Tori Spelling says her parenting style differs from husband Dean McDermott’s — and that works just fine for them.
“Co-parenting, Dean and I definitely have different parenting strategies. I’m kind of the feelings mom and he’s more procedural,” she told People.
She said her hubby excels at organization.
“He’s really great at timing and planning. I’m not good with that. You need both of those to make it work. You really do need that to be a complete human. You need both worlds,” she said.
Spelling and McDermott, who’ve endured rumors about their marriage in recent years, are parents to five kids: Liam, 15, Stella, 14, Finn and Hattie, both 10, and Beau, 5.
The former “Beverly Hills, 90210” star likes to maintain a dialogue with her children to see how they’re doing.
“My kids, they’ll probably say, ‘Oh, Mom asks too much about our feelings.’ That’s OK,” she said. “I am constantly checking in and saying, ‘OK, what’s up? What are your worries? Let’s talk about it.’”
Spelling says talking is a good way to work through any potential issues that may surface.
“‘I can’t predict the unknown, but let’s talk about what scenarios could happen and talk about it.’ And then when they come back from school, we do a recap,” she explains.
Spelling also says she and her kids often bake and work on DIY projects, which present an opportune time to talk.
“And while we’re doing that and making family dinners I work in slowly, ‘Hey, how is this? How is this?’” she said. “And you get so many more answers when they don’t feel like you’re sitting them down and asking them directly.”