Carrie Underwood Does Her Laundry (and Hair and Makeup!) on Tour: It ‘Makes Me Feel Human’
Jeff Johnson
“Dirty Laundry” isn’t just Carrie Underwood‘s latest single: It’s a day-to-day task that doesn’t stop when she’s on tour.
“We travel with a washer-dryer. Doing my own laundry makes me feel like a human,” the 33-year-old country singer tells PEOPLE of life on the road with 18-month-old Isaiah Michael, her son with her NHL player husband Mike Fisher.
In fact, having bits of her everyday life with her on tour is crucial for the seven-time Grammy winner.
“I bring my dogs, which is a little piece of home. And I have a cooking surface on the bus because I like to cook as much as possible. Room service gets old,” adds Underwood, who just resumed her North American portion of The Storyteller Tour — Stories in the Round with a show in Anchorage, Alaska, on Wednesday.
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Jeff Johnson
Underwood is a busy woman these days. Aside from parenting duties and putting on multiple shows a week, she is also gearing up to co-host the 50th Annual Country Music Awards alongside Brad Paisley.
But the hectic schedule is just part of life for the singer and mom of one.
“It’s definitely a balancing act. I have help, because someone has to watch Isaiah when I’m on stage, but we live a lot more on the bus now instead of going in and out of hotels,” she explains.
Good luck getting us out of Alaska! What an incredible day! (As you can see, Isaiah had a blast today, too!)
Luckily, Underwood has everything she needs in their mobile abode for her son to be happy and comfortable.
“My bus is outfitted for him — he has a crib in the back, and everything is safe there,” she says. “That’s a whole other thing — when you’re in a hotel, they probably wonder why I put the big plant in the closet. It’s because he’ll grab it.
“Or the big lamp on the floor? I have to put it in the closet,” the “Cowboy Casanova” singer adds. “It’s a whole new thing to think about, and it’s definitely a lot more going on.”
Summertime splashes! #bellyflop
The American Idol alum might have her hands full, but she also finds time for quiet bonding moments with her little boy.
“On days off, we look for parks and zoos and aquariums,” she says, adding that she likes to go to farmer’s markets, co-ops and more to buy groceries wherever she’s visiting.
Jeff Johnson
Underwood reveals that between all that, she’s somehow still able to find time for just herself.
“I do my own hair and makeup on the road. It’s another thing that … I’m a person and I’m a lady, and I like to do my own makeup and hair,” she says. “On red carpets, somebody else has to do it for me because the lights can do weird stuff with your face. But on the road, it’s my zen time before the show.”
But she also admits, “When it’s all over, I just want to enjoy some time at home and watch some hockey!”
Anchorage…I think I'm in love with you. #TheStorytellerTour photo credit: @jeffjohnsonimages
Proverbs 22:6 (NIV) Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there…especially to my own and to the father of my sweet angel, Isaiah! I'm so blessed to have such amazing, strong men in my life and so happy that he has such incredible examples to follow!
As for parenting with her husband, who is a center for the Nashville Predators, Underwood says they make it work while she has Isaiah with her on the road by taking advantage of current technology.
“We FaceTime almost every day so [Mike] can have a little interaction with Isaiah,” she says. “He comes out sometimes. I look for times when his schedule has him playing at home, and we might send Isaiah home to be with him so he can have some time with him.
“That has to be hard, for him to be away from Isaiah. I have never been on that side of it,” the “Jesus Take the Wheel” singer adds. “They need their time together because Isaiah loves his daddy!”
For more from Carrie Underwood, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands now.
— Jen Juneau with reporting by Monica Rizzo