Hilaria Baldwin has "tremendous respect" for her husband Alec Baldwin's former spouse Kim Basinger.
Hilaria Baldwin and Alec Baldwin
The 35-year-old health and wellness expert has been married to Alec - with whom she has Carmen, five, Rafael, three, Leonardo, two, and Romeo, 11 months - since 2012, and is now stepmother to the 'Boss Baby' actor's 23-year-old daughter Ireland, whom he has with his ex-wife Kim.
And in a candid social media post, Hilaria has spoken about the "delicate matter" of being a stepmother, as she praised Kim - who was married to Alec from 1993 to 2002 - for being a "good mother" to Ireland.
She wrote: "I rarely address being a stepmom, but it is part of our family. I always want to deal with it with such care ... so often you hear horror stories about evil stepparents and I wanted to make sure I did right by the family I was stepping into when I married Alec. I love my stepdaughter as much as I love my biological children and I become a mommy lioness when I see comments that insinuate otherwise.
"Having a stepchild is a delicate matter. Especially one who is grown. I think my relationship with her has been so successful because I never tried to step in as her mommy. She has a good mother, who I have tremendous respect for ... and I put myself in Kim's shoes: if my children ever had a stepmother, I'd want her to let me be number one. (sic)"
Hilaria went on to say she'd even told Alec, 61, at the start of their romance that if Ireland didn't like her, she couldn't be with him as "family is first".
She continued: "When I met Ireland, I said to Alec: if she is not ok with our relationship, I cannot go further. Family is first and she needed to be ok with me. We have never had a fight or a bad moment. Nor have I with her mother. Ireland and I love each other and she knows that I am here for her ... and I know that she is here for me."
And the brunette beauty is "inspired" by her stepdaughter.
She added on her lengthy Instagram post: "I am inspired by her, look up to her (not just height wise) ... she gave her father away at our wedding, is the best big sister anyone could ask for ... and I give her space. I don't ever expect her to be anyone other than herself. As someone who loves her, my job was not to step in and take over ... but rather respect what had been for the first 15 years of her life and then become a part of that, in a way that works for everyone.
"So yes, sometimes my language about my biological children does not include her. Because I did not birth her and I never want to disrespect the fact that she has a wonderful mother. But this will never take away from how much I love her, need her in my life, and think that she is one of the best things that has ever happened to me. (sic)"
Tagged in Alec Baldwin Kim Basinger Hilaria Baldwin