RHOP star Wendy Osefo talks her first season as a housewife: My kids keep me grounded

Dr. Wendy Osefo joined the cast of Real Housewives of Potomac for season 5, but that’s the least interesting thing she has going on in her life.

Wendy Osefo has it all and has done it all: mother, philanthropist, professor at Johns Hopkins University, political commentator, housewife, and all-around badass. This year, she added yet another achievement to the list in joining the cast of The Real Housewives of Potomac!

“It has been a journey, to say the least,” Wendy said of the path to becoming the newest Real Housewife of Potomac, noting that after friends and family gave their blessing for her to join the cast, she knew she would regret not joining while she had the opportunity.  “I was asked to join the cast, and at first I didn’t want to do it,” But Wendy continued that over time, and with the encouragement of her family, she decided to do it.  “I did not want to be 90 years old and look back on my life and be like ‘Oh, what would have happened if I did this?'”

Her first introductions to the group were through Candiace Dillard Bassett and Karen Huger, even though we know how Karen handled that. “‘Good terms’ is an interesting word, we’re not friends,” Wendy laughed when asked if she was on good terms with Karen at the time.

She added that there is no ill-will towards Huger, but they are not friends. On that same note, she explained that watching Karen’s interviews on the show was eye-opening.

"“If you notice, everything Karen has said about me has been in her confessionals. There hasn’t been anything that she’s said to me to my face so that was interesting watching it back.  You know, where all her comments about me were in her confessionals.”"

Wendy remarked that everything that happened with Karen was interesting to watch back due to the behind-the-back shade.  It seems the Grande Dame of Potomac forgot her manners when it came to making new friends this season!

Documenting memories

As far as favorite moments from her first season as a housewife, Wendy says that the sip and see for her daughter, Kamrynn, was the obvious choice.  The party was done in a way to welcome baby Kamrynn to the world in a traditional Nigerian way.  That will certainly be a memory their family can look back on forever.

It also sounds like Wendy’s boys both have enjoyed watching their mom join the show.  When discussing ways she uses to unplug from the whole “housewives” world, Wendy credits her family for keeping her grounded.

"“My kids keep me grounded,” Wendy confessed. “You have to know what is a priority in your life and who is a priority in your life, and for me, my children are definitely that.”"

Life as a mom and a professional

If you thought she was juggling a lot before; her workload has only increased in 2020. For Wendy, the teacher-student relationship has always been an important one to be aware of. Making sure students feel seen and feel that they have someone in their court is even more important than ever before during the pandemic. This relationship was part of the research done for the book, I Wish My Teacher Knew.

Now that all of her classes for Johns Hopkins University have been moved online and her children are learning from home, the teacher-student relationship is one Wendy is getting to know on a totally different level.

For her political segments on television, Wendy remarked it was completely different than RHOP.  In preparation for political commentary, Wendy commented that she spends a lot of time researching the news and being fully versed on the topics at hand. This, of course, could be mentally draining. For housewives, it was the actual filming that was draining, but in a mental and physical way.

"“Shooting for Housewives is mentally and aesthetically draining because you have to mentally prepare, and you also have to do hair and do makeup.  And that’s something I wasn’t really into, but, boy oh boy.  Now?  I have to get into it.”"

The hair, the makeup, the outfits, the events, and even the trips. It might not require research, but it was exhausting all the same.

1954 Equity Project and the Coronavirus

The 1954 Equity Project is a foundation Wendy started to make sure that students of color would feel that they were a part of the academic institution they were attending.

“We often talk about diversity but rarely talk about inclusion,” she added before explaining that the project was started to make sure students felt included in their campus environment.  They offer workshops and other tools to strengthen the relationship between the students and their communities, which is so important in the current situation.

“How do we transition them to still be good learners and be strong in their academics while they are in a comfortable place like home?”  That’s something Wendy and her kids are learning while they continue to study from home for the foreseeable future.  For Wendy, that includes being an ally for kids as all of this impacts them in a much different way.

"“It is incumbent upon teachers to create an environment in their classroom that allows them to feel some type of connection to their fellow classmates,” she noted."

No matter the outcome this season, we have thoroughly enjoyed watching Dr. Wendy Osefo join the cast of RHOP and hope she sticks around for another.  Plus, we need a teacher around to help school the other ladies when they get out of hand!  And just in case you were wondering, Gizelle Bryant had the better pancakes at the lake house (we thought so too).

Wendy Osefo & The Real Housewives of Potomac will be back next Sunday at 9 PM.