Actress Alexa PenaVega, known for her role in Spy Kids has opened up about her family’s move to Hawaii and why she quit Hollywood.
She recently shared that the move came after she walked away from her Hollywood life in Los Angeles 5 years ago in order to focus on her family and begin “living her life for Jesus.”
She shares 3 children with her husband and former Big Time Rush member Carlos. The pair tied the knot in January 2014 and welcomed their first son, Ocean in 2016. Their second son Kingston was born in 2019, followed by their daughter, Rio in 2021.
It was after the birth of their first son in 2017, that they decided to relocate to Hawaii.
In a recent interview with Fox, Alexa shared that the first indicator that made them think about moving was that Carlos was struggling in the industry, repeatedly getting rejected for roles that he applied for.
“The rejection was just becoming too much for him. This went on for a full year. At the time, I was pregnant,” she said.
“We’d always talked about moving to Hawaii, but later on in life, like a retirement plan. But we also knew that we didn’t want to raise our kids in Los Angeles.”
At first, Alexa was hesitant about leaving her career behind and felt as though she was being forced to move for her husband’s sake but later revealed that after “praying in her car” one day, she realized this was just as important for her.
She continued, “It stopped me in my tracks because all that time, I thought we were just moving for Carlos. But I needed a heart reset.
“I was the one trapped in the entertainment world and needed to take a step back. My job became my identity.
“God pulled me out of that so I could learn how to be an awesome mom and an awesome wife. God helped us build that foundation in our family. And once I had that revelation, I felt at peace.’
After making the huge move to Hawaii, Alexa shared she had a “culture shock” at first, but was in awe of the “Maui culture” and their strong focus on “family and community.”
“It’s pretty amazing,” she said. “Hawaii is loaded with young families who love God and are growing in their faith…
“Your kids are outdoors all day long. We’re not inside on our phones or playing games. We’re enjoying nature, getting our feet in the sand, the dirt. Kids can be kids.”
She added: “The Maui culture is about family, about community. I think that’s something that was getting lost when we were living in Los Angeles.
“For us, we wanted to get out of that because we were ready to be part of a community that shared our faith. And we found that in Hawaii … I don’t know, I feel like LA is so jaded. But here, in Hawaii, people are just living.”
We wish the happy couple all the best!