Jenna Bush Hager Shares Her Secret For Making the Most of Mommy-and-Me Time

Jenna Bush Hager isn't resting on her laurels since leaving the White House. In fact, her current duties may be even more high-profile than when her dad was president. During the day, she splits her time between the Today show and Southern Living magazine. At night, she enters mommy mode, tending to the needs of her 1-year-old daughter, Mila. And if those tasks weren't enough, she recently became the spokeswoman for Bing's newest educational effort, Bing in the Classroom. The free program, which officially launched on April 23, provides a safer search engine for kids to use in school. In addition to setting strict filters to block out any adult content, the school-only search engine allows kids to do research without being bombarded by advertisements, keeping students on task and preventing them from stumbling across inappropriate content.

As a former elementary school teacher, Hager believes the program will be valuable to everyone involved in education. "I'm thrilled to be partnering with a program that I know will help so many students and teachers around the country," she says.

I sat down with the former first daughter — in supersmall desks, no less — to talk about education, technology, and, of course, motherhood.

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POPSUGAR: There are so many great educational programs to support. What made you choose Bing in the Classroom?

Jenna Bush Hager: I think the main thing is that it's for kids and teachers. The fact that it literally was designed to protect children is something I'm very interested in, and as a mom I feel even more compelled to get behind. It also includes these creative and fun lesson plans for teachers. Because I was a teacher and now that I have a child, anything that is pro-teachers and pro-students is something I want to get behind.

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PS: This program is very technology-based, and kids are growing up in such a tech-heavy world. Is there a balance between kids being tech-savvy and tech-obsessed?

JBH: That's something that parents, especially new parents, have to take into account. I mean, I didn't have a cell phone until I was in college. It was just something our generation and our parents didn't have to worry about. It's a really interesting balance, and one that we're trying to find.

We put our cell phones in the front of the house, so we are not on them in front of our daughter. The reason that she wants them and the reason why she's interested in computers is because she has two parents who work a lot and who are constantly on our computers and phones. It's mostly to protect parent time. I don't want to be distracted by my emails coming in when I'm with her. I only have a couple free hours a day and I don't want to be worried about the next work email when I'm with her.

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PS: Speaking of work, you went back shortly after giving birth. How do you balance work with motherhood?

JBH: I don't know. [Laughs] I haven't found that balance yet. I think the main thing is when I'm with her to recognize that the time is really precious, and it's harder done than said. When you're working on a project, you constantly think about it, which is why we literally have to put our cell phones away. Otherwise you can't help but look at it. When she goes to bed, we can get back on our phones and get back to work.

It's hard, but many moms have done it before me and many will do it after. I'm happy I work because I want to show her the power that women have to do it all. But you just can't do it all at the same time. So when I'm with her, work is somewhere else.

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PS: Mila just turned 1. What's been the most memorable moment for you?

JBH: Every single moment. She is just the best baby in the world, and I love watching her become this person. She laughs at everything. She's . . . sorry, I'm crying because I'm a new mother and I miss her so much . . . She's so curious, active, and funny. She is going to be this major character, which Henry and I will have to deal with somehow when she grows up.