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Bindi Irwin recently celebrated her 25th birthday – and hubby Chandler Powell couldn’t resist sharing an adorable video of their two-year-old daughter, Grace, singing happy birthday to her mom.
In the video the toddler at first mistakenly thinks she’s singing to one of the many kangaroos at Australia Zoo before her dad gently sets her right.
All seems well in their household but there are rumours Bindi is unhappy with Chandler's risky behaviour at the zoo where he now works alongside his wife and her family.
Chandler is no stranger to danger – as a former professional wakeboarder he regularly performed stunts from the back of a motorboat – but Bindi feels he's being badly influenced by her mom, Terri Irwin.
According to insiders, Terri (59) wants Chandler (26) to perform increasingly dangerous stunts at the zoo in the fashion of her late husband, Steve “Crocodile Hunter” Irwin, but Bindi believes it's a “disaster waiting to happen”.
Bindi was just eight when her famous dad, who was known around the world for his death-defying stunts with crocodiles and other reptiles, was fatally stung in the chest by a stingray at the age of 44 while filming in the Great Barrier Reef.
She and her brother, Robert (19), and mom have since vowed to continue his environmental legacy.
READ MORE | Bindi Irwin's decade-long struggle with endometriosis tore her life apart and left her in agony
Speaking about his death earlier this year Bindi said it’s hard to believe it’s been over 16 years since he passed away.
"In some ways, it still feels like yesterday that we were on our last crocodile research trip together as a family. I know in my heart that his love and enthusiasm will live on and that brings me great comfort."
Chandler, who wed Bindi in an intimate ceremony at the zoo in 2020, has also resolved to keep her father's memory alive.
While filming a show with reptiles in the zoo’s Crocoseum he recently found himself in a dangerous predicament when a croc dove into the water and tried to stalk him. Terri, who was narrating the show, was overheard heard telling him to “swim away”.
Bindi, who insiders say has become more protective over her husband since they had their daughter, is now putting her foot down.
“While she would never walk out on her beloved zoo, I expect Bindi will give Terri some kind of ultimatum. She has no choice,” a source told New Idea. “Chandler has a tendency to turn into a 'yes person' around Terri, so she needs her to be on the same page."
Chandler’s mother, Shannan Powell, has complained in the past that her son is over-involved with the family. Apparently she felt left out of all the wedding arrangements when he married Bindi.
"It's difficult for Shannan – she feels she doesn't know Bindi well yet Terri calls Chandler her son already," a source told Woman’s Day.
“She expects to lose her son to the woman he's going to marry but not to his mother-in-law."
