When Meghan Trainor needs parenting help, her mom friends are on duty.
The "All About That Bass" singer sat down with TODAY Parents this week and opened up about her first full year of motherhood during a global pandemic — and her gratitude for the support that she's had.
"There’s an amazing mom group chat that I’m in … and we ask each other any questions and it’s really nice to have — because my friends aren’t having babies at my age," said Trainor, 28, who welcomed her son Riley with her husband, "Spy Kids" actor Daryl Sabara, on Feb. 8, 2021. "So it’s really nice to know people that are having babies."
The text chain, which Trainor dubbed "music class," refers to an infant group she and Riley joined at Sweet Potato Music in Los Angeles. Last year, Trainor and Riley attended a music-focused play date hosted by Hilary Duff — and that adventure led to a viral photo of little Riley with Mandy Moore’s son Gus, 1, Ashley Tisdale’s daughter Jupiter, 1, and Duff’s daughter Mae, 1.
“I didn’t even know them that well so it was an honor to be invited,” Trainor told TODAY Parents. “And I geek out every time and I try to play it really cool. But it’s an honor to have my kid be invited to anything as well because these were all COVID babies and they didn’t get to see a lot of people. And for the first year we were doing this class, we were all masked up — even outside, we’re all terrified. But we want our kids to socialize.”
When the Grammy winner and Sabara are working, Riley is cared for by Trainor’s brothers, Ryan and Justin, who live with the couple.
"They are still in my house and I wouldn’t have it any other way," Trainor said.
Trainor's mom, Kelli Trainor — a.k.a. Grandma, chief babysitter and BFF — also helps with Riley in huge ways.
"I already am obnoxious and call her all day long," the singer said. "I FaceTime her in the shower. We’re very close."
Trainor said she needed support after Riley's birth. Riley had been a breech baby — a condition where a baby is positioned feet- or butt-first — and he had to be delivered by cesarean section. His delivery was followed by a stay in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
"It was one of those horror stories where he didn’t cry," Trainor previously told TODAY Parents. “He didn’t make noise when he came out. I was like, 'Why isn’t he crying?' Then they told me he was having breathing issues. It was terrifying."
"It was definitely a rough start," Trainor added. "But we’re so lucky we got to bring him home after five days."
Her experience inspired Trainor to participate in a new campaign with coffee brand McCafé At Home and the nonprofit Ronald McDonald House Charities, which provides local accommodations for families of hospitalized children.
Although Trainor previously told TODAY Parents that Riley is "the smiliest, happiest baby," her postpartum C-section scars threw cold water on her self-esteem.
“Looking down on it, that’s what made me not feel sexy when I was trying to hook up with my husband," she said this week. "And he was like, 'You’re perfect, you’re beautiful, I love your scars' and I was like, 'Yes, but I don’t. And I have to enjoy this process as well.'"
Trainor said her therapist has asked her to stand in front of the mirror naked every day. "It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, ever," she said. "I have to stare at myself for five minutes — I set a timer — and I am shaking and I'm sweating … but I notice, even the second time around, I was like, 'OK, I want to cry less' and I’m getting better at this."
Trainor confessed that her "biggest area that needs work" is negative self-talk.
"I will slip every now and then — 'Ugh, I feel ugly today' or 'Ugh, this looks terrible' and my therapist is like, 'Whoa, we’re going to take it easy on Meghan because your brain hears those words and multiplies it by 1,400 times and believes it,'" she said.
She said she's been trying to eat healthy foods and exercise regularly to help herself feel better, adding that parenting is "definitely the biggest motivator ever to take care of yourself."
"If I take care of myself forever," Trainor said, "I can live forever and take care of him."
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