IT’S Wednesday night and Tracy Lewis is applying the finishing touches to her make-up.
She walks downstairs in her heels and midi-dress and is greeted by husband Pete, who is dressed smartly in a shirt and armed with a bottle of prosecco and box of chocolates.
“You look gorgeous,” he beams.
“Not so bad yourself,” Tracy replies, a glint in her eye.
It’s date night — something this couple are committed to every week, and have been doing for 43 years.
Last week, one mid-life woman revealed how she had been plotting for six years to leave her sexless marriage to her “selfish” husband.
Empty-nesters are divorcing in their droves — splits among the over-50s have doubled since the 1990s.
But Tracy and Pete are bucking the trend.
And the secret, according to Tracy, is between the sheets.
The couple have 13 children and 25 grandchildren but have kept up a rampant sex life throughout their 43-year relationship.
“We’re at it three times a week,” says Tracy, 60, who lives in Bournemouth.
“You hear about couples who fall apart at certain life stages — once the kids arrive, after they leave home, as the menopause hits.
“Well, that’s not been the case for us.
“Pete’s as sexy as the day I first saw him.
“I can’t keep my hands off him and being a mum of 13 and nan of 25 hasn’t stopped that.
“When you love someone as much as we love each other the thrill never goes out of the lovemaking.
“I still get that glint in my eye at 60.
“Pete knows the cheeky grin I get when I am in a naughty mood.
“We love having a date night or an evening walk.
“Pete buys me prosecco and chocolates and we’ll watch a box set on the sofa.
“If you’re not having sex as often as us at 60 you are missing out.”
Receptionist Tracy and bus design executive Pete, 65, met on the dancefloor of a nightclub in July 1981 when she was 17 and he was 22.
“We were made for each other,” says Tracy.
“He was an amazing kisser.”
They moved in together after three months and first child Carly arrived almost two years later.
Tracy fell pregnant with their second child, Tracy Junior, six months after that — a few weeks after their wedding in December 1983.
The kids then kept coming.
After Carly, now 41, and Tracy Junior, now 39, came Samantha, 37, only son Charles, 37, Lyndsay, 36, Danielle, 34, Chantelle, 33, Charlotte, 30, Georgia, 30, Candice, 28, Shannon, 25, Shaznay, 23, and Porsha, 21.
Pete was so good when I was pregnant and a new mum, too.
Tracy Lewis
While many new mums put sex on the back burner, that was not so for Tracy, who had her 13th child at age 40.
“Being pregnant, giving birth and having a snuggling new baby in my arms was joyous,” she says.
“It reignited my sex drive.
“I started feeling broody within five weeks of giving birth, after every baby.
“Pete was so good when I was pregnant and a new mum, too,” she says.
“He’d make dinner, help with the cleaning and childcare.
“He’d bring me flowers and it made me fancy him more.
“Many men don’t help with babies or housework.
“Many new mums resent their man’s lack of support, so it’s no surprise a lot of couples’ love lives are affected.
“We weren’t like that.
“My broodiness just made me want Pete.
“I loved being a mum and loved having sex with him.”
After their first baby was born, they asked a doctor how long they had to wait till they had sex.
They were told six weeks, then stuck to that with each child.
And tiredness never quelled Tracy’s desire.
She says: “I was lucky I never needed much sleep, my body adapted.”
Tracy admits there were some days when she was shattered, but adds: “The mix of work and being a mum helped me stay energised.
“These days too many new mums fuss rather than get on with life.
“My adult children are all amazing, no-nonsense parents but some mums today stress more about Instagram posts and being the “perfect” family.
“They put too much pressure on themselves.
“For Pete and me, being parents is a two-way street. It’s teamwork.”
Of course, as their family grew and the kids got older, the logistics of intimacy became harder.
“In the early days, we were in a two-bed and had two children in our room, the other two sharing,” says Tracy.
But she adds: “We got inventive about adult time.
“The lounge, bathroom and even laundry room were places where we could get some privacy and not wake the children.
“We have always been spontaneous and had one ear out for a crying baby.
“There wasn’t much time for long sessions.
“When all the kids were at home we had to be quick and choose the quietest place.
“Even when we moved to a five-bedroom house in 2011, it was filled with children.
“We used to grab adult time whenever we could.
“We knew each other’s rhythms and Pete knew when I was or wasn’t in the mood.”
Their children have all now left home and have families.
Tracy Junior has nine kids, keeping up the family tradition of a big brood.
But while many couples struggle with an empty nest, Tracy and Pete are embracing it.
I fancy Pete more every day. I am not afraid to talk about it.
Tracy Lewis
“Our sex life is amazing,” she says.
“It will shock people to think a woman who gave birth to 13 kids can have a great love life but I did when I was younger and I still do.
“I am proud of that.
“I fancy Pete more every day.
“I am not afraid to talk about it.
“It’s important that people know love and a great love life is possible, even if you have a big brood and are in your 60s.”
She goes as far as to say that sex is what has kept their relationship going for four decades, through the inevitable hardships of any long-term partnership.
“It’s one of the reasons that our marriage has survived,” she says.
“I know some couples who were overwhelmed by having children.
Their intimacy and adult time took a back burner an before they knew it, their love life was non-existent. Or menopause hits and couples have divorced.
“Pete and I are very lucky.
“Yes, as we’ve got older, our bodies have changed, but who cares?
“And I’m lucky that menopause hasn’t had too much of an impact on me.
“We enjoy each other and communicate as well as we did when we were in our 20s.
“Pete still tells me I am gorgeous and cheeky.
“I always make an effort with my hair, make-up and clothes.
“Pete is so kind and loving.
“I believe in keeping your man happy because it makes me happy. And he’s a diamond.”
Pete says: “I remember the night I met Tracy.
“She was twirling on the dancefloor, her blonde hair flying.
“I locked eyes with her and thought she was so beautiful.
“We instantly clicked.
“We had our first kiss.
“We both knew it was love.
“Tracy was and is always full of energy. Nothing stops her.
“Sometimes I wondered where she got all her energy, after looking after the kids, to then have time for me.
“We adore each other and talk about everything.
“Tracy is my absolute love.
“She’s a wonderful wife, mother and grandmother and even today is still running around at 100 miles an hour.
“She and I adore each other.
“Date nights and lovemaking keep the spark going.
“I like to surprise her with flowers and special date-night dinners.
“Even if we’re just having a walk along the beach and a kiss, our spark won’t die.”
