Jessica Simpson Reveals She Spent Thanksgiving with Family and Estranged Husband Eric Johnson: ‘Family First’

Jessica Simpson and her estranged husband, Eric Johnson, put on a united front for Thanksgiving.

The singer, actress and businesswoman told TMZ that “of course” she spent the holiday with Johnson, who joined her and the rest of the family at Simpson’s mother Tina’s house.

“It’s my kids’ father,” she explained. “And all their grandparents [were there], they have a lot of ‘em. Family first.”

Simpson, 45, and Johnson, 46, are parents to daughters Maxwell Drew, 13, and Birdie Mae, 6, and son Ace Knute, 12. The pair announced their separation in January after nearly 10 years of marriage.

When asked by the outlet if she had any advice to share with anyone going through a breakup or divorce during the holiday season, the star maintained that “unconditional love’s important.”

“No matter what, your kid is half the other person, and [you should] always have respect in what you say around them so they can always have a good perspective on it,” she added.

The “With You” singer also shared that her mom, Tina, did most of the cooking on Thanksgiving, while she and sister Ashlee, 41, watched the Dallas Cowboys.

Simpson, who released parts one and two of her Nashville Canyon EP earlier this year, is set to perform at Foxwood Casino in Connecticut on Dec. 7. She told TMZ her kids attended the Yale versus Harvard football game in New Haven, Conn., on Nov. 22 with Johnson, as he played football at Yale before going pro.

“They had fun doing that. It’s where their dad played,” she said. “And they saw a huge billboard that was promoting [my] show, so they were like, ‘Mom!!!’ [They] sent me pictures.”

In October, Simpson spoke to PEOPLE about learning to take life’s twists and turns in stride in the wake of her split from Johnson.

“I feel like we get caught up in numbers. Like, ‘Oh, at 45, would I think that I would be single again as a mom of three?’ Absolutely not,” she said. “That was not how I planned it. But it’s just a part of what destiny holds for me.”

That same month, she told Extra at the premiere of All’s Fair, in which she has a cameo, that she’s been making the most of her singledom.

“I think I’m into younger men at the moment. When you’re newly separated… I feel like younger guys kinda like the confidence of an older woman, I’m discovering,” she said. “I am having fun!”