Holly & Rodney Peete: on family, fame and holidays - television actress and football player - Interview

ON any given holiday, actress Holly Robinson Peete is on the road. With 5year-old twins, a newborn baby and two nannies in tow, she again will hit the road this season to take the family--and holiday spirit--to her husband, NFL quarterback Rodney Peete.

Peete is now playing with the Carolina Panthers, so Holly and the kids will head to Charlotte, N.C., for Christmas. "When it comes to holidays, the NFL waits for no one," says the popular actress. "If Christmas falls on a Sunday, everybody is still playing. When Rodney played with Detroit, they played every Thanksgiving. So we went to Rodney. It's always been sort of a holiday on-the-go for us. It's a little hectic, but the travel makes it kind of interesting."

When Rodney plays on the East Coast, twins Rodney (R.J.) and Ryan take personal interest in romping in real snow, a weather phenomenon they do not get back home in Los Angeles. There will probably be no snow in Charlotte, but other cultural and regional delights and customs await the curious and active siblings, and before long, their little brother, Robinson (born August 11) will be toddling along with them.

Throughout their eight-year marriage, Holly and Rodney have had a long-distance relationship. During 14 years in the NFL, Rodney has played with Detroit, Philadelphia, Oakland and now Carolina. In the meantime, Holly has been busy with her acting career in Los Angeles.

Yet, with dedication, resourcefulness and lots of air miles, they have been able to sustain their commitment, love and marriage--and to have three beautiful children. And despite her frequent travels, Holly has managed to do something that few actors have accomplished: She's had a role on television for 15 consecutive years.

In 1986, a few months after her graduation from Sarah Lawrence College, Holly won a starring role on the series 21 Jump Street. That was followed by starring roles on Hanging with Mr. Cooper and For Your Love. Over the years she has become one of the most visible and respected television actresses due to her charisma, talent and staying power.

After her twins were born five years ago, she went right back to work. But this time she is taking a break to be a full time wife and mother, to spend more time with the baby. "To have had the kind of consistency that I've had on television has been such a blessing," she says. "But I'm enjoying being at home, being a mom and taking a break. My agent calls me every day with some new project. If I choose something, it will have to require very simple hours because you can't get these moments back; they just zoom by. I want to live inside each one. Plus, I want to nurse a full year, so whatever I do, there will always be a baby onboard."

Holly points out, however, that because she's not regularly seen on a TV show right now does not mean she's not working. In fact, she says she's working even harder trying to keep up with two active children and nursing a baby. In addition, she and Rodney spend a lot of hands-on time running their HollyRod Foundation.

The family especially enjoys Christmas holidays, but Holly says she and Rodney take special care to expose the twins to the holidays and customs of other ethnic and cultural groups as well. The children have participated in Hanukkah and Ramadan celebrations with neighbors and family friends, and this season they will incorporate Kwanzaa into the family's holiday festivities. "Right now the kids are so intrigued by any kind of ceremony, and especially any time you have to light a candle," she says. "I think this is the perfect opportunity to teach them about Kwanzaa. It is spiritually deeper than just focusing on the man in the red suit. I want to get them away from some of the more commercial aspects of Christmas."

After the holiday, it has become a tradition for her and the children to take their toys to youngsters at a women's shelter in whichever city they happen to be in. It is part of an ongoing effort, she says, to teach them that the holidays are a time for giving to others.

Christmas dinner will consist of dishes that Holly gathers in what she calls her annual "scavenger hunt" of eclectic foods. She will first get referrals to whoever in Charlotte makes the best fried turkey, another Christmas tradition in the Peete household. "Someone turned me on to fried turkey about six years ago, and I haven't been right since," says Holly, chuckling. "When I tasted my first fried turkey, I stood next to it and didn't move away until there were only bones left.

I'm serious. But you've got to find a really, really good fried turkey. It's got to be real, real done. Not everybody knows how to make them."

Also on the menu is sweet potato pie, which she says should be no problem finding in Charlotte. And then there is her mother's macaroni and cheese, which artist manager Dolores Robinson prepares, packs and ships to the family. "It's crispy on top and she uses a bunch of different cheeses, but it's not too cheesy," Holly says of her mom's specialty. "There is just enough cheese to hold the macaroni together. It's just amazing. But after all these years that I've stood next to her in the kitchen and watched her make it, I still can't make it. I think I have a block when it comes to macaroni and cheese because that is mom's territory."