Haylie Duff Praises 'Brave' Sister Hilary's Home Birth, Says Social Media Can Benefit Mothers

Haylie Duff is praising her "brave" sister Hilary Duff after her home birth to baby Banks last October.

While speaking with TooFab at a release party for Pikmi Doughmi toys at Westfield Century City over the weekend, the actress opened up about the moment when her niece came into the world. Last week, in celebration of Banks turning five months old, Hilary posted an "extremely personal" video on Instagram of her in a tub of water following Banks' home birth.

During an amazing moment in the clip, the infant reaches out and hugs her mother. Like many of Hilary's fans who watched the video, Haylie too was at a loss for words.

"There are no words to describe what a special experience it is to watch a baby come into this world," she said. "I feel so lucky to have been there to see both my niece and my nephew come into this world. I'm just happy that they arrived here safely and in loving environments and I just could not be more in love with Banks. She's the cutest, sweetest little thing ever."

"Hilary just handled that moment and that experience with such grace and strength," she added. "She was so brave. I don't think I could have done that."

"I mean it was really crazy, [Banks] actually reached out and hugged her. It was a pretty cool moment."

Haylie, who is the founder of Real Girl's Kitchen and children's clothing brand Little Moon Society, shares two kids -- Ryan, 2, and Lulu, 9 months -- with fiance Matt Rosenberg. With her business ventures, collaborations and being a mom to two young children, Haylie, like many, uses social media as a marketing tool.

"There's a lot of advantages and disadvantages I think to social media," Haylie said. "Safety would be the first disadvantage that comes to mind but then the advantages would be parenting with the internet, first of all, you can cast such a wide net for support, for not feeling lonely or alone once you have kids. I feel like all of these things have plagued mothers in particular as they become parents."

"There can be some really positive things to having a community like this and being able to reach other people," she continued. "I think that's an advantage if it's used in a kind way."

When it comes to the negative side of social media, Duff said the most difficult part is how people compare themselves to one another.

"I think the comparison to each other's lives is probably the hardest part of social media," she said. "I think that's just very unnatural. [It] certainly is not realistic for everybody. Not everybody has the life that they portray and I think that makes it hard for some people. Especially as you become a mother, you're like, 'Wow, this one really looks like she has it all together. Why do I have barf and milk on my t-shirt?' I think there's ups and downs, plus[es] and minuses, for it all."

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