherhood has changed Tandi’s life for the better. “In the past, I would fret if I felt I’d done a bad job on a scene,” says the actress, “But now I walk in the door, see Olive and it’s not important. It’s a healing thing to hold that little person. You think of the mother calming the baby but sometimes I find it’s just the reverse.”