Despite being A-listers and media magnates, these star parents face the same everyday family problems as the rest of us. From convincing the kids to eat more vegetables to dealing with dirty nappies, parents need all the help they can get to make life a little easier. Luckily, many famous parents have come up with some really creative tricks on how to handle all the ups and downs of parenting and are willing to share their wisdom.
1. Mark Zuckerberg
The Facebook founder and father of 2 famously boasted that he could break records when it comes to changing dirty nappies. “I’m a competitive guy, I measure my time to get better and better and I got to 20 seconds,” he said. Zuckerberg says the secret is to slip the new diaper under the old one.
2. Blake Lively
The Gossip Girl star and busy mum of three believes that communication is key in parenting. “I think the greatest thing in the world would be to have a comment box in your home. Kids could leave comments about what you could do better or what other kids could do better. Like when you leave comments with the management in a restaurant,” he said.
3. Hilary Duff
Hilary Duff recently gave birth to her third child and as an experienced mum, she has some parenting tricks to share. For example, if you’re going on a trip, be sure to pack a few extra clothes not only for your kids, but also for yourself to prepare for diaper accidents. “I flew to New York with Luca and she had an extra outfit, but I didn’t. She was clean, she was fine… I wasn’t. So I’ve been stuffing an extra t-shirt in my bag ever since,” she shared.
4. Tamera Mowry
The star of Bír-lak and mother of 2 shared her tips on how to put children to sleep on her blog. “Little ones thrive on routine. If you want a baby who will sleep through the night, the first step is to get them to fall asleep and keep that routine to create consistency in their lives,” she wrote.
Mowry says it’s also worth investing in a good sound machine. “Children of all ages love white noise machines, the rhythmic background noise makes them more relaxed,” she added.
5. Jenna Fischer
The actress, best known for her role as a receptionist on the sitcom The Office, shared a tip on how to make a trip to Ikea more fun with your toddler. “We’d drive to Ikea and get a coffee, let him waddle through Ikea, and then finish with an ice cream. It was super safe, everything was super soft. Ikea really is the Disneyland of 18-month-olds,” she said.
6 Elka Whalan
When it comes to getting kids to eat more vegetables, Olympic swimmer Elka Whalan says the secret lies in choosing the right words. “We talk to kids about ‘sometimes’ foods (crisps, chocolate, party food) and ‘everyday’ foods. It’s simple, but they understand and it’s a winner,” she shared.
7 Melissa McCarthy
The comedian and mum-of-a-girl loves to keep things simple. Instead of going out for a night out with her husband, she opts for an early evening special so they can get home early to put the kids to sleep.
8. Kristen Bell
The Veronica Mars star and mum of 2 shared a genius parenting trick on how to keep your kids safe when you get out of the car. “Hands on the circle!” (The circle is the gas cap). The phrase we say when we get out of the car. It kept the kids safe from oncoming traffic while I unloaded the trunk,” she wrote on her Instagram account.
Sarah Michelle Gellar
The star of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is known for her frugal lifestyle and often shops on sale. So it’s no surprise that she wants to teach her kids the value of a dollar. “What my daughter has been doing lately is asking me for a cup of milk, but she won’t drink it. So I told her that every time she asked me for a cup of milk but didn’t drink it, I would take a quarter out of her piggy bank. Someone has to pay for that milk,” he said.
10. Busy Philipps
