"I credit that to my dad" - When Justin Verlander's wife Kate Upton revealed how her father taught her the most powerful lesson in modeling

Despite all the glamor and glitz around Justin Verlander's wife, Kate Upton, thanks to her foray into the modeling world, she remains grounded and has her father to thank for that. Upton, who went viral following her rookie Sports Illustrated Swimsuit appearance in 2011, has graced the cover of several magazines and has also made headways into Hollywood in the latter half of last decade.

In an interview with Image in Aug. 2014, the former Sports Illustrated cover star shared how her upbringing, particularly her father’s sense of humor, shaped her perspective on beauty and confidence in the modeling world.

"I don’t take myself too seriously. I credit that to my dad," Upton said. "You can’t survive in my household without having a sense of humor. My dad taught me to live life and to find humor in things. He jokes about everything and it’s contagious."

Upton also acknowledged her mother's role in shaping her values. She added:

"Also, my mom always emphasized the importance of inner beauty and not focusing on how you look. She taught us to be hard workers. That was most important to her."

---

Justin Verlander's wife Kate Upton once revealed the challenges of motherhood

San Francisco Giants ace Justin Verlander and Kate Upton started dating in 2014 and got married in November 2017. A year later, the couple became parents to their daughter Genevieve Upton Verlander in Nov. 2018.

Less than two years after the birth, Upton returned to the modeling world, gracing the cover of Editorialist magazine while also chiming on her experiences of motherhood during an interview in January 2020.

"Having VeVe has changed my life in such a wonderful way," Upton said. "(There was) so much pressure to be doing all these things, like breastfeeding on the go. The reality, for me, was that breastfeeding was sucking the energy away from me. I realized I needed to calm down, to allow my body to recover."

Just like many celebrity couples have gone about raising their kids, Kate Upton and Justin Verlander have made a conscious decision to have "phone-free dinners" at home, especially when their daughter is around.