Kate Hudson Calls Son Ryder’s Preteen Years a ‘Beautiful Time’: ‘It’s All Changing and Starting’

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Kate Hudson was a young starlet focused on her acting career and didn’t live out any wild-child Hollywood stereotypes.

And luckily, she doesn’t think she’ll have to worry too much about her preteen son Ryder giving her any problems, either.

“Ryder’s a great kid. But, you know, he’s 12. So it’s all changing and starting. It’s a beautiful time,” she told PEOPLE Tuesday at the CFDA and Fabletics Celebrate for a Cause, which doubled as the opening of her 16th Fabletics store in Torrance, California.

Adds the 37-year-old Almost Famous actress, who shares Ryder with ex-husband Chris Robinson, “I feel like seeing him now is the most amazing thing because you’re really starting to understand and see their character as they get to this age.”

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“You get a glimpse of, like, are the teenage years going to be … you get a little nervous,” Hudson continues. “I think I’m going to be good. I think I might — knock on wood, but I think he’s going to do just fine. So I couldn’t be prouder.”

Ryder isn’t the only one making mom proud. Hudson’s younger son — Bing, 5, with ex-fiancé Matthew Bellamy — is asserting his independence. And the Fabletics maven is raving about it.

“He loves to do things on his own. Loves to figure out everything,” she says. “He’s always been like that, but now more than ever. He wants to read already. He really does soak up information and knowledge. He loves to learn new things, so that’s exciting.”

While Bing may have hit the milestone of independence, one he hasn’t reached yet is a visit from the tooth fairy.

“We’re still waiting on Bing losing a tooth,” Hudson says.

Mom also doesn’t let Bing and his brother just sit around. So the boys don’t stare at electronics all day — for Hudson, it’s about getting her sons “out in the dirt.”

“You kick them out the door,” she says with a laugh. “You’re like, ‘Get outside.’ I think sometimes, as parents, we need to remember that it’s fun to get in the dirt with them. And you find so much joy in that experience with your kids.”

And for Hudson, they make her already active lifestyle even more enjoyable when they can be active together. “It’s a conscious awareness to stay mindful with your kids,” she explains. “It’s way more fun to get active with them than it is to be active without them.”

— Abby Stern

Kate Hudson: I’m Keeping My Love Life Private Until There’s Someone ‘I Am Introducing to My Kids’

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Kate Hudson isn’t going to be sharing juicy details about anyone she’s dating anytime soon.

“The reason I don’t talk about anything like that is because I have kids,” the actress, who is mom to sons Bingham, 5, and Ryder, 12, tells Marie Claire for their October cover story.

“People ask that question as if, ‘Oh yeah, it’s really healthy to publicly talk about who I am or am not dating when I’ve got a tween.’

“[Ryder] can read, and he can hear,” continues Hudson, 37. “I’m not going to indulge in that kind of thing until there’s someone in my life who I am introducing to my kids.”

Want all the latest pregnancy and birth announcements, plus celebrity mom blogs? Click here to get those and more in the PEOPLE Babies newsletter.

The Something Borrowed actress is candid about the pressures of motherhood, sharing that she doesn’t expect perfection from herself and expects her children to understand the realities.

“I don’t try to sugarcoat things. I’ll say, ‘I’m doing the best I can,’ ” she admits. “I like cooking, I like presenting. I like it to be an experience and [my kids] help me with it, but if they want something after that, I’ll be like, ‘Look, I’m placing a meal out for you like a king.

RELATED VIDEO: Why Did Kate Hudson’s Maternal Instincts Kick in After Holding a Baby Panda?

” ‘I can’t do everything,’ ” she adds. ” ‘I’m going to have to be the OK mom.’ ”

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As someone who understands the challenges in balancing work and parenting, Hudson says she sees presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton in a unique light.

“There’s so much focus on her likability. I want to elect a president to get the job done,” she says. “As a woman, and as a working mom trying to get things done, you find yourself meeting adversity a lot, but you never talk about it because you don’t want to bring attention to it. You don’t want to go there.”
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It sounds like Bingham and Ryder are in luck as far as what their mom is passing on to them, as the Almost Famous star admits that her optimistic attitude about wellness is something that was instilled in her early on.

“It was always part of our life,” says Hudson, whose brother is fellow actor Oliver Hudson. “My mom [Goldie Hawn‘s] passion is about finding joy. Even in difficult moments, she has this joy of life. And I feel the same way.”

— Jen Juneau