Getty Images
January Jones is determined to raise her 5-year-old son around strong women, sans father figure.
In a recent interview with UK’s Red magazine, the Mad Men actress has sealed her status as a badass single mother, discussing why she’s not at all concerned that her 5-year-old son Xander is without a masculine parental figure.
“It’s good to have strong women around a man,” she says. “To teach him to respect women. He doesn’t have a male person in his life saying ‘don’t cry’ or ‘you throw like a girl.’ All those sh***y things dads accidentally do.”
Instead, Xander is surrounded by amazing female role models, with actresses like Rose Byrne and Amy Adams in Jones’ inner circle.
Giving birth she chose to be surrounded by only women.
“My younger sisters [Jacey and Jina] and my mum and my doula were in the room. My brother-in-law and my dad were next door. I only wanted women with me,” she remembers. “Female energy. And I was embarrassed – your body does all these crazy things. It was a 30-hour process but it was awesome. I’d love to do it again.”
But Jones is also grateful for the men in Xander’s life.
“Xander has a lot of bro time with the neighbour dads and my dad, who is super young.”
Questions about her romantic aspirations make Jones uncomfortable, and she’s made it very clear that she’s happy on her own, despite other people’s efforts to set her up.
“People want to set me up all the time and I’m like, ‘No way.’ If I meet someone and we go out, then fine, but I’m not going to go look … ”
“Something else would suffer if a relationship came along. Yes, I’m willing to make that sacrifice for the right relationship – I just don’t feel I need a partner. Do I want one? Maybe. But I don’t feel unhappy or lonely. It would have to be someone so amazing that I would want to make room. Someone who would contribute to my happiness and not take away from it. I realise I have very high expectations and will probably have to compromise – but my life is so full. It’s not like, ‘Aww, I wish I had a man.’ After I had Xander, I went on a couple of dates and I was like, ‘I’d rather be at home sleeping, or watching TV or hanging out with my kid.’”
