Jamie Chung knows how to make the holidays count.
And that's why the Big Hero 6 actress and husband Bryan Greenberg go all out when kicking off the season at Thanksgiving.
"Korean people love to eat, and sharing a meal together is really important for bonding and all that good stuff," Jamie told E! News in an exclusive interview. "So, Thanksgiving has always been a big holiday in my family, and Thanksgiving is also a big holiday in Brian's family."
Although it's not always easy, she and the One Tree Hill alum—who share 4-year-old twin boys—have happily alternated where they spend the weekend each year.
As for this year, the 42-year-old noted, "Our plan is to go back to the Midwest to visit Brian's family. We'll just kind of hang low."
However, Jamie and Bryan, 47, have some bigger plans for the holidays that follow. In fact, they'll be leaning into one of Jamie's fondest traditions from her childhood.
"I think this will be the first year that we teach the kids how to ski for Christmas, because that was a big thing," she explained. "Instead of Christmas gifts, my parents would save up and they would take us on a ski trip. We stayed at the Circus Circus in Reno."
"It wasn't super lavish," she continued. "There's a way to do it, yeah. But it's a core memory. We hope to pass that on to our kids, because it's fun being in the mountains and in the snow."
As Jamie continues to navigate motherhood with her sons, she has leaned into each stage of their lives. But she knows that a part of being a good parent is focusing on herself.
"You sacrifice a lot of yourself and your identity to be with your kids and to ensure that they have a really healthy and imaginative experience in childhood," she reflected. "But most importantly, you realize you have to do the work on yourself. You want to teach your children patience, problem-solving and good communication skills."
"If you don't have that, then you got to work on it yourself, to live by example and to really implement those foundational things," she continued. "You have to do the work is what I realized. You really have to work on yourself."
As a mom to babies born prematurely, Jamie stressed how important her support system was for her own well-being amid such a challenging chapter for their family.
"We didn't have any family come down at that time," the Real World alum said. "Another great support was our friends. We have a mutual friend who is also a NICU nurse in L.A. So, whenever we had any questions, she was a great resource."
She was grateful to have the NICU nurses teach her and Bryan how to change "little diapers on these tiny, tiny little babies." It was an eye-opening experience to see how difficult it was to put their sons in diapers due to their size.
So, when Jamie had the opportunity to collab with Carter's Charitable Foundation and the March of Dimes to raise awareness about premature birth and support families navigating the NICU journey, she was ready to make it happen.
"It's pretty, pretty, pretty incredible," she said. "As a parent, you quickly realize how important design is. For the last 20 years, Carter's has collaborated with NICU nurses and families on designs for little kimonos and caps that make it a lot easier for the caretakers as well as NICU nurses, who ensure the safety of your babies 24/7."