Its feeding time for her four-month-old son, Win, and things arent going exactly as planned.
Hes refusing to latch, making for a slightly chaotic first few minutes to our interview.
When shes back Win is tucked away snugly, completely hidden underneath a black shawl.
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket by Walter Van Beirendonck. Necklace by Jennifer Fisher.
Soon a very cute baby emerges from underneath the fabric, a mop of hair and huge blinking eyes.
But Im enjoying it all.
I found my way to embrace it all.
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket and shirt by R13. Sports bra by Human Nation. Shorts by The Merger. Shoes by Sacai x Nike. Necklace by Cartier.
I just decided, Hey, this is a unique time.
It is a challenging time.
And the world is changing.
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket by Etro. Pants by CO. Shoes by R13. Earrings by Jennifer Fisher. Harness by Comme Des Garçons Noir Kei Ninomiya.
But rather than letting the world change me, Im going to figure out how to change with it.
Thats been my mentality.
How do I adjust?
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket by Max Mara. Tracksuit by Versace. Shoes by Nike.
How do I really work and find the silver lining in the midst of it all?
You cant get to where you want to get to in life without a compass, she tells me.
I believe in those affirmations.
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket by Max Mara. Tracksuit by Versace. Shoes by Nike.
They decided that fully remote learning was the best decision for their family.
Our babies have intermittent asthma, so we have to be super cautious, Ciara explains.
We dont know how this virus performs.
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket by Junya Watanabe. Shorts and top by Human Nation. Boots by R13. Necklace by Heron Preston.
Because of that, Ciara turned into a self-described teachers assistant.
time for basketball, baseball, or football, as well as a designated lunch break.
They learned about the letter A and we made homemade applesauce the other week, which was really fun.
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket by Junya Watanabe. Shorts and top by Human Nation. Boots by R13. Necklace by Heron Preston.
But what was it actually like behind the scenes, navigating family life and pregnancy with pandemic uncertainties?
Ciara was six months pregnant.
She watchedPandemicon Netflix to cope and thought of ways to entertain the kids.
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket by Junya Watanabe. Shorts and top by Human Nation. Boots by R13. Necklace by Heron Preston.
It was just not being able to do things to really, truly free your mind.
What do I do?
Thank God, with Russ and I, we held on up.
Travis Matthews. Wardrobe styling by Corey Stokes at Cartel & Co. Props by David Browne. Hair by César DeLeön Ramirêz at crowdMGMT. Makeup by Yolonda Frederick at crowdMGMT. Manicure by Miho Okawara. On Ciara: Jacket by Walter Van Beirendonck. Necklace by Jennifer Fisher.
We still have the same level of love for each other.
That was just such, wow, an out-of-body experience, she says.
Luckily the rest of Ciaras pregnancy with Win went pretty much without a hitch.
Besides searing hip pain at the end, she says, it was much like the others.
Ive been very fortunate enough to have pretty easy pregnancies, she says.
Russ was literally everything in one, she jokes.
He was my husband.
He was the photographer, the videographer.
He was so cute because he set up the cameras.
And then he also got to help pull the baby out, which was really sweet.
The other difference, of course, was having to labor with a mask on.
My obstetrician, whos delivered all my babies, was not playing any games about this COVID.
I literally made my first push with Win and then he was like, She needs a mask on.
Get a mask on.
It happened so fast, so I still had my mask [down].
But he was like, Oh, no, no.
She gon put that mask on.
My mask was pretty good.
I could still breathe alright through it, so that was good.
But it was like, Wow.
Im having to deliver a baby with a mask.
What in the world?
It was literally three pushes, good ones.
Three good pushes and he was here, she says.
Theres also the fact that they are just cute together.
It turns out the opposite is true.
And sometimes we go hours doing that.
So then, by the time the end of the day comes, Oh, my gosh.
I really missed you.
Ciara looks up from her screen and lights up when she sees him.
Im doing an interview, she says, smiling.
Oh, I didnt know that, I hear him say.
Hi, babe, she replies, before shooing him away.
Just being able to do that has definitely brought us moments of joy.
Oh, my gosh, communication, communication, communication, she says.
I do believe the greatest challenge is being able to simply communicate.
If we had any challenges with anything, whenever we do, we go to communication.
She also says that, once again, planning goes a long way.
We love our babies so much.
But we got to double-check our love is feeling good too, our husbands are feeling good too.
Even so, she prefers this to trying to fit in relationship time without a plan.
When youre winging it, you get backed up, she says.
It can get a little tricky, and you might hit a little bit of a patch.
How am I being the best mom?
How can I engage more?
How can I be aware of certain things so Im really dialed in with my babies?
As a wife, what can I do to check that I keep the sexy?
What can I confirm that Im doing to be on my stuff, take care of myself?
How am I loving on myself so I still keep feeling young?
These are all questions she asks herself as she contemplates her next five years.
And when I get there, whats the next five years?
How am I living my life?
How am I maximizing my life?
I ask myself these questions, and Im just dedicated to it.
Sometimes, she says, butalways looking for that silver liningshes quick to note that pressure is a privilege.
Id rather have the pressure sometimes than not have anything to do or want for something to do.
Its all about perspective.
So what, then, does she do for self-care?
This is the first time in our conversation that Ciara hesitates.
It takes a few seconds for her to find an answer.
Grooming herself, she says.
Going for a solo run with her three Great Danes.
Thats actually been good for the mind, she says.
Even when shes thinking of herself, her kids take center stage.
No matter: Its clear that Ciara loves being a mom, wife, and businesswoman.
She tells me as much as we begin to wrap up our call.
I feel like Im in my best place ever in my life.
I love where I am in every area, she says.
Im grateful for the wisdom that life has given me with my experiences.
I love my confidence that I have as a woman.
Im loving every bit of me, and that feels good.
