Salma Hayek Says Valentina is a 'Force of Nature'

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During a Tuesday night appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman, Salma Hayek painted a vivid picture of life with her “force of nature” daughter, Valentina Paloma Pinault, 15-months. The 42-year-old actress revealed that Valentina “likes everything clean” — and she isn’t shy about making her wishes known! “She doesn’t say trash or basura yet, she says ‘caca, caca,’” Salma explained. “So she’ll go around the house, saying ‘Mama, caca!’ if there’s just a little thing on the floor. ‘Caca!’ We have to pick it up. ‘Mama, caca! Caca!’”

Valentina speaks Spanish, French and English “perfectly,” Salma beamed … although some words are delivered more politely than others! She reveals,

“I don’t know what she’s going to say next. I don’t try to force her into words…although I do wish she could say ‘thank you’ instead of ‘WATER!’ [Valentina]‘s like a dictator in the house. She’s bossy.”

And exhausting! Because Valentina is a sleepwalker, Salma has assumed the role of “bodyguard” for her daughter at night. “She sleeps well,” Salma explained. “She just has too much fun sleeping.”

“She talks, she screams, she sings, she claps, she sleepwalks, she screams for Barney, she fights with someone. And when you have a child who sleepwalks, it’s really scary. All night I’m waking up and waking up, and she’s having a blast. She’s having a party, and I’m just not invited.”

While pregnant, Salma was “not exactly” hoping for a daughter. “Everybody told me that boys are closer to their mothers than girls, and I just wanted a baby to be so close to me,” she explained. Happily, everybody was wrong! “It is the best thing that could have happened to me,” Salma admits. “Nobody could be closer than we are. I love her.”

Valentina is Salma’s daughter with former fiancé François-Henri Pinault.

Source: Late Show with David Letterman

Comments

How adorable! I praise Salma for teaching her daughter Spanish, English and French. Valentina will be an intelligent girl!

- Rachel on January 15th, 2009

Valentina seems like such a smart baby, I remember salma saying she started walking at 8 months and saying words at a young age too. I love she is learning french, spanish, and english, it’s great she is learning all her cultures.Salma seems like a great mom, and she’s such a beautiful actress. Valentina is a beautiful baby, and I also love salma’s love for pets. She has 8 dogs, 2 parrots, and a faerm with 5 horses and chickens she said on letterman.

- gianna on January 15th, 2009

I’ve never heard of that “boys are closer to their moms” thing and pretty much every girl I know is closer to her Mom than her Dad haha. I’m glad Salma has such a close relationship with her daughter!

- Natasha on January 15th, 2009

I watched this interview on Dave, it was a great one. She seems very down to earth.
But I don’t think Dave got the memo that her and the baby daddy aren’t together anymore, because he kept asking her questions like when are you getting married etc….You could see she was a bit uncomfortable.

- Mani on January 15th, 2009

Mani I saw that too, and I felt bad for salma, but she handled herself well and seems like a nice lady. When dave was pushing her to say if she will marry soon, I like how she said mybe I will or maybe I won’t lol. They should get their facts updated when a celebrity comes on their show. Or just don’t ask about their personal life, especially if their not married. She was talking a lot about her daughter and the rest of her life, so leave it alone.

- Gianna on January 15th, 2009

I’m always amused when parents brag about their baby speaking several languages. At that young age, she’s not saying too much of any of those languages. lol Saying “hello, bye, mama” (one worders) is adorable, but doesn’t exactly mean you really SPEAK these languages. We’ll have to see what she’s fluent in once she’s older.

Both mommy and baby are lovely. Glad Salma is enjoying motherhood.

- m-dot on January 15th, 2009

I think it could be debatable as to whether or not Salma and Francois-Henri are together or not. In the past few months there have been photos of them looking cozy and whatnot. Dave seems like he’s pretty with it, so maybe he was trying to get it out of her whether or not they were back together.

- Devon on January 16th, 2009

Aww, I love this interview, Valentina does seem like a little character! She’s such a cutie. I could imagine though how scary it would be to have your child sleepwalking, when you’re asleep and can’t see what they’re getting into.

- Jane on January 16th, 2009

“I don’t try to force her into words…although I do wish she could say ‘thank you’ instead of ‘WATER!’”

Since when is teaching your child manners a bad thing? ‘forcing her into words’? These things don’t come naturally, they have to be learned!

- fifofum on January 16th, 2009

Yes, but what are you going to do? Discipline her? I mean all you can do is model model model at that age…..Valentina:”WATER!” Salma: Water PLEASE!” etc etc…

- Fevvers on January 16th, 2009

Fevvers, I agree with you. Valentina it’s just 15 monts old! She’ll learn to say please, thank you and every polite word and I’m sure Salma will make sure this is like that, but right now she’s just in the phase of learning to express with language. I think what Salma intended to say by not forcing her to words is not about not discipling her child but not trying so hard and let the things come in the right time.

As for the three language questions, I can state I’m bilingual and you speak both languages (and fluently) since ever. And my cousins are trilingual and they haven’t got any problem also with any of the three languages since they were little. I think it’s just a thing of keep the 2 or 3 languages all the time. There’s a first phase of mixing every language, but in the end you speak each correctly, obviously!

- Suse on January 16th, 2009

“She doesn’t say trash or basuda yet”
I think is basuRa with an “r” instead of “d”, because basura is trash in spanish

Fifofum, ITA! people should teach good manners to kids as soon as they begin to talk, is the only way to make them learn how to be polite. If my daughter doesn’t ask me “please” i don’t give her what she wants.

- sil on January 16th, 2009

I agree about the manners thing; however, at 15 months old, you can’t discipline them into saying it and you also can’t deprive them because they cannot say please or thank you. My son is 2, and we still do the ‘what do you say’ thing to prompt him. It’s all about prompting and eventually they’ll learn.

As someone who used to sleepwalk, I am so glad that Salma has taken on the role of body guard. My parents were the same way. Once I wound up outside, scary stuff. If she’s sleepwalking and talking, these could be night terrors, they say thsee can start in toddler-hood. I used to do both, and my terrors were awful. I wouldn’t remember anything the next day, but I would be incredibly tired from being up and down most of the night. Good luck to Salma!

- Nicole on January 16th, 2009

Wow – she is so adorable!

- Jane on January 16th, 2009

She sounds like a fiesty one! They tend to be the ones who are the most fun.

- Susan on January 16th, 2009

I have a clever little dicator in the making too so I can understand where Salma is speaking from

I was told shortly after the birth of my daughter that boys give more cuddles???
I wouldn’t know whether that’s true or not since I am quite happy with my girls
Of course Valentina is close to her Mom – if a child wasn’t close to their mother in the early years, I would think that to be strange.

- Kelpy on January 16th, 2009

I have 2 girls and 1 boy. The boy is my sweetie. The girls are as Salma said “forces of nature”. The boy plays hard, but when it’s time to slow down he’s in my lap for cuddles and loving. The girls – not so much! Always on the go with things to do, places to go, and talk talk talk talk talk! They don’t have time for cuddling!!

- CC on January 16th, 2009

I agree with her comment sbout boys and their mothers.Growing up, my mom and I always clashed, so me and my dad were close. My brothers are very close to my mom especialy the youngest one. Most women I know have always said the same thing.

mdot- all parents brag about their kids.I brag everytime my two month old does something,even if its “omg, he lifted his head on his own today !” lol.Plus, its not something all kids do so it is something to brag about I think.I know kids who were still speaking baby talk at 1 year old and some even 2 ! By two years old, all the kids in my family have learned to speak to form sentences in both languages, and have been potty trained. Some may think thats not anything to brag about, but I brag all the time

- Aya on January 16th, 2009

I saw the interview the other night, Salma is so naturally funny about the most mundane things. I really think her and David bring out the best in each other. And I think it’s great Valentina will be tri-lingual as many people in Europe are.

- Sarah on January 16th, 2009

I don’t think many people in Europe are trilingual, that’s a bit of a fable. Go to France or Germany and many people only speak their own language and no English. Spain and Italy are even worse. It’s getting better now with the younger people speaking English but many people three languages fluently? No not really, more like a few people.

- Anna on January 16th, 2009

Hum…”caca” is the French word for “trash” or “dirty”…

- Leslie on January 16th, 2009

A 15 month old sleepwalking???
Isn’t she still in a crib?
My son is just over 2 & I will not take him out of his crib until he comes out on his own or asks for a big boy bed.

- Max'sMom on January 16th, 2009

Max’s mom I was wondering the same thing. How can a baby who is in a crib sleepwalk? Unless they already have her in a bed or they let her sleep with them! If that were the case I’d make her sleep in a crib so she couldn’t sleep walk (and buy a crib tent if she learned how to climb out already)!

As far as the languages I think that’s great! My cousin’s daughter speaks spanish with her father’s side of the family and English with her mother’s side. Although she prefers to not really speak any spanish if you ask her but she knows quite a bit. I also think teaching them other languages helps to improve vocabulary skills faster!

And I always here “boys always love their mommy’s” well that may be true but it’s not always true. I was VERY close and still am with my mom my brother wasn’t so much. They clash more then my mom and I do. I was always a mama’s girl. So it just really depends on the child not really the gender!

- JM on January 16th, 2009

Little Valentina seems to be a sweet little handful already. I can only imagine what she’ll be like as she gets older. But she seems like so much fun… I think it’s great she’s learning to be multilingual. That’s definitely handy to be.

And as for who is closest with what parent, I’ve always been close with my mom, but especially with my one maternal aunt. And I had a close relationship with my father when I was younger, tagged along with him to a few places and whatnot, but that’s kind of changed and it’s more of a rollercoaster with him at times, but not something I’d say was bad. We just butt heads every now and again.

I just see it as you having varying close relationships with everyone in your family. Nothing wrong with that.

- FC on January 16th, 2009

“…”caca” is the French word for “trash” or “dirty”…”

I don’t know french, but “caca” is the spanish word for poo, and usually kids use caca to say something is dirty.

Anna you’re absolutely right, I live in Italy and is difficult to find people speaking a good english…and I know Spain is the same, maybe in other countries, but Italy and Spain not trilingual for sure! (well, I am but is because i’m peruvian, so I speak spanish, and i studied english for many years, and now living in Italy for 8 years so also speak italian…and my daughter is learning all three languages too)

- sil on January 16th, 2009

valentina is absolutely adorable.

i think salma was being tongue-in-cheek with the manners thing, like how she said valentina’s bossy lol

- brandi c. on January 16th, 2009

Does anyone really think she doesn’t model good manners?? I am sure she does, she was just being funny!
Sometimes people take celebrity comments way to seriously!! She was funny, let it go!

- Cami on January 16th, 2009

Valentina is by far one of the cutest celebrity babies around! And her mom is by far one of the most gorgeous celebrities around! This interview brought out Salma’s sense of humor! While her sleepwalking is a scary concept, I love how cheeky she was about it!

I think it’s great that she’s speaking 3 languages and she’ll undoubedtly become fluent within a few years because she’s so young and knows words now.

Anyway, great interview! Salma seems like such a great mom and Valentina sounds like a fun little girl!

- Stephany on January 17th, 2009

Anna, from where do you make the conclusion that Spanish people aren’t multilingual? A lot of regions have their own languages aside from Spanish (Basque, Valencian, Catalan & Galician). That’s at least two they learn to become fully fluent in.
They also begin teaching English at 5 years old and is compulsory until quite far along. Three.
There’s also the option to study another language such as French.
And with the amount of immigrants entering Spain from Morocco, for example, there’s also Arabic at home.

I don’t know about Italy, but Spain at least is quite good with languages as many children speak at least two, if not more.

On topic; little Valentina is absolutely adorable! And Salma seems like a great mother.

- Lucy on January 22nd, 2009

Oh, and I forgot to add, it says “Valentina speaks Spanish, French and English “perfectly,” Salma beamed … ” Yet, Salma says she “UNDERSTANDS” big difference, especially at 15 months old.

- Lucy on January 22nd, 2009