Haylie Duff Says No Mother Should Ever Be Embarrassed to Ask for Help
As a busy mother, actress Haylie Duff knows that without help, it would be impossible for her to do her job. But she also knows that sometimes working mothers can get heat for hiring people to help with childcare so they can work.
“I have a fantastic nanny named Claudia, who is the reason my family can run the way that it does,” Duff told Showbiz Cheat Sheet. “She is so crucial to my life and she’s just the most loving, beautiful woman that I know. I have multiple jobs and so does my guy so it just would be impossible for me to not have help in that way.”
“So I’ve been very open and honest about the kind of help that I have,” Duff continues. “But, you know, I also am the type of mother that I’m home every night for bedtime and tucking them in and doing bath and dinner. And I’m very hands-on in that way.”
She’s very present in her children’s lives
Working moms sometimes receive criticism for hiring help. But Duff says just because she has someone to help when she’s at work, that doesn’t mean she isn’t constantly with her children.
“I do feel that it’s important that whether you have help or not, you’re still raising your kids, that somebody else is not doing that,” she stresses. “I think that’s really important. And that’s something I really struggle with the balance. I want to be the one to pick them up from school every day and drop them off. And know I want those separate memories of being me doing all those things. But I also have to go to work, too. So, you know, I have been guilty of that, just like every working mom does.”
She also says full-time stay at home moms probably have it harder than working mothers. “Then on the flip side, the moms that stay home and run their families and that’s their job,” Duff exclaims. “That may be harder than any job that there is.”
“You know, my mom was a stay-at-home mom and she was like, ‘No one thinks you’re working when you’re a stay at home mom,’ she adds. “And the days I’d stay home all day and do it all. I’m tired. I get it. It’s a lot. So, you know, I think when you ask for a little help, there’s nothing wrong with it. And that comes from your partner, your in-laws, your mom and dad, your neighbor next door, you know, the village to raise all these kids.“
Becoming a mom has been transformative for Duff
Duff’s two children were born about three years apart. Duff says going from one to two children wasn’t a total game-changer until it came time to get in the car. “You know, it’s as silly as this sounds. The hardest thing for me was figuring out how to get them both in their car at the same time,” she laughs.
But on a serious note, she adds that becoming a mother also made her more aware of how fortunate she is. She recently partnered with Nonni’s Biscotti “Dip and Donate” campaign to benefit Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF), a non-profit organization that funds impactful research to aid in the cure of childhood cancer. From now until Dec. 31, 2020, Nonni’s will donate $1 per social share to ALSF. Just add #DipandDonate and tags @Nonnisfoods and @AlexsLemonade to participate.
“I have such a big space in my heart for the families that deal with [cancer] and the children that deal with that,” Duff said. “And so I just love this whole initiative of what they were doing with encouraging people to get together and do something that is a celebration and something fun.”
