Eva Mendes shares 'emotional' insight into life with children and husband Ryan Gosling

Eva Mendes is opening up about life behind closed doors with her husband, Ryan Gosling, and their children.

The actress - who prefers to keep her personal life firmly out of the spotlight - gave rare insight into parenting Esmeralda, seven, and Amada, six, during an interview with People.

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The star has partnered with cleaning brand Skura and revealed how life at home works for her family of four.

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"Ryan's the cook. He's an incredible cook," she said. "I think that there's a really nice balance to 'you cook, I clean.' And it just works for us."

Eva admitted that she's a "control freak" when it comes to cleaning and she finds it therapeutic.

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"Life is so chaotic. But the one thing I can control is my house, my kitchen," she said."So when I do the dishes it's meditative for me. It really goes deeper than just cleaning up. It really gives me clarity. Clean sink equals clear mind for me."

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Eva says working from home with two young children is a challenge

Eva and her siblings were raised single-handedly by her beloved mom and she revealed that their small home was always kept clean.

"Growing up in a tiny, tiny apartment with a lot of people, we didn't have anything," she admitted. "But when the house was clean, it was like, 'Hey, I just feel better.' Everybody felt better. So for me, it's really emotional."

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The Place Beyond the Pines actress has taken a long hiatus from acting to focus on her family and other projects and says working from home is definitely a struggle.

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eva-mendes

Eva admits life at home is chaotic

"It's a mess!" she said. "I'll be Zooming with various people throughout the day and I have no idea. I'll see people kind of giggle, and I see my five year old, who just turned six, will be right behind me with her blankie and looking so cute."

While she has a rule that if the door is closed, the kids aren't to enter unless it's "really important," things rarely go her way.

"Of course, my six year old will run in and say, 'It's so important.' And I'm just like, 'What?' She's like, 'Essie took my Barbie,'" she revealed. "But it's hard to be mad because it's so cute."

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