She’s desperate for family time
Whipping up cappuccinos in her sparkling Santa Monica kitchen, Marcia Cross apologizes for her home being a bit cluttered.
Oh, how very Bree of her.
But aside from a stroller with a broken wheel awaiting repair, Cross’ cozy home on a well-manicured street is in far better shape than Wisteria Lane, home to her obsessively perfect “Desperate Housewive’s” character.
When last we saw Bree and friends two Sundays ago, they were struggling to rebuild their lives after a deadly tornado.
Even more devastating: the writers’ strike that has halted “Housewives” production indefinitely, leaving the set still in ruins.
“It was awful, terrible,” Cross says of watching her TV home destroyed. “I hated that shoot, because that’s our little paradise.
“I had to tell myself, ‘This is just make-believe.’ It was that wretched.”
Aside from that temporary ugliness, it has been a sunny season; ratings have held strong and reviews have been positive.
There’s even a bright side to the strike.
The break has allowed Cross to spend more time with her husband, financial adviser Tom Mahoney, and their 10-month-old twin daughters, Eden and Savannah.
Now 20 pounds apiece, the twins are on the verge of walking.
“My arms have never looked better,” Cross says.
While Cross ran off her extra pregnancy pounds on a treadmill, she’s not up to showing lots of skin on screen, as she did during the show’s first season.
“If I had to be in my red underwear again, I probably would have panicked,” she says.
Cross hopes to spare her girls some of the insecurities she has faced as an actress.
“I’d like for them to be scientists or painters,” she says. “I don’t want them to spend as much time having to think about their looks as I have. I want them to be free of that.”
Cross, 45, is grateful to be a mom at her age but does not embrace being called a “role model” for other women in their 40s.
She had in vitro fertilization, and she advises women to “have your children as young as you can and don’t be fooled by (older) women having babies, because it’s very expensive and (requires) a lot of needles and shots.”
Thinking of her own parents – mom Janet, in her late 70s, and dad Mark, in his 80s – Cross is saddened by the thought she may not enjoy the same amount of time with her own children:
“In 20 years, I’m going to be in my late 60s and they’re going to be 20. I hate that I’m not going to be there for my kids forever.”
With that in mind, Cross was inspired to develop the Legacy Keeper ($50 at Hallmark Gold Crown stores), which allows families to record memories and organize mementos.
Her own family isn’t necessarily complete. After conceding there are no more pregnancies in her future, Cross lets out a giggle.
“If somebody handed me a couple of boys, I’d be like, ‘All right, c’mon,’ ” she says. “I’m not ready to throw out all the baby stuff just yet.”
The birthday bunch
“60 Minutes” commentator Andy Rooney is 89. Singer Jack Jones is 70. Actress Faye Dunaway is 67. Actress Holland Taylor (“Two and a Half Men”) is 65. Actress Emily Watson is 41. Rapper LL Cool J is 40. Actor Jason Bateman is 39. Musician Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) is 39.