Fredrik Eklund Says Carving Out Alone Time with His 3-Year-Old Twins Is 'Very Important'

The Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles star tells PEOPLE that spending individual time with his kids Milla and Frederick Jr. is important in "building their identity and sense of importance and love"

Fredrik Eklund kids
Photo: Fredrik Eklund/Instagram

As the father of twins, Fredrik Eklund understands the importance of spending time separately with his two kids.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, the Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles star, 44, opens up about his experience as a dad to 3-year-old twins Milla and Fredrik Jr., sharing why he makes sure to bond individually with his children.

While Eklund says his twins, whom he shares with husband Derek Kaplan, are "super close," they attend separate classes at school and are even getting their own rooms "for the first time" when moving into their new house this week.

The Swedish real estate broker tells PEOPLE it's "very important in building [his kids'] identity and sense of importance and love" to "carve out time to spend alone" with his son and daughter.

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Recently, Eklund took Milla and Frederik Jr. on separate vacations as a way to enjoy individual time with them.

Eklund took Milla on a special trip to Sweden in July and nearly one month later took his son on vacation to Greece.

"I'm so glad I did that," Eklund tells PEOPLE. "I've decided every summer I'm going to take them separately, because it's really the best time to bond and it passes so fast and then they go to college, and then it's like, "Oh shoot. I didn't do X, Y, and Z that I always wanted to do.' "

Eklund says another important conversation he has in his house is teaching his kids about the "importance of working."

"There's a balance to everything of course, and I don't want to be the extremist, but I do think it's important that they understand that I go away and that I do good things, and that there is a reality of paying for things and not taking things for granted," he explains.

"On that note, I've been taking them to church for the last few big events for homelessness and for people in need and giving backpacks," he adds. "We've been very supportive of that. But more important, it's not about money but to have them physically do the work."

The Bravo star says he and Kaplan have also been discussing the idea of welcoming a third child.

"The one thing that makes it difficult — and maybe I'll upset some parents out there that are older than me — is I just feel like, I'm 44. Derek is 46. We're not little piglets anymore," he says with a laugh. "But on the other hand, if we're going to do it, it's now or never."

Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles returns with a supersized 90-minute episode on Thursday, Sept. 2 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo.

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