Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen went through a very public divorce this fall in the midst of the football season. Luckily the divorce was finalized quickly and the NFL star and the model are now co-parenting their two kids Benjamin and Vivian as well as Brady’s son Jack who he shares with his ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan. While co-parenting seems to be going well, it is likely hard splitting up the holidays. Brady recently opened up about how he feels this holiday season, which is also the first time he'll play football on Christmas rather than being with his family.
On an episode of Let’s Go! podcast Brady opened up about spending his first Christmas as a divorced dad, and the difficulties of being a professional football player during the holidays. Jim Gray, the co-host of the podcast, noted that Brady has never played football on Christmas, and that this year the quarterback will be spending Christmas Eve in a hotel room and playing a game on December 25. The Buccaneer captain then talked about this year’s holiday season, and how he’s dealing with it, saying:
It’ll be a new experience that I’ve never had before that I’m going to have to learn how to deal with. And I think that’s what life’s about. So you just asked a question about, ‘What have you learned from this football season?’ I’m going to learn how to deal with Christmas Eve in a hotel. I’m going to have to learn how to deal with Christmas and Christmas night and still go out there and be a professional and then look forward to celebrating Christmas with my kids the day after, which is part of what football season has been for a long time.
Brady and the Buccaneers are scheduled to take on the Arizona Cardinals Sunday, December 25 in the evening, meaning the quarterback probably won’t see his kids in person until the following day. He noted that playing on the big holiday is part of the job, and he’ll be back with his family the day after Christmas. He also explained that playing on the holiday is one of the challenges he’ll have to deal with and learn from.
In November the famously unretired quarterback talked about his first Thanksgiving following the divorce, and he explained that all he wants is “to be there for [his] kids,” and be “the best dad” he can be. So, even though he won’t be able to celebrate Christmas with his family on December 25, I’m sure he’ll be back and ready to open presents and celebrate the holidays as soon as the game ends.
Much like Brady, Kelly Clarkson recently got real about handling the holidays after a divorce. While her divorce from Brandon Blackstock was not nearly as fast as Brady and Bündchen’s she explained that the holidays were pretty easy to split up. Her ex has the kids on Thanksgiving, and she gets them for Christmas. She also spoke about how it gets easier to handle over the years, and eventually, she learned to like her "me time."
For Brady, it sounds like due to this year's NFL schedule he hasn’t been able to spend the actual holidays with his kids, however, he has been with them in the following days. Considering both the quarterback and Bündchen still live in Florida, per People, it’s probably pretty easy for both parents to see the kids on a regular basis, which is great.
With all that being said, before the longtime quarterback heads back home to spend some quality time and the holidays with his kids, you can watch Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers close out the 2022 TV schedule as they take on the Arizona Cardinals on December 25 at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC.
