The `Mud` star - who has a 13-year-old daughter, Ava, and nine-year-old son, Deacon, with her ex-husband Ryan Phillippe, as well as eight-month-old son, Tennessee, with her husband Jim Toth - finds juggling her busy career with motherhood a struggle but does her utmost to ensure her kids are always happy.

She said: "I try to take care of the kids first... Sort out their lives and school, and make sure everything`s good. If the kids are happy, the parents are happy.

"It`s not a piece of cake - that`s for sure. It`s not that easy to have such a busy life. I always feel like taking a nap. But everything worth having in life takes a great deal of hard work."

The 37-year-old actress - who was charged for disorderly conduct last month after shouting at a police officer who had arrested Jim on suspicion of DUI - insists her mum, Betty Reese, is the best role model she could ask for because she taught her how to become a respectable mother.

She explained: "She loves me unconditionally. She is a hardworking and amazing mom."

The blonde beauty also credits her husband for being an "amazing" dad and claims he helps her to relax when she gets a day off.

Speaking to OK! Magazine, she said: "I like to cook. Jim is really amazing with the kids. So when I`m not working I want to spend every moment with the three kids."
sections: Celebrities