Reese Witherspoon Just Got So Real About the Realities of Motherhood

"I don't know a kid who doesn't have an epic meltdown at least once a day."

Reese Witherspoon just got very, very real about the realities of being a mother.

Speaking to People, the actress and producer explained how her own experiences with raising children gave her the perspective she needed to write a realistic children's book. Her new book, Busy Betty & The Perfect Christmas Present, which is released tomorrow, doesn't hold back when it comes to the tantrums.

"It was really important to me to have an artist render Betty how kids really are," said Witherspoon. "So Xindi Yan is this artist that I met, and she just had these amazing designs that felt really modern. But also she does these really funny things, like her expression of kids outrage."

As Witherspoon went on to explain, the "epic meltdowns" in her book are, in fact, inspired by her own kids.

"I have three kids myself, and I don't know a kid who doesn't have an epic meltdown at least once a day," said Witherspoon. "So I wanted her meltdown to look real, like I wanted tears to be shooting out of her face. Xindi really got that."

Witherspoon shares children Ava Phillippe, 25, and Deacon Phillippe, 21, with ex-husband Ryan Phillippe. After the pair split, Witherspoon was faced with some of the difficulties that come with being a single parent. "Being a single mom when I was in my late twenties, I had to make a lot of decisions for my two kids and a lot of financial decisions, too," she said earlier this year.

Witherspoon shares her third child, Tennessee James Toth, 12, with ex Jim Toth.

Although Witherspoon may have experienced her fair share of tantrums while her children were young, things seem to be a little easier for the actress and producer these days now that they're a little older.

Earlier this year, Witherspoon twinned with her daughter, Ava, at the Critics' Choice Awards, and, a few months later, she brought her son, Deacon, along to a Los Angeles premiere. Ava and Deacon have even begun attending some events by themselves now that they're all grown up.