‘It’s been amazing!’
Like any first-time father, Nico Bolzico asked himself many questions before Thylane Katana, his and wife Solenn Heussaff’s first child, was born on New Year’s Day, Jan. 1, 2020.
“My biggest fear before Thylane was born was if I would be a good father to her,” confessed Nico, the AIA Philam Life brand ambassador. “Will I be able to let her be what she’ll like to be — giving her freedom. Will I be able to make her understand what right or wrong is? How to be humble, and how to be modest? And up until now, I don’t know if I’m capable of doing these things.”
Luckily, Nico, 36, said that he has his own father to look up to as an example. Nico grew up on a farm in Argentina, with hours and hours spent in nature, strolling with his dad. “He taught me how to ride a horse, how to farm, a lot about business, and how your work and honor is something that you cannot buy,” he related.
“Up to now, I call him all the time when I’m not sure about what I’m doing. I always picture myself doing something and what my dad would think about it. That always helps me make sure that I made the right choice.”
This close contact, regardless of physical distance, has strengthened the bond between father and son. It manifests now in how Nico starts his days with his girl.
“I made a promise to myself that the first two hours of my morning are dedicated to Thylane,” he said.
Becoming a parent a few weeks before the pandemic, Nico already had his eyes set on a safe and secure future. “I’m always looking at savings. I think financially we need to find a way to be sort of financially independent in the sense that Thylane will be protected even if we’re not here,” he shares. “Unfortunately, we cannot control everything. If emergencies and unexpected things happen, we need to have insurance.”
Thankfully, AIA Philam Life has recently introduced AIA Med-Assist for children, a variable life insurance plan with medical benefit rider designed to address medical expenses due to hospitalization of 0 to 17-year-olds, covering 90 percent of in-patient hospitalization and other incidentals.
Funfare asked Nico more questions.
Please tell us the significance of your daughter’s name.
“Thylane is basically a Vietnamese name that Solenn chose because there is a French girl that she loves that has the same name and it means wild orchid. If you know how wild Thylane is, you will see that the name is perfect for her.”
How has your “fathering” been so far?
“My El Padre so far has been amazing, the best experience of my life. Every day is better than the day before. Every day, I want to spend more and more time with her and it’s been the best experience of my life.”
Was there ever a time when you and Solenn “disagreed” on how to raise your daughter?
“We never disagree, me and Solenn in raising Thylane because we have very, very simple highlights, very simple expectations. Basically we want her to be a humble, good person, and that’s how we’ll educate her; the rest she will choose. We don’t want to impose anything in her life as long as she has good principles, she’s a good person and she respects everyone and she is humble.”
Having been both raised abroad, is there any similarity (or any difference) in your parenting styles?
“Solenn was raised not abroad, she was raised in the Philippines, she has a very Filipino way of living, she only studied abroad. Me, I was raised in Argentina, on a farm, but I think, at the end of the day, you know we’re based on the Pinoy culture. We are raised in the Pinoy culture for sure, and again you have to be a good person and just humble. We don’t want to impose anything on (Thylane), she can choose what she wants/loves in life.”
Between you and Solenn, who do you think will be the disciplinarian and who will be less so, especially since your firstborn is a girl?
“Between me and Solenn, definitely Solenn will be the disciplinary one. I cannot say no to her, it’s so hard. With girls, it’s so hard to say no. I see Solenn more disciplinary than me. The moment she says I love you daddy, I melt.”
Years from now, would you let your daughter be in showbiz?
“It will be her choice; we won’t stop her. Whatever endorsements she’s doing now are basically not showbiz. We let her have fun as a baby. She has her own bank account that we are investing for her college fund and at the end of the day, it will be her money.”
(E-mail reactions at [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos, visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on Instagram @therealrickylo.)
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