Haylie Duff has had the entertaining gene since an early age. “I grew up in a family that loved to cook,” she tells HELLO!. “The love of wanting to entertain in my home started because of my mom really.” And now in her final trimester and due quite soon, it is certain that she will pass this love of hosting to her baby girl.

As the second season of her show Real Girl’s Kitchen on the Cooking Channel gets underway, the mom-to-be is excited for her viewers to see what is in store. “It’s more of the same from last year but just elevated,” she explains. “Our recipes are better, I feel like I really pushed myself when I was coming up with what I was going to make on the show.”

Photo: Ashley Cordova

And while the first season of this lifestyle docu-series was a success, Haylie admits that this time, she is heating up the kitchen even more. “The first time around I felt I didn’t have full confidence in my ability to teach people how to cook,” she shares. “This year, I really felt like I wanted to step outside my comfort zone a little bit and not only show people how to cook but also learn with them. It’s just a really fun show, it’s shot beautifully.”

The 30-year-old hopes to watch the premiere on April 25, but a little bun in the oven may prevent that. She jokes, “Hopefully I will be watching it with friends or I will be having a baby that day. I’m not really sure.”

With motherhood fast approaching, the multi-tasker has been busier than ever instead of taking this time to nest. “The truth is that shooting my show during my pregnancy, I also did a special for Cooking Channel — all those things kept me really busy and kept my mind off of all the stresses that come along with being pregnant,” she mentions. “There are so many wonderful things but hard things too, like you don’t sleep as well as you normally do so I think keeping busy really was a positive thing for me.”

For any other concerns, she has younger sister Hilary, who is mom to 3-year-old son Luca. “She is more like 'it’s going to be what it’s going to be, go with the flow,'” Haylie says. “Don’t try to put too much pressure on anything. I’m sure once [the baby] is here, I will be calling her with more questions. Right now, there is not too much to ask.”

Photo: Yayo Ahumada

Regardless of the usual pre-motherhood concerns, Haylie admits that her mother called her pregnancy, “the model pregnancy” because she really didn’t have any major issues or discomforts… until now that is. “Up until two or three weeks ago, everything was really easy, but that last month you just feel huge — you are huge and you have a little bit of anxiety because she is about to be here and everything is going to be so different.”

Instead of sitting around though and waiting to meet their little girl whose name they already have picked out, she and her fiancé Matt Rosenberg are keeping the momentum going by renovating a new house. “I’m dying to get into our new house because as you can probably assume, I’m like a crazy person and ready to set up that nursery.”

One other aspect that Haylie is looking forward to is her closet. "I said to Matt the other day, I really miss my closet full of clothes [pre-pregnancy]," she notes. But, her post-pregnancy goals are very reasonable for any new mom who will be working to shed the pounds. "With that being said, I'm going to try to eat really healthy and hopefully I am able to breastfeed and we will take it from there."

We bet she also can’t wait to throw some epic parties in their new place just like her fabulous baby shower thrown in March. “My sister obviously offered up her beautiful home to us, but all the little DIY stuff came out of pregnancy insomnia,” Haylie mentions. “I stayed up late at night painting the signs. I really wanted to do something different and not babyish so the flower crowns were something I was excited about. It felt very girly and spring time.”

Photo: Getty Images

Now as summer is fast approaching, this Real Girl is also sharing her tips to hosting the perfect BBQ:

Do: Make a plan! It will keep your day stress-free. Set out your serving dishes, make your grocery lists and prepare anything you can ahead of time!

Don't: Try to make too many new dishes! You will definitely want some good variation, but when I am cooking for a lot of people I tend to stick with my no-fail recipes. That way I know I won't have some last minute messup!

Do: Go for big flavor. The grill can take a lot of flavor so don't be stingy with your seasonings!

Don't: Squirt water on flame flare ups. Unless you like ashes on your burger... then go for it! Just move your meat to a cooler part of the grill until the flame dies down.

Do: Make some exciting sauces! Maybe a flavored ketchup, a truffle aioli or a zesty brown sugar BBQ sauce. People love fun sauces, and it will give your food a "specialty" feel... spread on burgers, dip chicken wings or even veggies!

Finally... a Do & a Don't : I love when people offer to bring something. It is never nice to show up empty handed! Do take people up on their offer, it makes everyone feel like they had a part in making the party a hit! Don't reply with "bring whatever you want" or "bring an appetizer." This is how you end up with two fruit salads, multiple bags of chips and salsa, or lots of hamburger patties but mysteriously no buns.



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