Cameron Diaz Reveals The "Mom Checklist" She Uses When 2-Year-Old Raddix Is Cranky

Toddlers are notoriously difficult to figure out. Offer them the wrong cup can ignite an epic meltdown and don’t even think about trying to help them get dressed. But actress, entrepreneur, best-selling author, and self-love guru Cameron Diaz has a strategy to stay patient — and you’ll need a pen to take notes.

In an interview on The Kelly Clarkson Show May 16, the Avaline co-founder shared her “mom checklist” that she uses to check in with her 2-year-old daughter, Raddix, whom she shares with husband Benji Madden. “I feel like as a parent, it’s your job to just be like, ‘OK, so what are you feeling here? How is it?’ There’s something there,” Diaz says about toddler’s behavior. “Kids are always just trying to express a feeling. They’re not actively trying to be bad.”

Kelly Clarkson, who is mom to River, 7, and Remington, 6, with ex Brandon Blackstock, responds, “But when they can’t communicate, they get so frustrated!”

“Exactly,” Diaz replied.

So, how does she keep her cool? “I do my mom checklist,” Diaz explained. “Did she eat? Is she tired? What time is it? When was the last time she ate? When is nap? You just kind of start there and then you go, what just happened? Is there something she’s trying to communicate to me?”

The Longevity Book author added, “I feel like as a parent, my job is to just help her find the words to her emotions, her experience, what she’s going through, and be able to help her identify that and then move through it. And what does she need from me and what does she need from herself? And is this something she can take care of herself?”

Clarkson joked, “Can we, like, talk every week, or… ?” Diaz’s cool-headed insight into helping her daughter express her emotions and get to the root of the problem is such an inspiration.

And it’s not just her parenting mindset that Clarkson admired. On the show, Diaz wore her hair in a ponytail, with a white blazer paired with black and the comfiest-looking red tennis shoes, joking it’s her “Zoom” style. “Why would I do anything else?” Diaz asked.

“You are now my official favorite person to come on the show, you just flow,” Clarkson said.

Diaz also said Raddix is “the best thing” in her life. “I love it,” Diaz said about being a mom. “I feel like it’s the best thing that I — well, it is, I don’t feel like it. I know it’s the best thing I’ve ever done in my life.”

The Charlie’s Angels actress waited until after her baby girl had been born at the beginning of 2020 to reveal she’d become a mom. In 2021, she said raising her daughter “is my favorite part of life,” in an interview with Kevin Hart on Hart to Heart.

In the interview with Clarkson on Monday, she commented on how lucky she is to spend time with her daughter. “I’m very fortunate to have been able to take the time to do it and be there with her,” said Diaz, who retired from acting in 2014. “And that’s just the hugest blessing that I have.”

“It’s challenging, but you know what, it’s also really imperative to repair,” she added. “So if you do break, like blow up, just repair that and say, ‘Oh my god, Mommy lost her sh*t. I didn’t mean to say that to you. If I hurt your feelings or if I upset you, I just want you to know Mommy’s human too.’”

Then they shared a cheers to being good moms, while sipping Alvaline organic canned wines. Talking about kids while drinking wine? Sounds like the perfect afternoon.