Never have I understood those people who wish a famous person would adopt them until now. The way Mindy Kaling describes raising baby Katherine, it sounds like being Kaling's daughter would be endlessly entertaining.
"What's great for me is that my doctor told me that incessant chatter is good for a baby, and I've lived my whole life waiting to have a captive audience," Kaling says in her cover story for Shape, as reported on E! Online. "So I spend the days narrating to her. I'm constantly doing voiceover for her, as I did in The Mindy Project. Honestly, I feel like her first words are going to be, 'Just stop. Please!'"
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The early days of motherhood are tough (understatement!) — even if you have Oprah giving you baby presents — and Kaling told the magazine she was surprised to learn she'd be so "tethered" to her home by the need to feed her daughter every three hours. I can understand why she decided to break up the monotony by giving little "Kit" her own one-woman show. So, alright, Kaling doesn't need to adopt me necessarily, but I would be extremely happy if she recorded one of these motherly monologues, say, for the benefit of other mothers less talented with the gift of gab.
This being a Shape interview, Kaling talked about her pre- and post-natal workout routines. The latter began just a week after she gave birth in December, with walks that were a couple of miles a day.
"I don't recommend that for everyone, obviously, but I didn't have that difficult of a delivery," Kaling said. Many women still need to heal physically and emotionally during that time, so it's nice that she acknowledges how lucky she was to be able to do that.
The actress, writer, and producer also gave a nod to something all women can use a lot of as they try to juggle work and motherhood: the mentorship of other women. On the set of Ocean's 8, Kaling turned to Cate Blanchett and Sandra Bullock for guidance, since they brought their children with them.
"Cate and Sandy both have little kids who are so well behaved and fun, and I got to learn a lot about how they parent and ask them a ton of questions," she told the magazine. Whether this is from her costars or from her own life experience, Kaling has one big goal for herself as a mother: to make Kit a confident girl and woman.
"I'm going to do that by always making her feel like she is good enough and not being stingy with encouraging comments," she said.