Kristen Bell Reveals 'Valuable' Parenting Advice When Raising Kids: 'Use Your Support System'

The Good Place actress teamed up with SpinMaster and Paw Patrol to showcase the meaning behind being a PAWrent and embracing children's love of learning

By

Anya Leon

and

Angela Andaloro

Published on July 28, 2022 02:43 PM

Kristen Bell is a firm believer that parenting takes a village — plus a little help from Paw Patrol.

The Good Place actress, 41, teamed up with SpinMaster and Paw Patrol to welcome some new PAWrents into the fold of the hit Nickelodeon series, now in its ninth season. A new ad Bell shared on Instagram shows the mom of two hyping new families up for what she affectionately calls "the Paw Patrol years."

Speaking exclusively with PEOPLE, Bell shares how she learned to embrace the Paw Patrol years and gives her advice for parents raising young kids.

The actress emphasizes the importance that parents utilize their support system when navigating the ups and downs in their child's life.

"Do not be afraid to use your support system has been a really valuable piece of advice for me. It's one thing to know you have friends and family, a neighbor, a cousin, whatever, but it's quite another to pick up the phone when you need something," Bell says.

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She then went on to explain what made her take a greater interest in Paw Patrol as a parent.

"Initially when my kids fell in love with Paw Patrol I wanted to be annoyed because I saw that it was everywhere — much like I'm sure most parents feel about Frozen, where it's just everywhere, saturating your kids — but I hit this point where I actually started to love it and started to enjoy it with my kids," says Bell.

"There's this beautiful idea about parenting where you get to see the world through your kid's eyes again and I realize that the benefit of something like Paw Patrol is that it has a magic about it that makes kids fall in love with it, and every single kid I know did it with Paw Patrol."

Bell, who shares two daughters with husband Dax Shepard, says she appreciates the messages her kids are taking away from the show's themes and stories.

"They're simple enough for them to understand but they teach kindness and inclusivity and it was basically like having a co-parent in the house," the actress explains. "The way they write Paw Patrol is so brilliant because there's something for everyone, each character is a little archetype of an interest of a kid so when you put them together. Every kid can identify with one and you create this well-rounded group that teaches bravery and teamwork."

"Now that I look back, because my oldest is graduating out of the Paw Patrol years, it was such a sweet time," Bell acknowledges. "So we made these cute videos to let other parents know, give into it, sit down on the couch, watch it with them because all of these cliches you say about parenting that it's brief, and it's fleeting and you'll miss it when it's gone are true."

Bell explains that she made sure the new ad was true to the parenting experience, which of course meant having toys everywhere. The actress encourages parents to embrace the mess and when it gets to be too much, conquer it like a team.

"It doesn't feel like you're cleaning up a mess every five seconds, you ARE cleaning up a mess every five seconds," she jokes. "My parenting framework, the lens that I view parenting through, is don't fight it so much. There is going to be a mess tomorrow. When you have the energy and the wherewithal to clean it up because you want to have a nice kitchen or a nice living room, do it. And on other days, enjoy throwing in the towel and let them make a mess."

"At some point, the house will get dirty enough that you can say, 'Okay guys, I need my team. We got to call Adventure Bay. We got to do it together,'" she continues. "And then it becomes a little bit more of a teaching situation. I let myself off the hook and I hope to give that feeling to other parents. It's a really hard job."

With summer wrapping up, Bell is excited to make a few more memories with her family before her daughters head back to school.

The kids are looking forward to getting back to school after a summer of travel adventures. "My kids, they love being at home during the summer," she says, "but I think they are getting antsy to be back in a situation where their brains are challenged and their bodies are challenged at recess and they can talk to their friends."

The grand finale will be the family's two-week "annual summer motorhome trip," Bell shares.

"We're going to go to Idaho and visit some friends, and our girls love camping and love being in the motorhome. Shockingly, our family does really well in close quarters so I'm hoping that that will be a good summer ender before we go back to school."

Spin Master's latest PAW Patrol toys are available now on Amazon (including the Highway Rescue Playset featured in the video), Walmart.com and Target.com .