James and Kimberly Van Der Beek got married in August 2010. The pair were expecting their first child, a daughter they would name Olivia, but they got married because marriage was a step they wanted to take together. James confirmed news of their marriage on Twitter, simply writing, "The woman I love did me the honor of became my wife today … I look forward to earning her for the rest of my life."
Since then, James and Kimberly have built a family of seven: in addition to Olivia, they share Joshua, Annabel, Emilia, and Gwendolyn. Kimberly has also experienced numerous miscarriages and has been very open about those experiences over the years.
While the pair has admirably shared those dark days with the public (in a bid to normalize conversations about miscarriage), their large family size has definitely piqued the curiosity of many. A family of seven is large by just about anyone's standards, but it's absolutely massive by Hollywood family trends!
Here's a look into the home life of the Van Der Beeks and everything we know about the influences that shape how they are (and are not) raising their children.
Kimberly is a longtime advocate for healthy living in general and has contributed her thoughts and words on the topic to a handful of publications. In 2012, she wrote a post for People about the parenting philosophy that she and James apply to their own journey as parents. While Kimberly was raised in the Christian faith, she no longer counts herself a member of a particular religion.
In the post, Kimberly explains that she is a proponent of what she calls spiritual parenting. She says that this applies to everything, especially her behavior:
"For me, spirituality is not so much about what you believe, but how you behave. It's the system of cause and effect that acknowledges the metaphysical world. And while the inner path we take to reveal our highest self is important, it's what we do with it that really matters."
She goes on to dive into her own religious upbringing in the Christian church:
"Everyone has their own truth. In order to live any spiritual practice in your daily life, it has to make practical sense to you. I grew up enjoying the teachings of my Christian church. As I got older, I found myself wanting something that I didn't get from religion."
Kimberly also explains that she knew where she wanted to go, but she was unsure how to best get there. "I knew the morals I desired, but lacked the tools to get there. Years, research, books and several conversations later, I found the spiritual path that worked for me: Kabbalah."
Kabbalah is a branch of Jewish mysticism, and the faith helps followers understand the relationship between the mysterious (God) and the infinite (the universe).
This may come as a surprise to many, especially those who believe that Kimberly and James are raising their children in a strictly Christian household. While James has mentioned that he grew up in the faith, he's also explored spirituality as he's gotten older. He and Kimberly met while they were both on a Kabbalah-sponsored trip in Israel, and they returned to that country to get married in Tel Aviv the following year.
In her piece, Kimberly lays out a few of the basic aspects of what spiritual parenting includes and how adults can apply the same ideas to their own lives:
- Take a pause: “The next time somebody ticks you off and you feel that rush of adrenaline, try forcing yourself to take a pause. Ask yourself, ‘Two weeks from now, am I really going to care this much about what just happened?'”
- Do things happen TO you or FOR you? “If we can shift our frame of mind on even the littlest things, we show our children how to transcend our physical world and find happiness.”
- Judge not … because you don’t really know: “So the next time you confront somebody — child or adult — kick in some compassion and give them the benefit of the doubt and you can handle the situation with love instead of anger.”
Obviously, Kimberly didn't invent the idea of spiritual parenting, but she has certainly tailored the philosophy and seems to make it work beautifully for her kids.
The site Positive Parenting Ally has also written about spiritual parenting, noting that "spiritual parenting is about helping children stay centered within themselves and helping them realize that everything points back to themselves. That they are the place where everything begins and everything ends."
The family just moved from Los Angeles to Texas, and it seems like they couldn't be happier. At the end of September, James wrote, "Sometimes a fuller life begins with an empty house. Leaving Los Angeles incredibly grateful for all the friends and memories we've made here. Onto the next big adventure!"
Kimberly also updated their fans and followers about another positive addition they've made — or, really, two positive additions: puppies they picked up on the drive. "Their names are Windsor (blue-eyed gray one) and Able. Able means breath. And we need a lot of breath right now. Rocky and Skye bonded with them right away…!!!"
While appearing on The Make Down podcast, Kimberly offered up a reason for the family's move to the Austin area: "I think we're in a time right now where people are wanting to ground themselves a little bit more into nature. And L.A. has been a magical place for many years for me. So much life has been lived here. I'm going to go through a process to leave. I mean, I birthed three kids in the home I'm living in. But you know, I gotta get out of the concrete jungle for a little bit."
