Busy Philipps Says Her Children Make Her ‘Cry on a Daily Basis’: ‘All the Tears, All the Time’

 

Busy Philipps is known for bringing the laughs on everything from her television appearances to her Instagram Stories.

But the Cougar Town alum and mother of two experiences her share of tears, too, when it comes to her daughters: Cricket Pearl, 4, and Birdie Leigh, 9.

“My children make me cry on a daily basis about everything,” Philipps, 38, says with a laugh in an interview for PEOPLE’s Celeb Parents Get Real. “Tears of joy, tears of pain, tears of sadness — all the tears, all the time.”

“Sometimes I’ll cry because they’re so cute or they’re being so sweet, and then Birdie will be like , ‘Mom … don’t cry ’cause we’re cute,’ ” adds the star. “She is so over it. She’ll be like, ‘Why are you crying? So weird.’ ”

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The former Freaks and Geeks actress recalls one of her most embarrassing parenting moments as a recent incident when it was picture day at Cricket’s school and she dropped off her daughter in a rainbow dress before remembering what day it was — and the condition that the kids had to wear all white.

“I was like, ‘I’m so sorry, of course it’s today! I left at home, I’ll be right back,’ ” says Philipps. “And I ran to Target and I bought white leggings and a white Hanes little boys’ T-shirt, and I ran back and I was like, ‘Here’s her white outfit!’ It was embarrassing.”

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Right before Cricket was born, the Dawson’s Creek alum remembers a time when her emotional side got her into quite the sticky situation — involving both paparazzi and cops, when she was on her way to pick up a rice bowl from a restaurant in Beverly Hills.

“I was being followed by three , I was freaking out, and I was very dramatically holding the side of my face and crying … and I got pulled over by a police officer because he thought I was talking on my cell phone,” she recalls. “And then I had to convince him that I wasn’t talking on my phone.”

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“He was like, ‘Why were you crying?’ I’m like, ‘Because I’m nine months pregnant and the paparazzi are following me,’ and he was like, ‘Why would paparazzi be following you?’ ” Philipps says. “I was like, ‘Seriously?! Now you’re negging me?!’ ”

“And then I pointed, and there were paparazzi taking my picture while I was getting my ticket and he was like, ‘Oh, sorry about that. Okay, I’m gonna let you go, um … don’t talk on the phone,’ ” she continues. “I was like, ‘I wasn’t talking on the phone!’ “