Reese Witherspoon Talks Parenting

Reese Witherspoon recently sat down for an interview with Southern Living magazine, where she talked about parenting. The magazine quotes her as follows:

"No one's really doing it perfectly. I think you love your kids with your whole heart, and you do the best you possibly can. But, you know, right now I’m feeling sad missing my little 2-year-old [Tennessee], and my daughter [Ava]’s about to finish her freshman year of high school, and my son [Deacon] has a golf tournament this weekend that I hope I don’t miss. There are some sacrifices you make, and it hurts your heart sometimes. But my kids tell me they’re proud of what I’ve accomplished, and that just means everything. I grew up with a working mom, and I have so much respect for the things she did as a nurse and a teacher. I would never begrudge her that."

On her new lifestyle brand, Draper James, which she named after her grandparents:

"It was a huge deal for me. I was actually asked by several companies to just put my name on something, and I didn’t feel like that was appropriate. I hope my grandparents know how much I looked up to them. I truly believe that they look down on me and guide me in this life."

On what she learned from her parents:

"They were strict but incredibly loving. We had family dinner every night. That’s a big thing I learned from my grandmother—to spend time with your kids and listen to their dreams. I make them write letters. Every gift gets a note or a drawing. It means so much when kids are appreciative. My kids know when I’m serious. I get really Southern. 'Ava Elizabeth Phillippe, get over here.' They know. I don’t know a weak Southern woman. My mom says if you want something done, then ask a Southern woman. There are a lot of old ideas about the South, but it’s a different time. I’m excited about the new South.... I don’t think I ever realized I’d be this busy. I just try to, as my dad says, 'Make hay while the sun shines.' There is so much growth in the South. Every time I come back to Nashville, there is a new restaurant or another amazing museum or another music club, and I thought, 'Wouldn’t it be interesting if someone could tap into those traditions that we grew up with?'"