Jane Krakowski is open about the joys and challenges of parenthood.
The “30 Rock” star has a son, Bennett, with her ex-partner Robert Godley. Since welcoming Bennett in 2011, the actor has shared her thoughts on the world of motherhood.
In honor of her birthday, here are 14 parenting quotes from Krakowski.
On The Best Parenting Advice She’s Received
“I’m still learning every day. Bennett was very good about letting you know when he was ready for the next step along the way. I guess what I hear a lot is don’t compare to other kids on their time schedule versus your child’s own time schedule.”
On Her Son’s Personality
“I came home from rehearsal [the other day] and he ran to the door yelling ‘Mommy!’ and then pretended to faint and fall on the floor. I love coming home and seeing his joy running to the door. He’s a real ham ― a fun, dramatic child!”
On Being Pregnant While Working With Tina Fey
“We were both pregnant at the same time during ‘30 Rock,’ which was a great help and she already had a child. So if there were days where as I got tired through the pregnancy she was very understanding and knew all the steps I was feeling along the way. And then of course she conveniently got pregnant three months after me. I had Bennett two weeks after we finished filming, which was lucky timing, although I really think Alec Baldwin was hoping I’d go into labor on the set because it was the sixth season. And then Tina [gave birth] three months later so we had an extended hiatus. Instead of the normal two and a half months off I got almost six months, which was amazing to be home for the first six months. Once again Tina Fey helping my life and career all the way.”
On Adventures In Potty Training
“This was post-potty training, but it was one of my favorite experiences. We were recently in a very nice hotel, courtesy of my current job at Netflix, and my son said he had to use the potty and he went into the bathroom and ― I can’t believe I’m telling bathroom stories about my son, this is not good ― but he came out and he was soaking wet everywhere. And he said, ‘Mommy I just flushed the toilet and look what happened.’ And it was ... a bidet. He was covered in the water that came up! We were all laughing. He was not traumatized by it. It was literally so funny. We took pictures. He had never seen ones of those before. I hadn’t until I was in my late 20s, so my son is doing alright.”
On How Parenting Changes Things
“As a mom, now everything gets markered by my son’s age.”
On Her Son As Her Audience Member
“He came to see me in the Broadway show. “He sat through the whole thing — it’s a long show! ... I just said, ‘Please don’t yell [for] Mommy! You have to stay quiet.’ Apparently during my numbers he was giving me signals ― if he liked it, [he gave a thumbs up] and when a man treated me badly, he did a thumbs down. He’s very sweet!”
On Work-Life Balance
“Since becoming a parent, every decision is different now. I make every decision based on being a mom and taking care of my son and raising my son. I think that’s one of the beautiful things about becoming a parent ― that everything becomes so much less about you and it becomes all about your child and raising your child. Which is a lovely thing in general, but I also think it’s an even more extraordinary thing for an actor sort of to not be thinking about themselves at all times. ... There’s not a daily decision that doesn’t involve your child from the day your child is born. And so every job ― whether it’s location-wise ... or how much time would be spent on the job ― all of those things now come into consideration when looking for what to say yes or no to.”
On Kindergarten Admissions Pressure
“I think he’s excited to go back and see all his friends, but I am entering the enrolling for kindergarten period ― which might be New York-centric ― but the pressure-of-getting-my-child-into-kindergarten application process. I actually went to a kindergarten fair, which was identical to a college fair. It was quite funny. I left with a tote bag and everything from all the schools. I’ve been told to ‘cast a wide net.’”
On Birthday Parties
“I’m planning his [fifth] birthday party. It’s ‘Star Wars’ Jedi training-themed. It’s a really fun age because you can chat with them and he’s got his own opinions and ideas. I’m so in love.”
On Going With The Flow
“There’s never enough hours in the day to do what you want to do. What I’ve become OK with is that not everything can be done today. As long as I can get that time in with my son, then I can get all of the other stuff done today or tomorrow. You can have a plan, but you have to be flexible. Every day is unpredictable and you just have to go with the flow.”
On Working With Other Moms
“I have been lucky to be surrounded by other great working moms, like Tina Fey. I’ve certainly taken a lot of advice from her in every realm, from actor choices to mom choices.”
On The Power Of Parenthood
“Every morning I see my son and his smile brings me from sag to swag every single day. He just turned 4, and that joy is something that every day it gets better and better.”
On Small Family Traditions
“When my son was still in school, we were making it a ritual to stop by the ice cream truck on Friday in the park and enjoy an ice cream together. Those are the kinds of things I as a mother love to pass on to my son, the tradition of getting ice cream together in the summer.”
On Making It Work
“I do it through organization, multitasking, being able to do a lot of things at once. It takes a village with lots of friends and family to help along the way. We’re really lucky, Bennett is a great kid and he brings us so much joy every single day. We feel blessed every day that we have all these things to juggle at the moment.”
