Wright On Target
SOD May 13, 2003
GL's Laura Wright wasn't sure what motherhood would be like, turns out, it's just what she wanted.
Just The Facts
Family tree: Husband John, daughter Lauren, 4, and son John, 2
Home Base: New Jersey
Constant Cravings: "When I was pregnant with Lauren, I ate chocolate ice cream for breakfast. With my son, I craved fruit."
Full House: "I have a live-in nanny. She's great, but she does have it easy sometimes because my husband works out of the home, so one of us is always there."
TV Time: "They love DRAGON TALES. My son likes BLUE'S CLUES. Lauren couldn't care less about cartoons. She likes real people. Little Women is a favorite movie. At 2½, she'd ask, 'Can we watch Women? I've seen that movie a hundred times."
Memorable moments: "The most profound moment of my entire life was the first time I nursed my daughter. That blew my mind."
Digest: How is being a mom different from what you thought it would be?
Laura Wright(Cassie): "Honestly, I am better than I thought I ever could be. I really thought when I was pregnant with my daughter, "Someone is going to take her away from me." I couldn't believe I was going to be blessed with a child. I just thought I was going to be horrible and not know what to do. When she first came, I kind of didn't [laughs]. Now, I have more fun with my kids. My husband has taught me to relax and not be so hard on myself."
Digest: Describe your kids' personalities.
Wright: "My daughter is extremely curious and sensitive. She'll take up for herself or someone else. It's interesting that she'll let things affect her, but not to where it disables her. And the whole princess thing, she's totally into it. She'll be walking down the hall in a pair of old red pumps I gave her, a boa and gloves. But then she'll go outside looking for bugs [laughs]. My son is completely a goofball. Hes always in a good mood, and he wants to do every single thing that Lauren does."
Digest: Any sibling rivalry?
Wright: "Not once. I don't know how I escaped that. Maybe because I haven't really slept in two years, and God blessed me with something [laughs]. I remember when I left to go to the hospital to have my son. It was 6:30 in the morning, and I was going to be induced. I looked at my daughter sleeping in bed, and I started bawling because I knew that our relationship was going to be different from that point on. Everyone thought, 'There's no way that Lauren can handle this new baby', because we were inseparable. We slept together every night. The next morning after I had him and they brought Lauren, she climbed right up and sat next to me and was in awe. From that point on, she has adored him."
Digest: What if she had been jealous?
Wright: "If she did show any signs of jealousy, I would have quickly said, 'Suck it up, and get over it. This is your brother. Life's not all about you.' I'm very quick to not indulge that kind of behavior. I don't think it helps the child. Lauren is not going to benefit from me not telling her like it is. At 5 weeks old, my son went into the hospital for a week with a heart condition. When we were in the emergency room, not knowing what was wrong with him, they took him from me and Lauren started screaming, 'My baby!'"
Digest: How is John doing now?
Wright: "He still has a heart condition called WPW [Wolff Parkinson White syndrome]. It's livable. He will most likely have heart surgery when he's 7, a noninvasive procedure."
Digest: How do you balance work/family?
Wright: I think it's easy with this job. Even if I worked five days week, which hello, most people have to do, I can be here at 7 and be home by 2. How can I complain? I think it's the best job in the world for a parent by far."
Digest: Do you want more kids?
Wright: "No. Two is good for my lifestyle. We have two houses, two major jobs, two dogs, two cats, a bunny rabbit (we had two, but one died) - but I never say never."
Digest: How did having kids affect your body image?
Wright: "I like my body better now than I ever have. The way I look, I've done that. I started eating healthy. I do tae kwon do and yoga. I quit smoking. This is my body; I've earned this. I'm 32. I think I look great for having had two kids. I can say that because I've done it. The body I had before my kids - that was genetics and luck."
Digest: So, having children has helped you take care of yourself?
Wright: "Having children has made me like myself better, which I think is important. I used to feel guilty [about exercising], but Lauren sees me every day taking care of myself. As guilty as I feel about going to work, sometimes I think, 'Lauren will most likely have to work when she's a mom.' I don't want to pass on certain generational problems, like guilt, always taking care of the man and making sure dinner is on the table on time no matter what. Well, no matter what was: 'Lauren got sick, the dog pooped and here's a frozen pizza because I got stuff to do and no, your pants aren't washed yet?' That's life, whereas that wasn't really acceptable [years ago].... I guess I am working so hard on my self image. So I don't pass that stuff along. It's been a journey. It's hard, especially in this business. It's probably why we're drawn to it. Accept me! Like me! How pathetic is that? I don't want her to ever feel that way. I don't think I have to worry about that with my son because he's so oblivious as a boy [laughs]."
Digest: What are your favorite aspects about being a mom?
Wright: "It's seeing the people who they are becoming. I could not be prouder of my daughter. And to think that I had anything to do with that is a joke to me. They are a joy to have around: they're fun. They're certainly not perfect. They misbehave. But they're good people. Seeing the good people they are becoming is just amazing. I think their souls are so precious. I love watching them. Just being their mom is the best thing in the world."
The Wright Way
"John is extremely hands-on with the kids and has been from the second they were born," raves Laura Wright about her husband's parenting skills. "He spent every night in the hospital with me when Lauren was born. I had a Caesarean section and couldn't get out of bed. So every night, I would feed her, and he would walk her around, burp her and change her diaper. That just continued at home. He'll say sometimes. 'I'm the father, you're the mom. Who says I'm not supposed to do anything? He always does the right thing and always rises to the occasion."
Back to 2003 Articles
Back to Article Links Page