Late-night feedings, 24/7 diaper duty, and crying galore — Hilary Duff, 25, is fully aware of the stress that new moms everywhere deal with on a daily basis. And although the singer/actress and first-time mom to Luca, 13 months, is enjoying every second of being a mom, she admits that there have been some bumpy moments along the way.
Since welcoming her son with husband Mike Comrie, 32, Duff described the biggest mom challenges she's faced in an interview with Us Weekly on Tuesday, May 7. (The new mom is currently involved with Johnson's Baby Cares program, which helps ensure all families have the funding, resources and social support needed to care for their babies.)
"Exhaustion is a good one to start with! You're very sleep-deprived. Sometimes you have a crying baby and you can't do anything to get them to stop crying … you feel, as their mom, that you should be able to have all the answers and be able to take care of them so easily."
"But babies don't come with a manual and you don't always know what's going on," she added. "So it's easy to get frustrated and it's easy to blame yourself — especially being sleep-deprived and on a hormonal roller coaster!"
Fortunately, the singer/actress shares that by leaning on extended family, especially her mom, she's been able to take a breather when baby stress gets the best of her.
"She's been so great — helping me with the baby, coming over when I need to take a nap or escape for a little bit," she said. "My husband is amazing, too. If I want to run out of the house for an hour to go work out or go meet a friend for lunch, I can. I think that's really important."
With Luca growing and doing new things daily, Duff is relishing in the little things — like Luca getting in his baby teeth or calling her "mama" for the first time — to help battle any baby blues.
"The whole process has been incredible," she said. "He started walking right around 11 months and ever since then it's been one thing after another! He started walking, he learned how to use a fork. Those are both really big things, you know? He's popping out teeth like it's his job!"
While Duff preps for her first Mother's Day, she reveals that another mom decision has been on the brain — when and if to have a second baby!
"We don’t really have any plans right now, but I think we’d be happy if it happened and maybe a bit overwhelmed," she told Us. "But it’s not something I’m dying to rush into. I’m enjoying him [Luca] so much, and now that he’s a year, I’m finally getting to have a life again. He’ll go down at 7 and then we can go out for dinner or go do something fun and he doesn’t even know we’re gone."
The former Lizzie McGuire star continued, "I think with two kids that would be a little harder. But we also want to do right by him and give him a sibling not too far apart so they have a lot in common and can be really close."
As Duff adjusts the changes of being a mother, she hopes that other newbie moms can get the help they need through the Johnson's Baby Cares program.
"It's all about offering support and encouragement," she explained. "It's really wonderful because the first year of motherhood is the most wonderful thing but also one of the most challenging things. You change so much as a person and it can be very overwhelming and support is definitely key."
Besides mom duties, Duff has also been busy with new work projects — next up, she'll appear as Ashton Kutcher's girlfriend on the season finale of Two and a Half Men.
