How Witney Carson Is Parenting Her Two (Soon to Be Three) Sons

There's no shortage of things moms are told they should feel guilty about. Fortunately, this isn't that kind of conversation. In our Mom Guilt series, we're talking about the funny, relatable, blink-and-you'll-miss-them moments that make parents second-guess themselves—before moving on five minutes later. For Witney Carson, a pro dancer on Dancing With the Stars and mom to two young sons—Leo, 5, and Jet, 3—with another boy on the way, that can mean feeling less guilty about traveling for work, finding activewear that doesn't stain, and enjoying Bluey just as much as her kids. Read on for the products, routines, style staples, and parenting philosophies getting her through this season of motherhood.

Hello! What do you feel guilty about right now?

Witney Carson: Right now, I feel guilty that I'm not with them. I'm currently traveling for work, and my boys are home. I'm so much of a caretaker with them that not being able to feed them, be around them, take care of them… I know they're in good hands and happy and well and going to school, but I still feel guilty about not being with them.

I think we need to realize that it's okay to still have your work and your sense of self, too. To do the things you need to do in life, you can't always be with them 24/7. Trust me, I definitely wish I could. I was looking at flights today, like, “How can I get there from New York for only a few hours?” But it's not going to happen, because that's how it is sometimes.

How has motherhood changed the way you get dressed?

I am comfy 24/7. I dress very functional now, and I try to not wear a lot of clothes that could get stained. With boys, it's very messy. They're eating chocolate or ketchup, and they're wiping it on you while you're holding them. Anything that I don't want stained, I don't wear.

What's the item in your closet that works the hardest?

Probably my sweat sets or leggings. I love anything Free People right now because everything fits very loose, and my bump is growing like crazy. I'll wear anything with a loose band that's really comfortable, but all my Free People pants are getting used the most.

What's something you were wearing lately that racked up the compliments?

I'm always in activewear. I go to work and wear activewear, and then I come home and I'm still in activewear because with boys you're running around and still very, very active. Recently, I wore an Aritzia jumpsuit, and I got so many compliments. It was actually really great. It kind of boosted my confidence a little bit.

What's the best thing you've bought this year—for yourself?

I am constantly buying clothes, which helps with the retail therapy. I just bought this By Gianna bag that holds all of my things. It's really nice because I can just shove all the boys' things in there, and it still looks really put together. Anytime I walk out the door with it, I feel very chic, even though it's affordable.

What's the best thing you've bought this year—for your kids?

They were going a little stir-crazy, so the best thing we bought for them recently is a big jujitsu mat. We just blew it up in the living room—we don't have a coffee table, we have nothing nice in there—and they love it. They jump on it, they wrestle on it, and no one gets hurt. My life is so much easier. It's been amazing.

What’s the thing that helps you feel like yourself on chaotic days?

My skincare. If I miss my skincare, then it's usually not a great day. You can't pour from a cup half empty, so it's very much a habit for me to make sure my skincare is on and I feel refreshed and ready for the day. And matcha. I'm a big matcha girl.

What's the beauty product you've repurchased the most?

I wear a lot of SPF makeup, because I'm sweating so much and constantly in interviews and still need to look good. I use a SPF sunscreen foundation from Alastin, and it's great. I've probably repurchased that the most.

What's the beauty treatment that's worth every penny (and your time)?

Facials are definitely worth your time. And it's not necessarily a beauty treatment, but massages. I've been getting prenatal massages every other week, and it is so worth it, especially in this stage of pregnancy and how active I've been.

What's your most realistic form of self-care these days?

Making sure I eat well. When your life gets so chaotic and you're so busy, sometimes you forget to nourish your body. I think eating well helps us mentally, it helps us have more clarity, and obviously it helps us have the energy to function during the day. Like I said before, you can't pour from a glass half empty. So it's important to take care of yourself, eat well, and make sure you get lots of protein. Especially because I'm pregnant, it's very much important to me to make that a priority.

What's a wellness trend or routine you've actually stuck with in parenthood?

We really make it a point to have family dinners, so we put all of our phones away and make sure there's no TV on. Sometimes, we'll do special dinner nights where we can watch a movie while we eat and the kids get really excited about it. But most of the time, it's really important for us, even if we go out to dinner, to have no phones and really be with the kids because we are so busy and travel so much. In my childhood, my parents really made a point to try to do that every day. I know it's not always possible, but when it is, we try to make sure we put phones away for dinnertime.

What's your favorite way to reset after kiddo bedtime, or at the end of a long day?

Oh, my favorite thing to do is take off my makeup, number one. Take off my bra, number two. And then, I'll watch a show to just completely disconnect from everything. I recently got an embroidery kit, so I've been embroidering while I watch TV. I'm making these Thanksgiving napkins and initialing all my kids' initials onto them, which is really fun.

What's the purchase you thought was ridiculous until you had kids?

You know that booger sucker? I thought that was the weirdest, most disgusting thing ever until I had kids and they had booger noses. It's all we do when they're little. Now they can blow their own nose, but when they're little it was so key for them to breathe. I thought that product was so ridiculous, and now we have like 50 of them.

What's your most-frequent Amazon purchase refill?

Grace and Stella under eye patches. They're so good. I try and put them on every single day, and I'll put some of them in the refrigerator. They're caffeine infused, and it's key with all the tired, sleepless nights that we have. And then, have you ever tried the Miss Mouth stain remover? It's like magic. I carry that around with me everywhere. Anytime you get a stain or the boys get a stain, spray that on and it literally takes it away.

What's the one toy or book your kid doesn’t ignore after five minutes?

So we recently got these magnifying tools that take pictures, so you actually can zoom in on bugs and take a picture of it. It's a camera and microscope in one. My sons will do adventures and scavenger hunts with that for hours. They just brought them on the plane. There's so many things that don't hold their attention, but those do.

What's something you bought because social media convinced you and it actually lived up to the hype?

I get a lot from TikTok Shop. I buy a lot of kitchen items because I really love to cook. I think the last thing that I got was a scissor cutter for cucumbers or carrots, stuff like that, just something easy, and it actually lived up to the hype. I use it every single day, and I'm like, “How did I live without this?”

You get a chance to re-do your registry. What are you putting on it?

I would skip the bottle warmers. We were always on the go, so we'd just be using cold or lukewarm water. My firstborn was used to warm milk, so it was very hard to take him anywhere because we'd have to warm up the milk. So, forget that. I would definitely put a Snuggle Me. We use that all the time. I do actually like the bottle cleaners because it doesn't take up room in the dishwasher, and I like everything to be sterilized. Breast pumps are super important for me. I'm always on the go, so I need the wireless breast pumps. And then, obviously, all the postpartum recovery stuff like ice packs. I had mastitis last time, so heating and ice packs for the breasts are necessary.

What's a purchase you absolutely influenced your other parent friends to buy?

Oh, I actually just gave my sister-in-law the Bumbo. It's really easy to clean, and they love it because they can be close by and in the mix with everything. That was a good one.

What's sitting in your online shopping cart right now?

It's a lot of home decor stuff. I just was shopping on McGee & Co and Amazon looking for Christmas decorations because I'm hosting. So it's a lot of dinnerware things, plates, napkins, stuff like that. I love hosting, that's my main thing.

What’s a parenting “rule” you’ve totally abandoned.

That my kids will always look put together before we leave the house. I feel so bad because I used to judge people, like, “Oh wow, your kids are a mess. How do you leave the house like that?” You just don't get it until you have kids, and then you're like, “Sure, wear the Spider-Man outfit. Absolutely. Do it.” You always want to look somewhat presentable, but when they're little, do what works. You're in survival mode. Wear the Spider-Man.

What's one thing you're obsessed with right now that has nothing to do with motherhood?

I have so many hobbies right now. I'm kind of obsessed with embroidering and my little crafts. When I get home, my mind is still racing. I'm still energized, and I need to be doing something, but I don't want to be working. So, this is an outlet for me to still be creative, but not stress about work so much. I'm obsessed with my crafting era in motherhood. It's fun for me because I'm creating something that I'll actually use, which is nice. I don't feel like I'm wasting time.

What’s the most relatable movie/book/podcast/TV show about motherhood?

I love Bluey. My kids watch it all the time, and it is the most relatable kids' TV show. I love that the kids love it, but also the parents can sit and watch it too. We're a big Bluey family, so that's what we do in the mornings. I know people are like, “No screens in the mornings,” but we love it. We make our tea, watch Bluey, and hang out. It's the most relatable TV series ever.

What's something you wasted time feeling guilty about that you don't anymore?

Breastfeeding. I was so guilty about that at the beginning with my first. And my husband would be like, “Why are you so stressed about this? Just feed the kid formula. It's fine.” As women, we take that on—that feeling of, if I don't breastfeed, I'm not being a woman. I'm not fulfilling my duty. But it's very hard for me to breastfeed, in all sense of the word. So I do it for about three months, and then I'm done. The second time around, it was much easier. I just don't put any pressure on myself. Fed is best. I don't feel guilty about it any longer, and it's much better. I live my life much happier.

What was the last thing you hid from your children?

I'm always hiding candy. They love it. They don't really get candy, so when they do get some, they're obsessed. I've hid that, and then I also... It's so funny because we teach our kids not to lie, but I feel like I'm constantly like, “The park is closed today!” Stuff like that.

Finish this sentence: “A good mom...”

A good mom... That's kind of a loaded sentence, right? A good mom does the best she can in the situation she's in. I think that every kid has a mom or a dad that is meant for them, so you just simply putting in effort and trying is being a good mom. You don't have to be perfect, and no one is, but as long as you're trying, that's amazing. A good mom is just someone who puts forth effort.

What's your latest "because I said so" moment?

Yeah, we do a lot of those. We really try and explain everything to the kids. My oldest is very logical, so if we explain something to him, he's better to mind. But my youngest gets into my makeup and breaks everything. He's like, “Why can't I play with your makeup?” And I just say, “Because I said: Don't touch it.” I don't want to explain to him, you break and ruin everything, but he does. I have to keep re-buying everything!