Parents pass a great many things down to their children, but perhaps one of the most important is how to prioritize and practice self-care — and these celebrity moms are opening up about just how they’ve done so with their own kids.
Moms including Jessica Alba, Amanda Kloots, and Adriana Lima are aware of just how sponge-like their little ones are, and they go out of their way to consciously practice healthy behaviors in front of their children so their good habits are easily absorbed. Lima verbalized this for Vogue Singapore in 2020, sharing, “As my two daughters have gotten older, I’ve realized that they copy a lot of what I do and my habits, and it’s important for me to make sure they’re copying good ones.”
And for the likes of Serena Williams and Victoria Beckham, sharing self-care rituals with their kids is just plain fun. “Olympia loves to join me during my skincare routine,” Williams told Vogue, adding, “That’s our thing.”
Tamron Hall notes that self-care isn’t just for girls. The talk show host explained to Allure, “We talk so much about teaching self-appreciation to girls, and rightfully so. But as the mom of a son, one of the things I have learned in this 21-month-long journey with this awesome little guy, is that it’s necessary to have the same conversations with boys so they can appreciate themselves — and support women along the way.”
Many celebrity mothers have shared how they’ve passed down their beauty regimens to their children, while others described how important affirmations, movement, nutrition, technology wellness, and more are in terms of teaching their kids how to practice self-care. Read on to pick up a few tips and tricks from some of your favorite celeb mamas, and implement a few into your daily routine with your babies so you can teach them to value caring for themselves, too.
A version of this article was published on March 2023.
Tia Mowry
Tia Mowry uploaded a seriously sweet video of herself and her daughter Cairo doing self-love practices. She taught her daughter to repeat loving mantras about her strength and loving herself, along with teaching her how to love her gorgeous curls!
Gabrielle Union-Wade
Because of negative experiences she had with her own hair as a kid, Gabrielle Union-Wade is making sure haircare rituals are relaxing, easy, and fun for her daughter Kaavia.
The actress told Allure in 2021, “[Growing up] I remember there being fear and anxiety about being burned [by relaxer] or my braids being too tight. But luckily, moving into the natural hair world absolves a lot of that fear [for Kaavia]. It’s more relaxing,” she explained.
“We’re trying not to make it such a thing for her to have to look a very specific way, for her to be ‘appropriate’ or ‘acceptable,'” Union-Wade continued. “We put some curl cream in and let her curls do what they do.”
The Bring It On alum shared an anecdote to convey just how committed she is to keeping haircare stress- and judgment-free for Kaavia, saying, “One day somebody was like, ‘Oh, what a cute little fella.’ And D [husband Dwyane Wade] was like, ‘You’ve got to do her hair.'”
“I was like, ‘I thought we were committed to unlearning patriarchal gender performance.’ I don’t want to saddle [Kaavia] with bullsh*t, and she’s just learning to talk. So as long as it’s detangled and her curls are healthy, I’m trying to resist the urge to make her look like Easter every day,” Union-Wade concluded.
Jessica Alba
During a 2018 interview on the Thrive Global Podcast, Jessica Alba explained how she models self-care for her kids in a variety of ways.
The actress described how it’s been important to practice body positivity in front of her daughters because “My mom was not very nice to herself and her body when I was growing up, so I have a lot of my own body insecurities and issues just from absorbing.”
To prevent her girls from having a similar experience, Alba said, “I don’t look at my body critically in front of them. I know they’re watching me, and even if I say something, if they see their mom treat herself a certain way, then that’s going to be their reality.”
She added that practicing technology wellness in front of her kids for overall mental wellness is important to her and her husband as well. “We have been pretty good about not having the phone in our hands when we’re with each other. We just like to talk about the kids, and maybe we’ll watch a documentary.”
Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama has taught daughters Malia and Sasha the importance of self-care by putting herself first — modeling that it’s okay for them to do the very same.
The former First Lady explained during a Q&A at the 2019 Essence Festival, “Many of us, we have a hard time putting ourselves on our own priority list, let alone at the top of it. We are so busy giving and doing for others that we almost feel guilty to take that time out for ourselves.”
She continued, “If we don’t have our act together as women, as mothers, as grandmothers, we still aren’t going to be able to get our kids on track. … I always try to remember that I’ll be the best me I can be if I prioritize myself. For me, getting the right exercise and sleep and time to recharge, it’s not an option, especially when I’m responding to pressure,” Obama shared.
Serena Williams
In 2020, Serena Williams told Vogue Singapore that her love for skincare was passed down from her mother, and now she’s sharing the ritual with her own daughter.
The tennis legend said, “Olympia loves to join me during my skincare routine. That’s our thing.” Williams explained, “Lately, I’ve been mindful of how the food I eat can affect my skin. … We’ve been making food, but we’ve also been playing around with different beauty remedies using natural ingredients.”
Amanda Kloots
Amanda Kloots and her son Elvis implement self-care through good hygiene practices, listening to music, and being active. In 2021, The Talk host shared with Allure, “I always like to start off our mornings with music and movement. Both are very healing and a positive way to start the day. It’s definitely a ritual in our household — and I hope that Elvis continues to do it for the rest of his life.”
Kloots added, “Right now, he is in that stage where he likes to copy whatever I’m doing. So, when I brush my teeth, I hand Elvis his toothbrush, we ‘cheers,’ and then start brushing our teeth. And now whenever he is in the bathroom, he goes and grabs his ‘ba-brush.’ I think he loves the taste of the toothpaste the most, but anything to get him in the habit of good hygiene,” she said with a laugh.
Victoria Beckham
“I have always taught my children to be kind to themselves and explore what makes them feel their best,” Victoria Beckham told Vogue Singapore in 2020. “For [my daughter] Harper, that’s ‘mummy and me’ spa days — she loves a good face mask,” the former Spice Girl shared.
Adriana Lima
Like Jessica Alba and Michelle Obama, consciously modeling healthy self-care practices has been key for Adriana Lima. The former Victoria’s Secret Angel told Vogue Singapore in 2020, “As my two daughters have gotten older, I’ve realized that they copy a lot of what I do and my habits, and it’s important for me to make sure they’re copying good ones.”
She continued, “I let them experiment with my makeup, masks and creams, as many kids do, but I try to teach them to love the skin they’re in and eat healthily for their bodies and to also practice positive mental wellness through meditation.”
Tamron Hall
Tamron Hall is not only celebrating haircare rituals with her son Moses but also teaching him self-love through daily affirmations. The talk show host explained to Allure in 2021, “My son is African American and Jewish, and he has a big, curly, reddish head of hair that I want him to love and embrace.”
She continued, “I can’t tell you how many times a day I say to him, ‘I love your hair!’ Every morning we brush his hair and I look in the mirror and I say, ‘Moses, how cool is your hair? You are so unique and you are so special.’ It’s an affirmation that we all need, even at age 50.”
“We talk so much about teaching self-appreciation to girls, and rightfully so. But as the mom of a son, one of the things I have learned in this 21-month-long journey with this awesome little guy, is that it’s necessary to have the same conversations with boys so they can appreciate themselves — and support women along the way,” Hall said.
Alessandra Ambrosio
Like Adriana Lima, fellow former Victoria’s Secret Angel Alessandra Ambrosio prioritizes nutrition and movement with her kids. In 2020, she told Vogue Singapore, “I make sure that I teach my kids the importance of taking care of themselves, so every morning we make delicious juices together and try to do some kind of outdoor activity.”
Karla Souza
For Karla Souza’s family, haircare is also an important self-care ritual, which she combines with cultural and language enrichment activities as well.
The Mexican native explained to Allure in 2021, “Cutting my family’s hair has become this beautiful ritual of intimacy at home. My daughter’s hair is very specific. She has two cowlicks that push forward, and I don’t know if there’s an alternative to her having bangs.”
“It’s terrifying for a mom to put scissors near any kid, let alone near their eyes, so I put on the movie Coco [to distract Gianna],” the actress shared. “I’m huge on having my daughter speak Spanish, and because we live in a culture that isn’t mine, I have to bring it constantly, with songs and books.”
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