Hilary Swank is raising two million dollar babies.
Two years after Yellowjackets actress, then 48, welcomed her 2-year-old twins Aya and Ohm with husband Philip Schneider, she shared insight into her journey to becoming a mom later in life and revealed why getting pregnant with her little ones at 47 was ultimately the right path for her.
“I would have had kids earlier,” Hilary, 50, told Women’s Health in an interview published April 8. “I’m not saying I actively waited until 47. But that was a magical time in my life, when it all culminated. It was the right time for a myriad of reasons.”
Indeed, the two-time Oscar winner had decided to freeze her eggs a decade prior when she was 37.
“Thankfully, I had that ability to freeze eggs for later,” she added. “It takes some of the pressure off.”
As she emphasized, for her, it gave her fewer restrictions on timing, and while knowing that not every egg will be viable, the option offered her reassurance and flexibility.
And now that she is a mom, she sees just how different her approach to parenting is now versus what she imagines it would have been if she had welcomed kids earlier.
“I’m a very different parent than I would’ve been, even in my early 40s,” Hilary explained. “I’m much more patient. I’m much more understanding. I am much more, I think, interested in a different way than I would’ve been.”
“I’m really interested in their brains. I’m fascinated about what makes them tick. And I have my career that’s already established, so I’m not divided,” she continued. “I’m able to really sink in and be present with them and be a hands-on parent.”
In the years since welcoming her kids in April 2023, the Boys Don’t Cry star has been open about her journey with motherhood, including navigating breastfeeding with two babies.
“I never had a singleton, so I’ve only known two,” Hilary noted to People in October,” but I was trying to breastfeed and trying to breastfeed two at the same time was impossible for me.”
For her, breastfeeding was important to her—and she expressed her gratitude to be able to do it.
“I feel really, really blessed that I was able to actually breastfeed at all,” Hilary said. “That doesn’t always work out like that. We [didn’t] know if that’s going to be a possibility.”
For her and her husband of six years—who split their time between Washington and Colorado—parenting is a two-person job, and they have continued to support one another as they navigate parenthood.
“My husband and I are both very, very hands-on and equal partners in our parenting,” Hilary shared. “I feel really blessed to have that.”
For more sweet family moments, keep reading.
Love Will Keep Them Warm
Hilary Swank and husband Philip Schneider enjoyed time in the snow in Park City, Utah, at Sundance in 2019.
Spooky Season
The P.S. I Love You star rang in the fall with a social media shoutout to her fur baby and her babies-to-be.
She captioned her Oct. 2022 post, “#HappyHalloween from me, Pumpkin Moon and my PumpTwins.”
It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Parenthood
Hilary had an extra special present for Christmas in 2022—two new babies, which she dubbed “gifts of a lifetime.”
Eyes for Only Each Other
Each other and their incoming arrivals! Hilary kept a hand on her growing baby bump at the 2023 Golden Globes.
Two Buns in the Oven
Hilary provides an update on her pregnancy journey with fans, captioning her Feb. 2023 post, “Oven’s heatin’ up, dough’s beginning to rise!!”
Million Dollar Baby (A)
The Million Dollar Baby star proved she has her own prizefighter when “Baby A” was caught flexing in an ultrasound image.
They’re Here
Hilary officially welcomed her twins in April 2023.
“It wasn’t easy. But boy (and girl!) was it worth it,” she captioned her announcement. “Happy Easter! Posting from pure Heaven.”
Doggy Heaven
Hilary gave a peek into her and Philip’s life at home with their many fur babies.
“So I walked into my bedroom to find this display of rescue dog nap yumminess…,” she captioned the June 2023 post. “Can you even? Terrific Teddy, Super Sufi, Kinetic Kai, Dashing Dunton and Mama Moon.”
Day Date
Hilary and Philip enjoyed a rare kid-free date at the Variety Spirituality and Faith in Entertainment Breakfast in February 2024.
And The Names Are…
After revealing Aya and Ohm’s names, Hilary explained that her daughter was named for “a Syrian refugee we met in Lebanon, so she was just this courageous brave young girl full of light going through a really difficult time.”
As for son Ohm, his moniker is “considered the first universal sound and unites all people. We thought, ‘Oh, that sounds very fitting.'”
