Lala Kent on Being a Single Mom of Two—‘How Did I Get So Lucky To Have This Life?'

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When I get on a Zoom to chat with Lala Kent for Parents, she's snuggled up on the couch with her daughters, Ocean, 4, and Sosa, 9 months. The podcaster and reality star looks so cozy and content. I hate disrupting this sweet moment.
'I have two little kids that are getting sick, so they were up all night, and they still wake up at the crack of dawn—so I feel like a zombie this morning,' she laughs.
But what I see in the frame is a glowing, happy mama showcasing what a difference a year can make.
When I chatted with Kent in August of 2024, she was eight months pregnant with Sosa and still reeling from the headlines made during season 11 of Vanderpump Rules. After a painful breakup with her daughter Ocean's father, Kent decided to become a single mother by choice, even choosing her sperm donor on camera.
When Sosa arrived on September 3, 2024, the cameras were down. Kent felt it was a blessing that she could focus on her family before going back to her rigorous VPR filming schedule. Except on November 26th, a major announcement rocked not only longtime fans of Vanderpump Rules but also the cast. While the show would return for season 12, it was getting a complete reboot. Except for Lisa Vanderpump, none of the original cast, including Kent, would be back.
Fast forward to the summer of 2025, and Kent has embraced the news with grace and optimism.
'Reality TV fuels my soul. It's just part of who I am. With that being said, I definitely don't think it's the end of the road for me, but I have really been enjoying this time off,' she shares. 'I've been able to deep dive into motherhood, and I haven't missed a moment. I'm at every pickup, every drop off, every time these kids wake up and go to bed; I've been there. And these moments are very fleeting at this age—it goes by very fast.'
Kent recalls that when Ocean was born in March of 2021, Vanderpump Rules had ceased filming because of the pandemic.
'I got to bond with Ocean and figure out being a new mom. So, with Vanderpump getting canceled when Sosa came into the mix? I get to enjoy her. I really feel like the universe is on my side,' she says.
Kent was completely in her element when she joined VPR back in 2015. Her fearlessness, sharp tongue, and vulnerability made her an instant reality TV star. And let's be honest—it was impossible at the time to imagine Kent, or any of her castmates, growing up and having kids.
'I was 23 years old when I started doing Vanderpump Rules, and there's been an evolution with so many of us becoming parents,' she says. 'I know how people are looking at me. It's how I first looked at Snooki and JWoww when they became moms! But they are amazing moms who have totally crushed it.'
Adjusting to life with two daughters came naturally for Kent.
'I feel like we sunk right into this new dynamic. It is so fulfilling and it's difficult, but we're a well-oiled machine,' she says. 'And I just don't think I'm done. I think I need one more. I am loving it so much that I'm not ready for the stages to be over as they pass.'
Kent's plan is to get pregnant within the next year, so Sosa would be well into her "2s" by the time the new baby arrives.
'I think that's a good age gap. I didn't love that Ocean and Sosa are three and a half years apart. I like sticking to the two-and-a-half range. But you know what? The universe has a plan for me, and we just roll with it,' she says.
If it were up to Ocean, she would be the big sister to 'five more babies.'
'She's really taken on the role of being a big sister. Ocean is only 4, but she's always seemed like an old soul and just wise beyond her years,' Kent explains. 'When Sosa came into the mix, it just gave Ocean a different level of confidence. She really enjoys helping me out, even throwing away a dirty diaper. That was huge for her. She's like, 'I touched a poopy diaper!' She really sunk into becoming a little caretaker, and it's adorable to watch.'
Since she was a baby, Ocean has had the added pressure of living between two households. While things were contentious with Kent and her ex in the beginning, she says that has been 'put to bed,' and they now have 'boundaries' as co-parents that are respected.
'Ocean was so young when she had to start bouncing back and forth, so it's just very much a part of her norm. She knows that she always comes back to this house,' says Kent. 'Ocean just finished her first year of preschool, and the school said she's a little girl who is happy, healthy, and thriving. And when you have such an up-and-down relationship with your co-parent, you worry how that will affect your child. Even though she's 4, kids are like sponges. They can feel our energy. So to know that she's doing so well given the circumstances—it's all you could hope for.'
Kent has been lucky to create her own family and carefully curate a village that includes her mom, her brother Easton, and many of her castmates from Vanderpump Rules and its spin-off, The Valley.
Kent has made a few cameos on The Valley and appears on the season two After Show. She considers Scheana Shay, Shay's husband Brock, and their daughter Summer Moon 'blood, they're family,' and is very close with Brittany Cartwright, explaining they've 'really leaned into each other.' She's also reconnected with Kristen Doute of VPR and The Valley since Doute had a baby girl named Kaia in June.
'Kristen and I have been able to put things aside and lean into what we have in common right now,' Kent says.
But one of the most talked-about members of Kent's village is Tom Schwartz. He's the 'cool uncle' to her girls and, despite their famous rounds of bickering on Vanderpump Rules, is now one of Kent's closest friends.
'I love that he and I have gone to war with each other and said the most horrendous things and then can be totally fine,' she says.
Though the online rumor mill has gone wild, insisting that Kent and Schwartz are more than 'just friends,' Kent is quick to set the record straight. She admits that since season 11 of Vanderpump Rules ended, she's avoided the internet at all costs.
'Schwartz showed me [what people were saying online] and I was dying at quotes like, 'They've been seen all over LA together.' I'm like, 'I don't leave this house,'' she laughs. 'Schwartz is one of my dearest friends. People sometimes want a fun thing to believe in and talk about. If I need to be on the receiving end of that with Tom Schwartz, then I'm in good company.'
With two daughters (and thoughts of a third baby) plus so many friends keeping Kent's life very full, I did wonder if dating was even on her radar.
'Date?' she laughs. 'I like to say I've been talking to men because dating means that there's a potential for it to go somewhere. And I just don't want that right now,' she shares.
Her biggest concern is how dating affects the time she spends with her daughters.
'If I start dating, you're taking me away from my children physically. But what's even worse? If my heart gets involved and you do something to make it hurt, you will take me mentally away from my children. That means I could be in the same room as my kids, and I'm not present. I just cannot allow it,' says Kent. 'Ocean was seven months old when I was taken away from her emotionally, spiritually, physically—all the things—because I was in fight mode [with my ex]. I will not allow it to happen again.'
Self-love is one of the most important lessons that Kent wants to teach her daughters.
'Once you've really conquered self-love, it's really hard for the world to rock you. It will be really hard for a man to get you to accept things that you don't deserve,' she says. 'It's brutal out there. I'm instilling self-love and confidence in my household so they can take on the world. When they come home, they can have their breakdowns, but we'll build them back up to go take on the nitty gritty again.'
Kent is already seeing Ocean's confident nature shine through and speak up.
'Ocean walked up to a parent the other day, tapped them and said, 'Your daughter did this to me today, and it really hurt my feelings. I think she needs to apologize. Could you talk to her?''
Kent was blown away by the moment.
'Oftentimes, we just go through life without even thinking about what we're doing. Then, when your kid starts saying something and you're like, 'Where did she get that?' And then it comes out of your mouth and you clock it—but you've never clocked it before? So, maybe she learned it from me,' says Kent. 'But all I know is my jaw was on the floor. And I wasn't going to go up to the mom and apologize. If that's how Ocean was feeling, she should talk about it. It was a proud moment for me.'
No matter what the future holds for Kent's reality TV career, she is grateful that her cup is so full.
'The break from being on reality TV has been so nice. I've really gotten to know myself as a mother. I chose to be a single mother. When I talk to people about it, they look at me like I'm crazy that I got a sperm donor and was on a reality TV show. I just never thought that this would be my norm but it feels so effing normal,' says Kent. 'My whole dynamic, being a house full of chicks. How did I get so lucky to have this life?'
Read the original article on Parents