Eva Mendes is opening up about her personal decision to step away from acting after becoming a parent with her partner of more than a decade, Ryan Gosling. It was the easiest decision I've ever made," Mendes told People in an exclusive interview. The mother of two said she felt "no pressure" to leave show business to focus on motherhood.

"Careers come and go, but kids, yeah, it was easy for me," she continued. 'It's just the formative years. I wanted to be there for all of it."

"When you have two little people watching you all day, everything matters," she continued, revealing that her children have made her think more deeply about what she says and does.

"It's horrible, but it's a good thing because it makes me want to be a better person every day."

Mendes met Gosling on the set of the 2012 film The Place Between the Pines; they have two children, Esmeralda Amada and Amada Lee.

In the same People interview, Mendes spoke about becoming a mother "later in life."

"When I was 40, it was a big deal to people for me to get pregnant; it wasn't for me. And then when I was 42, I got pregnant with my second and people said: oh my God, it's so exhausting." That's why people have children in their twenties. And I thought: that's the most pathetic, stupid thing I've ever heard."

Mendes' partner and co-parent, Gosling, has consistently professed his gratitude to Mendes and how her work in the home has given him the opportunity to continue pursuing his own acting goals.

"I wouldn't be here without her," Gosling told Extra on Tuesday, April 30, while attending the Los Angeles premiere of The Fall Guy.

"She's also kind of my acting coach." Gosling continued. Recently, Mendes shared a photo of Gosling on her Instagram, showing the actor wearing a T-shirt with the title of her new picture book, Desi, Mami, and the Never-End Worries.

In the same interview with Extra, Gosling said of Mendes' new book, "I'm going to let [Eva] speak.

"It took us years to produce," he said. 'We read a lot of children's books, and it's one of the best ones out there. It really is about something and is beautiful."