25 Little-Known Details On How Jennifer Garner Runs Her Household

Talented actress Jennifer Garner is becoming one of the most talked-about moms in Hollywood. She keeps her three children, Violet, Seraphina and Samuel, out of the public eye, and finds the balance between raising her family and being a globally famous working mom. In many ways, she's just like a regular mom: she gets ideas from Pinterest, gets advice from other moms and sometimes feels completely frazzled by the whole parenting thing. Unlike a lot of other moms in Hollywood, she has quite a strict and traditional approach to raising her kids, and keeps them grounded and respectful.

Even though she is still passionate about her acting career, it's clear that her family comes before anything else in her life. She goes to great lengths to keep her kids' lives as normal as possible, including fighting the laws in California to try and stop the paparazzi from hounding her children. Now that she's split from ex-husband Ben Affleck, she's had to take on the responsibility of being a single mom. But from what we can tell, she's doing a great job!

Keep reading to find out just how Jennifer Garner raised her children and runs her household.

25 Her Kids Don't Appear On Her Social Media

Garner has been quite active on social media, especially since her 2015 split from ex-husband Ben Affleck. She shares a range of content which allows fans a glimpse into her glamorous life. The one thing she doesn't share on her social media, though, is photos and videos of her kids. “That's a pretty big roadblock right there,” she's said, when asked about sharing footage of her kids online. “I've fought too hard for their privacy personally that it feels weird.”

24 They Aren't Allowed To Have Their Own Social Media Yet

Not only do the kids not feature on Garner's Instagram and other social media channels, but they also aren't allowed to have their own social media pages. At least, not for now. “My kids don't have any social media yet, and I am terrified,” Garner confessed. “I think it puts so much pressure on kids at an age where they're really vulnerable anyways. If anyone has any clues, let me know.” Eldest daughter Violet will probably be the first to pop up on social media in years to come.

23 She Encourages Her Kids To Take Extra-Curricular Activities

Garner has opened up about wanting her kids to have normal lives, or at least, as normal as they can have, being the children of two movie stars. One of the ways in which she keeps their life normal is encouraging them to take on extra-curricular activities, just like regular kids do. “My kids take karate, for example, and we have our classes at the same time every week,” Garner told Today. While the kids get to take karate like normal kids, they sometimes have to face paparazzi following them to class.

22 She Has A Healthy Work-Life Balance

Having a healthy work-life balance is vital for many moms in Hollywood. Garner seems to have struck the balance between working and raising her kids, although she gets hit by the guilt when she does have to leave her kids and go to work: “… I need to work, and I need to be home with my kids, and the kids win. It's about getting the kids up and fed, getting one to school, getting the other down for a nap… I'm either a full-time stay-at-home mom or a full-time actress.”

21 Which Includes Getting Help With Her Kids

There's no shame in hiring a help to look after the kids, especially when you're also trying to maintain a career. Garner has spoken about being very hands on with her children, but she still has a nanny that helps her out. It's not clear if she has more than one or if they're there permanently, but we do know that at least one nanny has worked for her family in the past. After Garner and Affleck split, rumors surfaced that implicated their kids' nanny in the dissolution of the marriage.

20 Her Kids Don't Go On The Computer Unless She's There

In this day and age, it's nearly impossible to keep kids off the computer, iPad or smartphones altogether. Still, Garner is aware of the trouble her kids can get into while online, and she monitors their use of this kind of technology, to the point where she doesn't let her kids even use a computer unless she's right beside them. “You have to be on top of it because it would take so little for them to see something that could be an image which sticks in their head that they shouldn't see,” she explained.

19 There's No Junk Food In The House

Part of Garner's strict regime for her children is controlling what they eat, and limiting the amount of junk food in the house. They're not totally forbidden from eating sweets, sugar and fast food, but it's definitely not a staple in the household. “I'm not worried so much about junk food, because we don't have it in the house,” she said. Garner went on to explain that she doesn't ban it altogether because she doesn't want her kids to develop a fascination with it.

18 But Healthy Foods Are Encouraged

In the place of junk food, Garner's kids are encouraged to eat an array of healthy food. Following a tip handed down from her mom, she makes sure that there are plenty of fresh vegetables cut up around dinner time, as this is the time that kids are the most likely to nibble. Garner is passionate about healthy food, and has a company which sells cold-pressed baby food packets. Her ingredients are all naturally sourced from a farm in Oklahoma, where her mother grew up.

17 And They Grow Their Own Food

But Garner doesn't have to rely on importing from the farm to get her fresh ingredients. Her family grows their own vegetables in the garden at home, and this is another way in which she teaches her kids about healthy eating. “My oldest didn't like blueberries until we had blueberry bushes. Now in blueberry season we take colanders down every night and they bring their friends over and we pick,” she said. “I think growing your own food helps.”

16 She's Quite Strict With The Kids

A lot of Hollywood parents are criticized for being too lenient with their parenting, resulting in kids who are entitled and spoiled. But Jennifer Garner maintains that she's strict, even by normal (non-Hollywood) standards. She has explained that her strictness comes down to being overprotective and wanting to keep her kids safe. “I would do anything to keep my kids safe as anyone could, and I could see being so hyper-vigilant that you could just go over the edge,” she admitted.

15 She Loves Reading To Her Children

Like millions of other parents around the world, Garner loves reading to her children at bedtime. She even says that she loves reading children's books, even if her kids aren't there. “Gosh, kid's books are my favorite literature,” she said in an interview with InStyle. “I basically like anything that's written for thirteen and under!” Not only does Garner read to her own children, but she visits schools around the country and reads to students of all ages. In particular, she loves reading books with rhymes.

14 The Kids Still Have A Normal Life

Though their parents are huge movie stars, Violet, Seraphina and Samuel still experience normal life. In 2017, the family, including Affleck, went to a California Fourth of July parade, were they bought candy and watched the festivities with their golden retriever by their side. A source told US Weekly that in June of 2017, the whole family took a week's vacation in the Bahamas, in order to get the kids away from all the rumors circulating from the divorce.

13 She Co-Parents With Ben Affleck

Garner and Affleck may have called it quits, but they are going to great lengths to co-parent and be equally involved in their children's lives. They're a great example of parents putting their differences aside for the good of the kids. Not only did they take their kids to the Independence Day parade together in July of 2017, but they also regularly take their kids on vacations together, and make sure they're both present to be there for them.

12 Her Kids Don't Get Away With Tantrums

All kids have tantrums, but Garner doesn't up with it when they do. Making sure she's not raising kids who are spoiled, she deals with any tantrums by putting her foot down and not giving into their demands. The actress recalled a time where her son had a tantrum in a store because he wanted something, and the staff offered to give it to him just to get him to stop crying. But Garner insisted that he keep crying and accept that he wasn't going to get his way.

11 She Was Raised With Traditional Values And Tries To Instill Those In Her Kids 

Reflecting on her childhood, Garner has said that she was raised with traditional values because her dad “just felt like his daughters should be wholesome.” By that, she meant that she never wore makeup, had manicures or had her hair permed or colored. “My dad didn't think it was ladylike,” she explained. She believes it's going to be harder to pass those values onto her kids considering today's society, but she'll try and lead by example.

10 Her Kids Won't Be Sizzling In The Sun Any Time Soon

Another lesson that the actress has learned from her childhood is that tanning can come with consequences. As a young girl, she was always inside while everyone else was outside getting tanned, and though she hated being white at the time, now she's grateful that her skin isn't overly wrinkled. “Everyone called me Casper because I never had a tan and everyone else was tan all the time. I think that was the luckiest thing of my life,” she said. It's safe to say she won't be having her kids tanning outside all day!

9 She Doesn't Tolerate Paparazzi Hounding Her Kids

Paparazzi are so ruthless because they don't only pick on famous people; they also pick on their children, who never asked to be born into a well-known family. Garner realizes how unfair it is that her children are sometimes followed by the paparazzi, which is why she backed up Halle Berry who pushed for a new bill to penalize photographers who upset children. Since the law was created in California in 2013, Garner has revealed that her children have been much safer. “It's been over a year,” she said, “and there isn't a day that we don't talk about how different it is.

8 Dating Won't Get In The Way Of Raising Her Kids

Now that she's split from her former husband, many people have speculated as to when Garner is going to start dating someone new. She has claimed that the breakdown of her marriage has put her off dating, and that's not her focus at the moment. “I would not have chosen this life for myself or for my kids,” she said. “I would not choose to be single or be in this position. It's something I am working through. I haven't been on a date and I'm not interested in dating.”

7 She's Careful About Who Spends Time With Her Kids

While Garner may not be dating anyone at the moment, it has been reported that Affleck may be seeing someone new. He has been connected to Lindsay Shookus, who's a producer for Saturday Night Live. According to online sources, Garner would like to meet Shookus and spend time with her alone before allowing her to meet her children. Fair! Most parents would want to know exactly who is going to be spending time with their kids.

6 The Kids Come Before What She Looks Like

We think Jennifer Garner looks amazing, but she has opened up about feeling like she doesn't always have her look together: “All the moms I ever see always look very put together, and I just don't get it. I don't see how they do it! But then again, I would look that way if I didn't have kids too probably.” There's a lot of pressure to look the part in Hollywood, but Garner doesn't give into any of it, always focusing on her children instead of her appearance.

5 She Encourages Body Confidence In Her Kids

Garner has spoken candidly about her body and the way it's changed since having children. Some famous moms make it their priority to get their pre-baby body back, but Garner is proud of her leftover baby bump. “From now on, ladies, I will have a bump and it will be my baby bump and let's just all settle in and get used to it. It's not going anywhere,” she confirmed. We can only assume that she encourages the same kind of body confidence in her kids!

4 There Are Different Roles For Her And Ben

Many families are now straying from traditional gender roles, but when it comes to parenting, Garner believes that there are set jobs for moms and set jobs for dads. At least in her household, anyway. While she takes on all the typical mom jobs, Affleck is in charge of the dad jobs, as well as “anything fun.” She told Jimmy Fallon, “If it has to do with making food or [doing homework] or anything that has to do with actually functioning… that's a mom thing.” Her daughter, Seraphina, actually scribbled a note (that Garner later shared on insta) calling Garner a "fun-killing mom." Harsh, Seraphina!

3 She Takes Advice From Other Moms

Just like many other moms out there, Garner regularly chats to other women with children about parenting, swapping tips and helping each other solve problems. Some of the moms she confides in are celebrities, and can empathize with her unique situation, while others are just regular moms she's met through her kids. “… mostly I talk to my friends, my mom friends from Violet's school. And we just gab away like anyone. But pretty much I hang up from one mom friend and call another.”

2 She Has A “Yes Day”

One day per year, Garner takes a break from her usually strict parenting and blesses her kids with a Yes Day. In other words, she temporarily abandons the routine and instead says yes to everything her kids want. Usually, Garner gets pushed to her limits on Yes Day, since she has to do anything her kids ask. The actress also promotes Yes Day and encourages moms all around the country to try it. There have even been talks of her making a movie about it!

1 But She Still Won't Spoil Them

Even though Yes Day is technically supposed to be a chance for the kids to ask for anything they want, Garner does impose rules. Because she still doesn't want to spoil her kids, she sets up some rules and tells the kids that they can't ask her to buy things for them. Sometimes she buys them small, fun things, like lottery tickets, but nothing extravagant. The day is more about having new experiences rather than acquiring new toys.

references: Fox News, E News, People, Instyle, US Magazine, Huffington Post, aol.com