Parenting is a job moms could never recruit for on Indeed.com! No time off, ever. No chance for advancement, whatever that might be. Completely out of control employees, or are they coworkers or in some cases...bosses? Moms must function in their supervisory position and do all the work of the custodian, as well.

Pay is in peanut butter kisses and scribbled love notes, as well as hateful glares and tearful pleas for utterly nonsensical items. Obviously though, all "normal" parents find it the most fulfilling job they'll ever have, and who doesn't say they can't imagine life without their kids? As crazy-making as it all is, it's the life we want.

But it can be soul-suckingly hard. So how do those celeb moms we feel are most relate-able handle it all? Most are pretty candid with the ups and the downs, and what they feel gets them through. While there are plenty of stars who fudge and pretend everything is magical and falls into place via fairytale means, we are focusing on the ones who own up to wearing baby vomit and crying in the shower. You know--the celeb moms we love because they leave the red carpet behind when they go home.

15 Don't Feel Guilty!

Drew Barrymore has to be one of our very favorite down-to-earth celebrity moms yet. She is mom to Olive, 4, and Frankie, 2. One value she is keen to pass onto her daughters is her strong work ethic. "Having kids now obviously I dial back the time I spend at work so I can be more with my kids. But when I get back to work or get to do work, I'm very focused and psyched. All moms feel so much guilt all the time, so the more time you spend with your kids the more you time you also enjoy being able to step away and do something that makes you want to make them proud. I think my whole life, work has been a very important and positive thing for me."

14 Don't Hold Your Breath For Gratitude

Tina Fey has been called nerd-sexy, and I think that'd be OK with her. Fey became the first female head writer on Saturday Night Live, and for many that would be the penultimate achievement, but not for Fey. She's a writer, actress and movie producer with credits ranging from Baby Mama, to Mean Girls. She is also proud mama to daughters Alice Zenobia, born 2005, and Penelope Athena born in 2011. Her quotes on motherhood could fill a hilarious book, but one standout includes, "'My mother did this for me once', she will realize as she cleans feces off her baby's neck. 'My mother did this for me.' And the delayed gratitude will wash over her as it does each generation and she will make a mental note to call me. And she will forget. But I'll know."

13 Find Grace

Katey Sagal has had a unique path in her career and life, and it has not been without struggles. Notably, the actress and singer lost a baby to stillbirth at the nearly 8-month mark of pregnancy while on the hit show, Married With Children. She went on to have 2 children with then husband Jack White, and became mom again at age 50 via a surrogate with her hubby, Kurt Sutter, a writer and producer. She has written a book, Grace Notes about how she's overcome her difficulties. She's  also to be seen in the upcoming ABC musical, Dirty Dancing. Of life she says, "I live in a grateful way. Even on days when I can't find it as easily, I eventually end up in a grace-filled place. Life is short. I'm all in."

12 Don't Overthink It

Amy Poehler quickly came to be a featured player in Saturday Night Live, then starred in Parks and Recreation. She's also made a comedy film or two. She was nominated for Emmys 17 times before winning in 2016. She worked up until she gave birth to her first son, fittingly on a Saturday night. She is mom to 2 sons, Archie who is 8, and Abel who is 6. The hilarious mom is also a quick wit, and delivers her witty lines about motherhood with a generous dose of truth. "Always remember your kid's name. Always remember where you put your kid. Don't let your kid drive until their feet can reach the pedals. Use the right size diapers...for yourself. And, when in doubt, make funny faces." Yup, keep it simple, sweetheart!

11 Simplify Your Life

Maya Rudolph was a Saturday Night Live favorite, and appeared in movies such as Bridesmaids and Sisters. Maya is now mama to 4 children ages 4 to 11. Maya is a unique person in Hollywood who doesn't much bend to fit the typical mold. “[Motherhood] allowed me to create something I call the ‘bullshit meter,’ which is basically the things that are literally not important. I just got rid of them. I used to take on a lot more than necessary, and when it’s you, you’re sort of your own worst enemy in life. When you’re thinking about another human being, it’s far more precious than you and you have the instinct to take care of them, you naturally do what’s right and what’s important and they always come first. It just allowed me to stop saying ‘yes’ to things that were not good for me or not important.”

10 Abandon Perfectionism

Reese Witherspoon landed her first acting gig at age 14, on a whim, and has been pretty busy ever since, with fun roles, such as Legally Blonde to award-winning ones, such as Walk the Line. She has 3 children, 2 with ex-husband and actor, Ryan Phillippe, and one with her current husband, Jim Toth. Daughter Ava was born in 1999, and said to be her mother's double, and son Deacon was born in 2003. Son Tennessee was born in 2012. Besides acting, Reese now has her own production company. She has a Southern sensibility in her parenting, as well as a visible warmth, but she brings it into focus with her quote, "No one's really parenting perfectly. I think you love your kids with your whole heart, and you do the best you possibly can."

9 Make Work Outs A Priority

Intensely private couple Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling married secretly and share two daughters, Esmeralda and Amada, born in 2014 and 2016. Mendes is of Cuban descent and came to fame in Denzel Washington's Oscar-winning Training Day. She did a successful comedic turn in Hitch with Will Smith. Eva drove paparazzi mad trying to capture pics of her pregnant, or with their children. Eva admits she's rather a homebody, and would rather be home with the fam than out and about on red carpets. She also states she is working on getting back into shape after the girls, and finds it is something she really needs. "Working out allows me to spend time on myself. Knowing that I have an hour to dedicate to my wellness is a priority for me now."

8 Don't Fear Failure

Blake Lively was a somewhat reluctant star in a family of Hollywood, (her mom is a talent scout; her dad an actor and director). She landed her first role in the immensely popular, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and then the TV drama Gossip Girl. She met hubby Ryan Reynolds in the disappointing Green Lantern movie, but they became inseparable and daughters James, born in 2014, and Ines, born in 2016, are the focus now. Being a beautiful power couple in Tinseltown hasn't altered Blake's candid personality or her positive and down-home Southern charm. Her advice, "It should be as celebrated to fail as it is to succeed, because that's life. That's always made me the happiest: to follow what I feel like I can't not do." Good advice from the woman who filmed the shark thriller movie The Shallows while pregnant!

7 Let It Go

Natalie Portman has what I would call an effortless elegance about her. Look at all the maternity pics on the red carpet, or running errands. Not a miss among them. Her first film was as a child actress and she had the chops of a veteran, in The Professional. In hit or critically-acclaimed movie after movie, she kept herself focused and managed to earn a psych degree from Harvard. And now she is mother to a son, Aleph, born in 2011, and a daughter, Amalia, born in February of this year. She has a great parenting philosophy as well; "Give yourself a break — literally and figuratively. We all hold ourselves to such a high standard and it's a constant balancing act. If you have one bad day, don't let it define you. There's always tomorrow."

6 Live In The Moment

Kerry Washington may have become most famous for her TV show, Scandal, but her film roles include such heavy-hitters as Ray, The Last King of Scotland and Django Unchained. She is an actress and activist, and married NFL player, Nnamdi Asomugha in 2013. The couple have a daughter, Isabelle, born in 2014, and a son, Caleb, born in 2016. She talks about balance and timing. "That’s a big theme for me these days. I have to pace myself for this political moment. Pace myself for my relationship with my family. Pace myself in my career to get through the rest of the season with a new child and a toddler. It is about slowing down, but it’s also about being present. Not rushing ahead or being stuck in yesterday."

5 Be Proud Of The Post-Baby Body

Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard are a Hollywood couple that exude sincere love and happiness, as well as a generous dose of goofiness. The fun family now includes daughters Lincoln, 4, and Delta Bell, 2. Kristen came to fame with her TV show, Veronica Mars, and then films such as Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Couples Retreat. Her daughters are likely most interested that she voiced Anna in the animated hit, Frozen. She has been candid about her struggles with anxiety and depression, and Dax's former addiction issues. But she is quite blunt about parenting challenges, including body changes. "I like my Lincoln Leftovers because they're proof I did something extraordinary. [...] I gave life to my new BFF & she gave me a comical amount of midsection skin."

4 Accept Your Children For Who They Are

Actress Mila Kunis is now mom to two children with husband, Ashton Kutcher. Daughter, Wyatt is 2 and son, Dimitri, was born in November 2016. She also recently starred in Bad Moms along with Kristen Bell, in 2016. Mila doesn't seem too affected by those who are quick to critique the celeb mom. When she got some negative comments about breastfeeding her baby in public she basically quipped that they need to get over it. I agree! She is honest and funny about the stuff that all moms experience, whether they work at home, at the local grocery or yeah, in Hollywood. For instance when asked about having balance in her life as a parent she said, "There's no such thing as balance. It doesn't exist." But some real talk wisdom from the actress was, "Another important thing to learn is that kids have a personality that has nothing to do with you."

3 Let Go Of The Phone

Joanna Gaines and hubby, Chip, have become the darling family of the HGTV network with their hit show, Fixer Upper. Along the way, their adorable four kids have become part of the series, as well. They are owners of Magnolia Market home store, have a bakery as well as a B&B, and lines of furniture and paint. She has a lot of her plate, and while she readily admits loving the challenges and joys of her career, she says she makes determined choices to be really present with her kids when she's not at work. One such method for achieving that goal? "When I get home from work I try and leave my phone in the car and make that intentional effort to play and connect face to face with them."

2 Be Honest About The Struggles

Singer Adele has sold oodles of albums, and won a crate of Grammys, but her biggest personal milestone occurred in 2012, when on October 19 her son Angelo, was born. She has been very open about her struggle with postpartum depression. She says she doubts she'll ever get pregnant again, and admits there are times she wishes she was free to do whatever she likes. But of course, she loves her son more than anything, like all of us do our own kids. She even shared her feelings in her acceptance speech for her 2017 Grammy, saying, "And in my pregnancy and becoming a mother I lost a lot of myself and I've struggled and I still do struggle being a mum. It's really hard. But tonight winning this really feels full circle and like a bit of me has come back to myself." 

1 Stay Connected To Your Spouse

Pop singer and American Idol winner, Kelly Clarkson, is a mother to 4: daughter River Rose who turns 3 in June 2017, and son Remington who was born April 2016. She is step mom to husband, Brandon Blackstock's older son and daughter, Seth and Savannah. She has spilled a lot of her heart, in candid and often funny ways. However, she has been honest about what she loves and doesn't love in her career; she loves singing and meeting people, but the business side and the travel that pulls her away from home and family are tough. To keep her sanity, Clarkson tries to keep that home fire burning. "Brandon and I have a date night every night — we'll get the kids to bed and go out by the lake with a glass of wine, and the next thing we know, it's 2 a.m. We're tired in the morning, but we need that time to stay connected."

Sources: Popsugar.com, Parents.com, DailyMail.co.uk, USMagazine, MotherMag.com, Blog.Honest.com, People.com, Romper.com, Essence.com, RedBookMag.com, EOnline.com, GoodHouseKeeping.com, VanityFair.com, Biography.com, IMDB.com