Brenda Song Reveals How She and Macaulay Culkin Manage Parenting Without a Nanny
Brenda Song and Macaulay Culkin rose to fame as child actors. Song is best known for playing London Tipton on the Disney Channel series The Suite Life of Zack of Cody and The Suite Life on Deck. Meanwhile, Culkin starred as Kevin McCallister in the films Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York.
Song and Culkin are now engaged and raising a child together. In a recent interview, Song shared details of how she and Culkin are taking care of their child without a nanny.
Brenda Song and Macaulay Culkin welcomed a child in April 2021
On April 5, 2021, Song and Culkin announced they had welcomed a son together. They named him Dakota in honor of Culkin’s sister who died in 2008.
After Dakota’s birth, Song and Culkin told Esquire that the couple is “overjoyed.”
Brenda Song reveals how she and Macaulay Culkin manage parenting without a nanny
While some celebrity parents get help from nannies, Song and Culkin are not hiring anyone in that position. Nonetheless, they do get help from a close family member.
Speaking to The Cut recently, Song said, “My boyfriend and I are very hands-on. We don’t have a nanny, but my mom has been here with us since my son was born. He’s 9 months old now. When I was working, my mom would bring him to set so I could breastfeed and see him during the day.”
She continued, “People tell you a lot about labor and pregnancy, but not about the fourth trimester. To my girlfriends that are pregnant I say, make sure you have help. Because your instinct is to want to do it all and you physically can’t.”
However, Song and Culkin also work together to take care of their household.
“I think when you and your partner have kids, especially the first few months, you don’t have the patience to be polite with each other,” Song said. “Being communicative when you need help is so important. Instead of having set duties, we just feel each other out. I’ll be putting my son down and my partner is like, ‘Let me feed the animals and get dinner ready.’”
How Brenda Song manages motherhood with her busy schedule
In addition to taking care of a baby, Song also went back to work. For example, she is currently starring on the Hulu series Dollface, and Song admitted it can be difficult trying to balance being a parent and working as an actor.
“On Dollface we had early starts. I’d be up around 4 or 4:30 a.m., go over my notes and scenes, and sneak in to give my son a kiss,” she explained. “On set you spend an hour in hair and makeup, and then there’s not a whole lot of downtime from there. I’m not working in a coal mine or a hard labor job. What’s difficult is the mental drain. You’re not just working from ‘action’ to ‘cut,’ but from the moment you step onto set until you’re in your car headed home. Your energy drives the pace of the show, but keeping it going all day is exhausting.”
She continued, “The biggest challenge is being away from family. I know everyone feels that way. There were so many long days where I’d get home and my son would already be asleep. I put a lot of pressure on myself to keep pumping and breastfeeding him while I was working. I pumped throughout production. Me and Kat [Dennings] would sit there and go over lines. She was the best, hiding me and holding up my sweater while I pumped.”
Song also shared that it “pains” her to miss so many hours with her son, though she is learning about “boundaries” and is thankful for her “great support system.”
