When Christina Hall needs something from her husband, she tells him.
Simple as that, you ask?
Well...yeah.
"Being communicative" was what came to mind when the Christina on the Coast star paused to consider what exactly bolsters the strong foundation she and her spouse of two years, Josh Hall, have built together.
"Keep communication open," she told E! News in an exclusive interview, explaining the practical secret to their successful dynamic, "and then having alone time when we can, whether it's date night, going on little trips—just things like that."
And if that all sounds pretty reasonable and decidedly uncomplicated, then the desired effect has been achieved.
Speaking to E! ahead of her July 9 birthday, the now-41-year-old mother of three said she didn't have a big bash planned for the non-milestone ("Back to usual until I'm 50," she quipped, "so this year, just dinner"), but she had plenty of good fortune to celebrate.
"I love where I live," she said, referring to more than just the couple's 7,000-square-foot home in Newport Beach. "I love my family, I love doing these shows. So I feel like everything's going really well."
And with that in mind, her main goal for the next chapter of her life is peace.
"I need things to be more peaceful and calm," explained Christina, noting that she would like to be more present. "And just overall, less chaos, less drama."
All modes the twice-divorced Flip or Flop alum has experienced.
Her 30s were her "workhorse years," she continued, "really grinding, trying a lot of different things, having that energy to do so. And now it's picking things that I love, and honing in on those and being less all over the place."
Not that anyone would think Christina was all over the place by looking at her—or her house.
"I went on a rampage last week, stayed up late and cleared out the kids' closet, got rid of their old clothes that don't fit, gave away all those things," shared the mom of "mini-adult" daughter Taylor, 13, and son Brayden, 8, with ex-husband Tarek El Moussa and son Hudson, 4, with former spouse Ant Anstead.
Christina also went through her own closet, "tidied up, made my bathing suits all matching in different boxes," she said. "That just makes me feel so good. And Hudson is very organized, so he helped me do the pantry and we got rid of the expired stuff and went through the vitamins. Honestly, organization makes everything better."
That approach also extends to her day-to-day—an admittedly tall task with three kids—but everything goes into the calendar, including Christina's decompression time.
"I try to super-organize," she said. "When they need to be where, and on days that I have off I try to do things that I like." For her me-time, it's the "little things," like going to Pilates, getting a massage ("every other week, that really relaxes me"), having her nails done or just taking a walk.
And having weathered her share of home renovations and all the, er, exciting surprises they can entail, the telegenic real estate investor tries to focus on what she can control.
"I'm used to chaos," she noted. So when it comes to delays, mixed-up deliveries, etc., "I don't get stressed. Most of those things are out of my hands."
She always feels bad for the homeowners, who may be bleeding money renting a place to stay while their house is transformed—or worse, trying to gut it out in the house while it's under construction—"but as the designer, I just try to keep them calm, tell them it's part of the process and that ultimately it'll be worth it."
And, she added, "It always is. It literally is always worth it."
Was that advice she gave to her own parents when it was her childhood home going under the sledgehammer for the July 11 fifth-season premiere of HGTV's Christina on the Coast?
"We have very different tastes, and we're very different individuals in general," Christina said, "so I was a little bit nervous. But it went really, really well and so I'm grateful for that. They didn't necessarily always listen to me, but in the end, it is their house and I gave them a product that they love. My mom literally texts me all the time, like, 'I love my kitchen so much. Thank you!'"
And while back at the house she shares with Josh and her kids she's been busily weeding out items that no longer serve her family, Christina isn't feeling the need for any big changes on her homefront.
"We're in a good rhythm right now," she said, "and I want it to stay that way. Just peace, calm, fun and as little chaos as possible."
And in the spirit of avoiding chaos, we took the liberty of organizing Christina and ex Tarek's sprawling family tree:
—Reporting by Nikaline McCarley
Christina and Tarek welcomed their first child together on Sept. 22, 2010.
Following their divorce, the pair continued to co-parent their daughter, who Christina has described as an "old soul who one minute can talk super deep about life and then quickly go back to being a kid."
"Her greatest ability is being able to start a conversation with anyone, anywhere," she said of Taylor. "Fun, smart, athletic, HAPPY, and always keeping us on our toes."
Christina and Tarek welcomed their second child together on Aug. 20, 2015.
In addition to their oldest child Taylor, the two have continued to co-parent Brayden after their divorce. In the past, Tarek has described their son as "a ball of energy" and the "sweetest boy with the biggest heart."
"No words can describe how much brighter this boy makes my day," Tarek shared. "I feel blessed every single day to be his and Tay's dad and raising him and seeing him grow up makes me the happiest dad alive."
Almost a year after announcing her split from Tarek, Christina started dating Ant, a TV presenter from England, in October 2017. The two went public with their relationship in January 2018—the same month Christina's divorce from Tarek was finalized—and tied the knot in a winter-themed wedding at their home in Newport Beach, Calif., on Dec. 22, 2018.
Christina and Ant—who is dad to daughter Amelie and son Archie with his first wife Louise Storey—welcomed their first child together, son Hudson, in 2019.
The couple were married for less than two years before announcing their separation in September 2020. Their divorce was finalized nine months later.
Since the split, Ant has moved on with actress Renée Zellweger.
Christina and Ant welcomed their son on Sept. 6, 2019. At the time, the baby boy arrived weighing 7 pounds, 7 ounces and measured at 19.5 inches long.
Though they agreed on shared legal and physical custody of Hudson when their divorce was finalized in June 2021, Ant filed for full custody in April 2022, claiming in court documents that his ex spends roughly "9 full days" with their child each month.
In response to the filing, Christina told E! News, "What Ant is doing deeply saddens me. If this was really about Hudson, as he says, this should have been handled privately with a private judge or mediation, as myself and my attorney have suggested. I have had my share of ups and downs but I am a good mom and I love my children with all my heart and I will always protect them."
Heather Rae Young, Tarek's Second Wife
Tarek met the Selling Sunset star on the Fourth of July in 2019, when they were partying on boats that had docked next to each other at a marina in Newport Beach, Calif. Later that month, the pair were spotted kissing on a yacht and Tarek confirmed to E! News they were dating that August, saying, "I never thought I'd say this word again, but this beautiful young lady, Heather Rae, is my girlfriend, officially."
The couple got engaged in July 2020 and became husband and wife on Oct. 23, 2021, exchanging vows during a romantic outdoor ceremony near Santa Barbara, Calif.
Heather has often referred to herself as the "bonus mom" of Tarek's two older children, Taylor and Brayden. "I already feel like I have two kids," she previously explained to E! News. "I'm raising Tarek's babies, and we have them 50 percent of the time. I am such a good bonus mommy. I adore those kids. I raise them like they're mine."
Tristan Jay El Moussa, Tarek and Heather's Son
Tarek and Heather welcomed their son on Jan. 31, 2023. At the time, the baby boy arrived weighing 7 pounds, 7 ounces.
He was named Tristan because "Tarek was supposed to be named Tristan," according to Heather, "and his parents ended up naming him Tarek."
His middle name is a nod to Heather's dad.
After calling it quits with her second husband Ant, Christina began dating Josh in 2021. The pair went public with their relationship that July, with Christina revealing that they had been together for "a few solid months."
According to the Flip or Flop star, she met Josh, a licensed realtor, that spring at a time in her life when she "wasn't in a state of fear or fight-or-flight" and had "taken time off social, hired a spiritual coach and smoked a Bufo toad" to "reset" her brain.
Christina and Josh got engaged that September and tied the knot on Oct. 6, 2021.
Their actual wedding date wasn't known until Josh filed for divorce on July 15, 2024, citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for the split.
Until the process of remodeling her childhood home unfolded on the July 11, 2024, episode of Christina on the Coast, she had kept her roots pretty private, mainly sharing glimpses of her parents as grandparents.
In 2019, she shared in an Instagram post that "we all sit together—my family and Tarek's family" when they watch Taylor perform at her school's annual Christmas concert.
"A couple people acknowledged how nice this is- I know there are a lot of divorced couples (including Tarek's mom and dad) who do this too and it's honestly easier for everyone," she wrote at the time. "Plus Taylor's face lights up when she sees us all in the same row supporting her."
Though Josh's relationship with Christina pushed him into the spotlight, his sisters found fame way back in the aughts.
Stacie—or "Stacie the Bartender" as some fans remember her—was famously the target of Spencer Pratt's flirtations on The Hills. She has also appeared on Vanderpump Rules, most notably on season three as one of the bridesmaids in Scheana Shay's bridesmaids.
As for Jessica, the former Playboy model also made appearances on The Hills, as well as The Girls Next Door, Kendra, Kendra on Top and Kendra Sells Hollywood in support her best friend Kendra Wilkinson.
The older sister of Tarek, Angelique is the owner of Latitude 33 Hair Artistry in Anaheim, Calif. She purchased one of Tarek and Christina's flipped homes on an episode of Flip or Flop in 2014 and later filmed a digital series with her HGTV host bro in 2019.
Tarek's mother Dominique is no longer with the Flipping 101 star's father, whose name he has never publicly shared. She is currently married to Robert, who describes the El Moussa matriarch as "the love of my life" on Instagram.
Tarek has never shared his father's name, though in a November 2017 Facebook post he announced that his "old man" had turned 70 years old.
"The relationship between a father and his children is so important. I was lucky enough to have a supportive and motivating father that made me believe I could accomplish anything in the world," he captioned a picture of the family's birthday celebrations for the patriarch. "I can say that I wouldn't be where I am today without the support of my dad. I will take all the lessons I've learned from him and pass it on to my children."
In an interview with Country Living, Tarek said his father was "raised Catholic in the Middle East in Lebanon and then Egypt" and met his mother, who is from Belgium, in Europe as a teen.