Choosing herself! Tia Mowry got real about her “very difficult” decision to divorce Cory Hardrict after 14 years of marriage — and how she’s coping now.
“It was not easy. I usually tell people in my close circle, ‘This is not for the weak.’ It’s very hard,” Mowry, 44, exclusively told Us Weekly on Thursday, November 3, while promoting her partnership with LACTAID. “I feel like when you continue to work on you and work on yourself and work on loving yourself and valuing yourself and having self-worth, the decision becomes easier.”
The Sister, Sister alum continued: “Once you are in tune with yourself, it makes it easier to make that decision. But it doesn’t mean that it’s not hard. It was very difficult because you have to think about so many things.”
Despite the emotional ups and downs she’s faced following her split, Mowry told Us that she would “encourage” people to “chase the joy chase, chase your happiness, no matter what situation you’re going through.”
The Twitches star noted, “Everybody deserves to live their authentic life. And I encourage people to do that no matter what anybody else is saying on the outside and really tap into yourself and tap into what really makes you happy and go for it.”
Mowry announced via Instagram on October 4 that she and Hardrict, 42, had split. The duo, who tied the knot in 2008, share two children: son Cree, 11, and daughter Cairo, 4.
Us confirmed at the time that the My Christmas Inn actress filed for divorce that same week, citing “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the breakup.
Mowry explained on Thursday that she and the All American: Homecoming actor have seemed to find their rhythm while coparenting their kids.
“Everything, you know, I have to say is great. Of course, you know, you have good days and bad days, but there are definitely more good days than bad days. And the kids are wonderful,” she said. “They are thriving. They’re happy. And Cory and I — were doing great.”
The Instant Mom producer revealed: “I talk to him every single day. We tell each other [that] we love each other every single day. He is family and he will always be family and a part of our lives forever.”
Amid her coparenting journey, Mowry is also making time for herself, which includes self-care days and inward reflection.
“I’m just all about chasing the joy and knowing that I deserve happiness too. I feel like women, we tend to take care of everyone else and we tend to forget about our own needs, but at the end of the day, we deserve happiness just as much as our children do and everyone else in this world,” the former Food Network Stars Kids cohost confessed. “So that is what I wanna continue to take into the new year.”
Mowry added that while she is “definitely” feeling “love” and “peace” right now, she is not thinking about a new romance anytime soon. “I am loving on myself. I am in a relationship with me. I am loving on me and who really gives me peace, or my children seeing them every single day,” she told Us. “They give me so much peace and so much joy and so much motivation.”
In addition to balancing her mom duties and fueling her own growth, Mowry has teamed up with LACTAID to create tasty dishes that won’t cause stomach discomfort.
“I’m a foodie and in my opinion, when I think of food, I think about creating memories and amazing experiences. And not only that, I really, really love to hang out with my family and my friends around the kitchen and indulge in some of my favorite things and ingredients and recipes,” the Family Reunion star told Us. “Cookies and milk happen to be one of those. But it wasn’t always that I was able to enjoy an entire glass of milk without having any stomach discomfort. So thanks to LACTAID, they have given me the freedom to enjoy an entire glass of milk because it’s 100 percent whole milk just without the lactose.”
Mowry has also used LACTAID to create a Cookie Monster pancake that her kids love. (Get the recipe here.)
“Not only do I love milk and cookies, [but] breakfast is a huge part of our family. Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster is as well,” she gushed. “So we’ve created this delicious, recognizable, fun easy recipe: the Cookie Monster whole wheat pancakes, in which I use LACTAID milk.”
The Game alum concluded: “And as a mother, it’s all about making my kids have an enjoyable time in the kitchen. But not only that, they have lactose sensitivities as well. I feel great that they can eat something that’s gonna be easy to digest for them. And so it’s, like, a win-win for me.”
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
