Nick Lachey Reveals the One Thing That Helps Him and Wife Vanessa When Parenting Their 3 Kids (Exclusive)

Nick Lachey is revealing the one thing that helps him and his wife Vanessa Lachey when it comes to parenting their children.

While speaking with PEOPLE for his partnership with Purina, the Perfect Match host, 51, shared how important it is to be a united front when it comes to parenting. Nick tells PEOPLE that he and the NCIS: Hawaiʻi alum, 44, try to be on the same page when it comes to raising their three children — Phoenix, 8, Brooklyn, 10, and Camden, 12.

“Dad’s probably a little more stern when it comes to discipline, but Mom is as well when she has to be. I think we do flip-flop on that regard,” he explains. “It’s important to be united. You never want your kids to be mad at one parent and then find reprieve with the other. You’ve got to be on the same page as parents and be consistent.”

“I think that’s what kids crave — consistency,” he adds. “As long as you are consistent and you’re on the same page, you’re going to be all right.”

Elsewhere in the conversation, the proud dad opened up about the role compromise plays in his relationship with Vanessa. Nick tells PEOPLE that everything in their relationship is about meeting in the middle, especially when it comes to parenting.

“It’s all a compromise, right? That’s what we always say. When people talk to us and we’re hosting these shows, you’ve got to meet in the middle. It’s all a compromise,” he says.

When asked what was the last big comprise he made, Nick shares that it probably had something to do with their children.

“It was probably something for the kids, [like] ‘Oh, they don’t need that, but let’s go ahead and get it.’ It’s one of those,” he says. “I don’t think any parents ever see eye to eye constantly. You know what I mean? So it’s a series of compromises, constantly.”

“I think when you have a yin and yang to that, and each is willing to give and take and give and take and give and take, and you do that at dance, it works,” he continues. “It’s when one side is constantly compromising and the other never seems to that you get into trouble. And, thankfully we don’t have that problem too often.”

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In a 2024 interview with PEOPLE, Vanessa opened up about parenting her kids with her musician husband, sharing that there’s one rule that the two never forget.

“The one thing that we’ve always agreed on is that we will always, always let our children know how much we love them,” Vanessa said. “It sounds so simple, but I didn’t have that constant affirmation, physically and verbally, when I was younger.”

“I mean, of course you know you’re loved, but do you really? And sometimes, you like to hear it and you like to feel it,” she added. “And so, I don’t think that we’ve ever talked about, ‘This is what we have to do,’ but between the two of us, we know our kids need to always know they’re loved, especially after a disciplinary moment.”