Eva Mendes has no regrets. The actress and entrepreneur recently discussed her journey as a mother of two girls, Esmeralda, 9, and Amada, 8, whom she shares with her partner Ryan Gosling. She shed a light on parenting and becoming a mother as a woman in her 40’s and why retiring from acting to focus on her kids was the “easiest” decision she’s ever made.

Mendes was featured in PEOPLE, where she discussed parenting and why having kids as an older woman was the right call for her. “When I was 40, it was a big deal for people when I was pregnant, and it wasn’t for me. And then I was 42 and I was pregnant with my second one and people were like, ‘Oh my God, you’re going to be so tired. That’s why people have kids in their 20s.’ I was like, that’s the most sorry, asinine thing I’ve ever heard,” she said.

“It takes more patience. In my 20s, I shouldn’t have even been around a child. I was just foul-mouthed and smoking. I could not have raised kids in any other era of my life but now, for sure.”

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Mendes also discussed her decision to quit acting

Mendes also opened up about leaving her acting career behind. She revealed that she chose to prioritize her kids during their childhood, knowing that that special period in their lives was something she wanted to be involved in. “It was the easiest decision I’ve ever made,” she said regarding her choice to retire from acting. “I was older and I knew that my kids are going to be little once, and whatever I do or don’t do right now is going to affect them the rest of their life.”