Celebrity Mom Interview: Megyn Price
May 8, 2009
Megyn Price is currently on the CBS show "Rules of Engagement." The season 3 finale airs on Monday, May 18th, but you can catch up on all the episodes at CBS.com.
You might also remember her as Claudia, on one of my favorite sitcoms
Happy belated birthday to Megyn, born on March 24th (the same as my dad!)
Q. How did you transition from being a Stanford grad and investment banker to actress?
I didn't really like what I was doing. I worked really hard and did well, but I soon realized that if I worked equally hard at acting I thought that would work out as well. I had no idea of the odds against me. Timing was everything for me. I got jobs because when it came to entertainment, particularly TV, they were looking for the smart, funny girlfriend. I got the work.
Q: Did you get married immediately after college or during?
Actually I was friends with my husband Eddie in high school and throughout college. He always dated the cool chics. I was the nerd. I was doing a play in New York while he was still in medical school in Baltimore and he came up to see me and we reconnected and eventually got married 15 years after I had first met him.
Q: Your daughter Grace was born in July 13, 2007 – is it a coincidence since Gracie was the name of your baby on Grounded for Life?
That was completely crazy. Me and my husband decided that if they ever had a baby girl, she would be named Grace. I saw the name appear in the script and I wondered how they ever knew! Grace is actually the name of a producer's niece.
Q: How has the transition into motherhood been for you?
It's interesting because initially I was so busy and they couldn’t change the schedule of the show [Rules of Engagement]. So I went back 3 weeks after giving birth. It actually worked out because I set up nursery there. My husband took time off during that time so I had both of them on the set for 3 months. At the time I was too overwhelmed with the process. But we wrapped up Rules of Engagement last December and now I'm a Stay-At-Home-Mom and it is so fun!! I always felt that I would feel old if I stayed home with my kids. But I feel the exact opposite. Playing with toys, books, figuring out what to do for activities – all the stuff you don’t do as an adult. It's the perfect excuse to do the things you're not expected to do when you have kids. The years go by so fast so I'm enjoying the focus on family time.
Q: While raising a family and working full-time, you pride yourself on how you maintain a healthy lifestyle and that’s how you’ve been able to stay fit - how do you do it? How do you make sure you eat healthy for all your meals and when do you find the time to cook?
I hate every actress that says they eat everything they want and don’t work out. I work really hard at it! It's so crazy that these people will write in on websites that I'm so curvey. I'm a size 6 – and I wouldn't be if I didn’t work so hard at it. I'm super healthy about it. A few years ago I made the shift to eat actual food – not processed foods. I even bake my own bread. I do eat carbs but not tons of it, except veggies and fruits. I do eat a ton of those. I planted a garden 5 or 6 years ago. Once we started pulling food out of ground – I got connected to it. It made all the difference in the world. It's really important to make all the food for Grace. so I can avoid putting pesticides in her body. It's super fun to come up with baby food recipes.
Q: For many moms, its easier to go to McDonald’s or whip up a frozen dinner – how do you cope? When making baby food while working I set aside a Sunday afternoon and get my CuisineArt, steamer basket and ice cube trays and make batches of 1 oz cubes – pureed broccoli – pureed sweet potatoes – carrots. During the week I just defrost the cubes and she's all set. All it takes is one afternoon. Soup is Grace's favorite - she lives for it.
Q: What’s your favorite resource for healthy recipes?
I just throw stuff together, I'm not afraid to try new things. I really don’t’ need a recipe. Although I did make soymilk pancakes once and that doesn’t work. Although, it's hard for Grace to eat straight vegetables so when I make pancakes I'll add a half can of pumpkin and a little cinnamon and other pumpkin pie spices – and she'll eat it. It's so delicious. You can try anything particularly with cream cheese. Take broccoli steamed, pureed or chopped – and mix it into creamcheese. Don't leave it overnight. It won't last. But make it on the fly and have pretzels dipped into it. Yum!
Q: What’s your all time favorite snack? What about your daughter?
It depends on what’s in season – that will be my favorite because it always tastes better. I absolutely OD on apricots – or peaches – asparagus. Then I'm done. I go through phases. Right now it's tangerines. My guilty pleasure is popcorn made on stove with olive oil…whole grain…no butter.
Q: What advice would you like to give to busy moms so they can truly implement and have a healthy lifestyle?
Start by getting rid of processed foods. All those packages of mixes. They don’t taste as good as from scratch. Pancake mix is just baking powder and flour and it tastes much better if you mix it yourself. Also get rid of artificial sweeteners since they skew your taste buds. It makes a big difference. Plus, head out to the farmers market. Freshly grown food always tastes better. Right now the farmer's market is like a carnival for kids. So many great things for kids to see, free food samples. Grace grabbed a tomato and ate it like an apple. She was covered in tomato but happy as clam!
Q: Is there a product you couldn’t live without either during your pregnancy or now that your daughter is coming up on 2 years old?
In the very beginning I couldn’t have lived without the Moby sling. It's a huge fabric and my husband even wore it. Grace would only sleep in that the 1st 6 months of her life – it was lifesaver.
Now it's a toy – Calico Critters. It's a dollhouse and it has little bunnies and cats, dresses and aprons. They are lifelike that encourage Grace to make up stories, create songs, use her imagination.
For a "mom-to-be" thing - the sling was heaven on earth. The other was a sound machine – Sound Oasis - it makes great white noise…
Q: A couple of closing questions:
Any scoop about Rules of Engagement continuing on this Fall?
The show is doing incredible numbers-wise. It's both a blessing and a curse. When you do well in your timeslot – they move you to another night to anchor. It could be great, we'll see. My character has fun stuff to do, more of a female focus.
Q: Any chance that Grounded for Life will see the light of day again with new episodes? Perhaps with Gracie grown up?
I had a dream that they did make it into a TV movie. So we'll see. You never know!
Megyn, we wish you continued success with your family and career. You’re truly an inspiration and better mom since many of us are still trying to figure it all out!
