MOMVERSAT MOMVERSA Moms MomsWe WeLove: Love: Mary-Louise Mary-LouiseParker Parker By Lyss Stern
W
ith apologies to all the dads out there, a mom has the world’s hardest job: meal preparer, activity planner, nurturer, etc., etc. Now let’s add to her duties: finding the time to juggle momhood with an impressive film career and with lighting up the stage both on and off Broadway, not to mention starring in your own critically acclaimed TV series; and, along the way, racking up Golden Globe, SAG, Emmy and Tony nominations, and winning a Tony, an Emmy and two Globes. How in the world does our cover mom do it all? In my one-on-one interview with Mary-Louise Parker, the actress made it seem like a walk in the park. The gorgeous star of the Emmy Award–winning TV hit Weeds is the most down-to-earth, hands-on mother I’ve come across in a long time. Sitting criss-cross applesauce (as my son likes to call it) with Parker—who was dressed in a black playful dress and her favorite Converse sneakers and perched on a dark leather couch drinking fresh lemonade through a straw—I felt as though I were on a playdate with my best friend. We talked candidly about the trials and tribulations of being a mom and a working mom. We talked about the importance of reading to your children at a very young age, and how much we both value early literacy. We laughed about waking up at 5:30 even after a big night on the town, and having to be happy mom at 5:30 making breakfast and playing hide-andseek with the kids. We talked about raising children in New York City, the greatest city in the world, and exposing our kids to the city’s wonderful diversity and culture. This was an interview that, I must admit, I did not want to end. I hope you enjoy the following “Momversation.” 20
L.S.: So have you turned into your mother yet? M.L.P.: If I can only be that lucky. My mother is really kind of extraordinary. I am not somebody who has some kind of deep conflict with my mother that won’t allow me to go forward in life. She was just here, actually, and I have a tea party for her every year for her birthday. In eight years, I haven’t missed one. This year we did the Russian Tea Room and I invite all of my friends and have gift bags. I try to celebrate her as much as I can. I noticed on your IMDB page, you haven’t done any kids shows or animated movies … has the begging in your household started yet? I did The Spiderwick Chronicles. But they are both too young to see that. The one thing I would love to do more than anything is to work with Pixar. Tell me about your TV character (“Nancy Botwin” on Weeds) as a mom. She’s the worst parent, but I guess she is doing the best that she can with what she has. It’s not an example to follow. I can say that much. How do you balance being superstar and supermom? I always think of myself as a mother first because it’s the most important and the hardest job. Because they wake you up at 6:15 in the morning, no matter what time they go to sleep. And you can’t just open your eyes. You have to be there. So I try to wake up with a good attitude. We
were staying in a hotel recently and they get stir-crazy, so I went out and bought a bunch of food the night before and put it in a bag and went down to the lobby and had a picnic. The most important thing that I know that even though I would love to have dinner with this person or this person, it’s not as important to me as putting my kids to bed. If your kids told you they wanted to go into showbiz, what would you say? Well, they are not going to go into any “biz” while they are children. Show business is still a business and those children work, essentially. And I think you shouldn’t have a job until you have to have a job. I believe in working but not working when you are a child. What are some of your favorite parts of living downtown, and where do you like to go with your kids.? I love Madison Square Park. Learning to sit in a restaurant—they’re not that great at it yet, but they are getting there. And I love the Forbes museum. My son goes to see modern dance. I don’t get to open the back door and let them run. Which would be lovely, but that’s the trade-off. They don’t encounter, like, cows. Do you think that kids that grow up in the city grow up faster? I feel like they are growing up fast everywhere now. And I attribute a lot of that to TV right now. I get really scared when I start thinking about how little girls dress.
PhotograPhed PhotograPhed by Melanie by Melanie dunea; dunea; Styled Styled by ChriStine by ChriStine hahn hahn observer playground FALL 2009