Bindi Irwin is making sure her daughter Grace knows all about the legendary Steve Irwin. In a new interview, the zookeeper revealed she often plays footage from Steve’s popular documentary series, The Crocodile Hunter, for her child.
“He was the same person in real life as he was on screen, so I feel like Grace is able to grow up knowing him,” Bindi, 25, told Us Weekly in an interview published Wednesday, May 29. “As soon as we turn Dad on, she starts doing her imitation, yelling ‘Crikey!’ through the living room.”
Before his death in 2006 at the age of 44, Steve co-owned and operated the Australia Zoo with his wife Terri Irwin. While Bindi and her husband Chandler Powell welcomed Grace in March 2021, the couple still help run the 700-acre property alongside Terri, 59, and Robert Irwin.
When not taking care of animals, Bindi makes it a priority to talk about her late father when her daughter is around.
“I’ve always said I want to make sure Grace knows Dad,” she explained. “We have a big photo of him and every night, we do our calm-down ritual. Chandler, Grace and I sit under the stars and talk about what we’re grateful for. Then we do story time and say goodnight to Grandpa Crocodile, as she calls him. She started that one night; she goes, ‘Goodnight, Grandpa Crocodile,’ because he’s feeding a croc in the photo.”
While Grace is only three years old, Bindi said her daughter is “the most beautiful and hilarious and wonderful soul.” She’s curious about everything and fascinated by the world, just like her beloved grandfather who was killed by a stingray while filming in the Great Barrier Reef.
“I wish adults were more like that!” Bindi explained. “I don’t know where people lose that sense of magic, but watching her and how much she enjoys the colors and the sights and sounds, it’s a wonderful reminder.”
As the mother-daughter duo continue making new memories, Bindi can’t help but think of her father who remains both on her mind and in her heart.
“If I had the chance, the one thing I’d say to my dad is, ‘I love you, and I miss you. Every day that you aren’t here is hard. But we hope to be making you proud,’” Bindi reflected. “I think when there’s love that is that great, it never truly goes away. He’s always with us.”