Gleesoulmates

MINI : We’re thrilled to have you on our fall cover! Let’s dive right into your life as a mom. What does your morning routine look like? What time do you get up?

Naya Rivera : My typical mom morning starts at either 6:30 or 6:45 AM - if I’m lucky! That extra 15 minutes of snooze time is always so sweet. Josey is up by now, so I change him and give him a bottle. We will spend that time in bed together cuddling and joking around. Hide and seek works wonders when trying to stay under the covers for as long as possible. We brush our teeth together (he’s obsessed with doing this) and then head downstairs to play some music, dance, and get a snack. Breakfast is usually at 8 and now that Josey is older and can eat so many things, we try to go out for breakfast a few times a week. We also hit up Coffee Bean or Starbucks in the morning where Josey requests that I buy him a banana off the counter every time. We’re back by 9 for his nap [and] I get an invaluable hour break. I use that time to answer emails and call my mom to tell her all the cute new stuff Josey did in the three hours prior. That’s a typical morning for us.

What do you think is the greatest challenge of motherhood?

Really making time for yourself is a challenge. Taking the time to not worry about your house, or to-do lists, or the baby is hard, but necessary.

What is your favorite part?

The love I get from him. Little things like the two kisses he stood up and gave me last night to say thank you for making him mac and cheese from scratch. It’s a love never found anywhere or with anyone else.

What surprised you most about mother hood?

Probably how truly selfless you become.

How has motherhood changed you?

It’s made me a much more observant person.

What do you hope to instill in your son, Josey? What is most important to you in raising him?

I hope to instill good morals and values in him. I want to teach him to be confident but kind, strong but not proud, and to always be in love with life.

What worries you most?

Puberty. I’m going to cry so hard when the day comes that he doesn’t want to hold my hand because it’s not “cool”.

We love getting a glimpse inside Mini spaces, so thanks for showing us around Josey’s room! What was your inspiration for the design?

I wanted a room that had bold patterns and felt cozy at the same time.

What are some of your favorite elements in his room?

I love the wallpaper and the Roman shades. I also love the bird chandelier.

How do you keep your home kid-friendly?

Hardcore baby-proofing and allowing every space to be a play space to a certain extend.

You’ve just released a new book, Sorry Not Sorry, which has gathered a lot of buzz! Tell us what we can find inside the book.

You can find a lot of funny and authentic stories about the ups and downs of growing up. It’s all very relatable and feels like a conversation between friends.

If Josey were to read the book one day, what do you hope he will take away from it?

I hope he would take away that growing up has its challenges but behind every cloud is a silver lining.

If you get any “me time”, how do you wind down or spend it?

I get my nails or hair done or sneak away and take myself to lunch or dinner completely alone.

Looking back to your first days as a parent, what would you tell yourself?

You’re going to get a lot less sleep in about a year.

When Glee made its debut in 2009, its young ensemble cast of unknown actors became instant celebrities. Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Dianna Agron, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, Amber Riley, Mark Salling, Jenna Ushkowitz, Naya Rivera, Heather Morris, and Harry Shum Jr. embarked on a nationwide mall tour, sat for countless interviews, traveled the globe, topped the charts, and saw their lives become gossip fodder.

Rivera, then 22 years old, quickly revealed herself to be of particular interest to the tabloids; maybe it was her charismatic turn as high school cheerleader Santana Lopez, maybe it was the fact that she looked like a long-lost Kardashian sister, or maybe it was because of her tumultuous relationships — with Glee co-star Salling and rapper Big Sean — that were chronicled with varying degrees of truth (for example, she did not rush to marry her now-husband simply so she wouldn’t lose venue deposits from her broken engagement to Big Sean, but it is true that Rivera keyed Salling’s car during a fight). Then there were the thinly veiled blind items about the contentious dynamic between Rivera and Michele — rumors that either stemmed from Rivera’s supposed jealousy over Michele’s prominent role on the show or Michele’s reported diva-like behavior, depending on which magazine you read.

Because of all the Us Weekly stories, the years of fan-focused glad-handing, and the hundreds of spoiler-centric Gleeinterviews she’s given, the image of Rivera people have in their minds is hardly based in reality: They likely think she’s either a tabloid harpy with an addiction to fame or an insult-hurling queen bee, thanks to the Cheerio she played on Glee.

Mad Families is a new comedy feature film from Sony’s digital platform Crackle. Production started last week in Los Angeles. Leah Remini and Charlie Sheen co-star.

The pic centers on three families – one Hispanic, one African American, one Caucasian – who find themselves sharing the same camping space on a Fourth of July holiday weekend. When none of them volunteer to vacate the site, they try to figure out a way to cohabitate peacefully, but eventually decide on a series of competitions to determine a winner.

Fred Wolf, who helmed Crackle’s previous original film Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser, is directing from a script reteaming him and Joe Dirt star David Spade.