Leighton Meester puts kids first over her career

Leighton Meester is choosing to spend more time with her children over focusing on her career.

In a recent interview with Bustle, the actress opened up about embracing motherhood and why she's given up a few opportunities.

"There's been a lot of stuff that I haven't done because I want to be with them," she said of her 9-year-old daughter Arlo and a 4-year-old son, whom she shares with husband Adam Brody. "I don't like being away from them. I'm sure a lot of people feel this way, but I'm especially not into it."

Meester went on to say, "Obviously, for the very right thing, I would probably be like, 'Let's figure it out.' I mean, I'm not going to leave my family for a year. We're not doing that," she continued.

"But apart from that, we have a good system in place, where I can consider jobs carefully. And every other piece of life," she added.