James Van Der Beek Gushes About Ditching L.A. For Texas, Says His Kids Dance In The Rain

“Dawson’s Creek” star James Van Der Beek is still happy with his decision to move from Los Angeles to Texas, saying the change has “centered” his family and given his kids a happier childhood.

The 45-year-old actor spoke about the transition during a recent interview with People. 

“I know for me, it’s been really centering and I feel like for the kids, it’s been grounding, and a different kind of education that we never could have offered them in a classroom,” he said of creating a home in Texas with his wife, Kimberly, and their six children. 

“Just the things that we’re all aware of, like what phase the moon is in because we come out, we look at it,” Van Der Beek continued. “I feel like we have a relationship with these natural cycles that are happening.”

He used an example of how he perceived rain while living in the city compared to how he saw it now.

“Rain in L.A., it was like, ‘Ah, man I’m gonna be 20 minutes late because it’s raining.’ Here, it’s a godsend,” the “Varsity Blues” actor explained. “They jump around. They sing, ‘rain, rain come today,’ and they run out in it, because we need it,” he explains, noting the drought they’ve experienced. “It’s just connected us, not just to nature, but to the natural life cycles all around us.”

Van Der Beek had previously gone public with his excitement over leaving city life for the wide open spaces of Texas. He and Kimberly share daughters Olivia, 12, Annabel, 8, Emilia, 6, and Gwendolyn, 4, along with sons Joshua, 10, and Jeremiah, who just turned 1.

“We love it. We have a lot more space,” the actor said in June, as The Daily Wire previously reported. “We all need a more immediate connection to nature. It’s been a really, really great move and the kids are really happy.”

“The parks have been amazing,” he continued. “We’ve been going to state parks and the national parks. It’s just one of the benefits of getting out of the big city was getting to a place where we could just have more space right outside our door. It’s a very, it’s a very different life.”

“We watch the sunset,” he continued. “We can actually see stars, which is a new thing.”

During his recent conversation with People, Van Der Beek also revealed how much his youngest son, Jeremiah, has made their family stronger. The actor said his son “anchors the family in a really beautiful way.”

“Everything really is bigger in Texas,” he said. “He’s by far the biggest baby we’ve ever made by a long shot. He’s really been a blessing. Whatever he costs in sleep — and is still costing in sleep — he’s just well worth it.”