Lance Bass, 47, says his favorite part of the day as a dad is the hour before his twins’ bedtime.
In an interview with Business Insider, Bass said routines are key to keeping family life running smoothly despite his busy schedule.
“The main thing is our nightly routine. It just really ends their day the same way. About 7 o’clock is when everything turns off. They’ve already eaten, and we brush our teeth, we get our pajamas on, we go to their room,” he said.
“My favorite time of day is that hour before bedtime, and we’re in their room playing games or reading books,” he said.
Bass shares 4-year-old twins — a son and a daughter — with his husband, Michael Turchin. They married in 2014 and welcomed their kids via surrogate in October 2021.
The NSYNC member said fostering a love of reading is a major priority in his household.
“I want to make them very obsessed with reading, and they are. So they’re always wanting to read four to five different books a night,” Bass said.
Along with reading, Bass said he wants to instill a habit of journaling in his children.
“At the end of the day, we just write down the three things that we were grateful for, some funny things that happened, some things that maybe didn’t work out that day,” Bass said.
Having his children recount the day’s events helps them process what happened and settle down before going to sleep, he said.
“I feel like it just regulates them a good bit and gets them tired,” Bass added.
Reading and journaling have been linked to a range of benefits, from strengthening literacy skills and vocabulary to encouraging reflection and self-expression.
Carla Marie Manly, a clinical psychologist, previously told Business Insider that setting aside a specific time each day to journal can make the habit easier to maintain.
Bass isn’t the only celebrity to discuss the importance of teaching children positive habits and life skills from a young age.
Kate Hudson has said she tries to model accountability for her kids by apologizing when she makes mistakes.
“Sometimes in conflict, you go too far, and you need to say you’re sorry, instead of teaching them that you doubled down,” Hudson said. “And what you find in going to your kids and saying, ‘I could have handled this better’ or ‘I made a mistake’ or ‘I’m sorry I didn’t trust you’ — whatever the scenario — is that connection becomes stronger.”
Mia Threapleton has said her mother, Kate Winslet, tried to instill body confidence in her from a young age, including when she was insecure about showing her shoulders while swimming.
“My mom said: ‘No, this is strong. So many people would love to be able to swim the length of the pool the way you do — think of it as a positive thing,'” Threapleton said.
