Holly Robinson Peete

Going from teen star to celeb mom without a hint of controversy is no easy feat these days, but Holly Robinson Peete has paved the path for those willing to follow her footsteps. Currently co-host of The Talk on CBS and an outspoken advocate for autism awareness, the mama of four spoke with me about kids with food allergies, her upcoming movie cameo, and motherhood. See what the star had to say.

LilSugar: Many of today's moms have been fans of yours, since you appeared on 21 Jump Street. Now they're making it into a movie. Will you have a role in the new film?
Holly Robinson Peete: Yes, I did make an appearance on it. I worked one day. I don’t have as big a part as Johnny, but I did make a cameo. The only thing I’m panicked about is that I had to say a curse word and my kids are going to go, "Oh my G-d!" But, I’m really excited to be in it.

LS: Are your kids fans of the show?
HRP: I can’t get my kids to get into Jump Street yet, but they love Hangin' With Mr. Cooper. The only thing they care about is [who I worked with]. They can’t believe I worked with Captain Jack Sparrow. That earned me some cool points!

LS: We like to ask all of the moms we interview our Four Lil Questions. First up: You know you’re a mother when __________.
HRP: You know you're a mother when you lick your finger to wipe your kids’ face, because you don’t have a wipe and that’s what your mom did and you swore you’d never do it.

Keep reading to see the best trick Holly's mom taught her and more!

Hollywood's bright light has been very good to Holly Robinson Peete, having starred in two highly successful television series and finishing as runner-up on last season's Celebrity Apprentice. But that doesn't mean the actress, who currently co-hosts The Talk on CBS, hasn't had her own fair share of parenting scares.

After her then-3-year-old son Rodney was diagnosed with autism, she had him tested for food allergies to adjust his diet. Little did she know they'd discover a severe peanut allergy. Now, all four of her kids — Ryan and Rodney Jr., 14, Robinson, 9, and Roman, 6 — have been diagnosed with food allergies, and the hot mama knows a thing or two about anaphylaxis. Holly spoke with me about living with deadly food allergies and how families can cope with the diagnosis.

LilSugar: Have you ever experienced an anaphylactic reaction, and did you respond the way you thought you would?
Holly Robinson Peete: Yeah, it was a crazy moment. I went a little nuts and then I calmed down. I tried to remember everything that I had been taught. I've had two situations. One was out of the country with my younger son who has a severe dairy allergy and the other was at Thanksgiving. Thankfully, both times I had access to my EpiPens, because otherwise — gosh I don't even want to think about what would have happened. I didn't have [a pen] at my mom’s house, but, thankfully, I live close enough that I was able to run and get it. I learned you need to have them everywhere your kids are going to be. Especially grandma and grandpa's house.

LS: When do you think parents should start teaching their tots about their allergy and how?
HRP: Well, every parent has to do it their own way. My particular way was, as soon as they could talk, they had to learn what foods they needed to be avoiding, really trying to explain the seriousness of their allergies, trying to explain to them what anaphalaxis is (you should hear my 3-year-old saying anaphylaxis, it's hilarious!), and not being afraid of saying the word death — that it is a deadly situation. I think all parents have different ways of talking about that. For me, it works being open and honest about it. What I found, we would go to birthday parties and things and they would be going "uh – does that have dairy in it? Does that have peanuts?"

Keep reading to see what Holly's tips for helping kids feel normal with their diagnoses and how to handle birthday parties.

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