Hilary is te zien op de cover van Redbook Magazine met een nieuwe fotoshoot door fotograaf Eric Ray Davidson. edit: Enkele nieuwe outtakes en scans van het tijdschrift zijn toegevoegd.
How to tune out haters, and when to take them on. How to let bygones truly be bygones. How to make yourself a priority without feeling (too) guilty. When life hits a pothole, you can wince and wait for it to pass — or you can pull a Hilary Duff. She’s found her balance as a working single mom, and discovered an unexpected well of inner strength and wisdom that you’re gonna want to access too. You’ll see.
Lately, Hillary Duff has been writing a daily gratitude list in a little notebook. “I’m kind of addicted,” admits the actress and singer, 29, over lunch outside at a laid-back café in Studio City, CA. Most of her entries have been about Luca, 5, her son, whose custody she shares with ex-husband Mike Comrie. “My last one was, ‘I’m grateful for the skip in Luca’s step.'”
That journal is just one part of Hilary’s attempt to nd the right balance of work, family, and time for herself. “As I get older, I feel more comfortable ‘leaning out,'” she says. “I don’t need to cram every day full, because I can and because I’m capable. I have worked my whole life.” That’s no exaggeration: Hilary’s been earning a paycheck since the age of 6, when she danced with a touring ballet company and began appearing in TV commercials. Two years later she moved from Texas to Los Angeles, growing up on sets like the Disney Channel’s Lizzie McGuire. She’s also made five studio albums, and this April begins filming the fourth season of her TV Land series Younger.
Yet despite her years and years in the spotlight, she’s weirdly down-to-earth and, frankly, super girlfriend-y. After offering to run inside and grab my salad when it doesn’t appear with hers, Hilary gets honest about recent ups and downs that have made her stronger, and learning to give herself permission not to do it all. If you can use some lessons on finding breathing room in your own life, start here.
On having more children: “I’ve gotten over the fact that I’m not going to have a baby that’s close in age with Luca. It sucked when everyone would be like, ‘When are you having another?’ I’d be like, “Do you know what’s happening right now? I’m not having another.” You get engaged: ‘When’s the wedding?’ You get married: “When’s the baby?” You have a baby: ‘When’s the next one?’ … I’m cherishing the now. Besides, watch: I’ll probably get some evil spawn of Hilary the next time around.”
On dealing with mom guilt: “I always feel torn or guilty about something. I’m not working right now, and at first I stressed about that, like, “Oh, I shouldn’t stay still this long.” And that’s ridiculous. I have a child; it’s totally fine to not be slammed all the time. It feels really good to not be on someone else’s schedule — besides Luca’s. I’m basically his chauffeur!”
On co-parenting her son, Luca, with ex-husband Mike Comrie: “Some of my friends tell me, ‘God, it must be so nice, you get a break from your kid because you share him.’ I’m divorced, and it sucks. Well, it did suck for a while; now it’s just normal. But it’s true, I do get a break. I had Luca by myself for a few weeks, no help, when Mike was on the road, and when he got home I was like, ‘He’s yours! Bye!'”
On the dating scene: “I never think being single sucks until I go out in L.A. with my girlfriends and the options are terrible. I really attract the old men!”
For more from Hilary, pick up the April issue of Redbook on newsstands March 21.
