Poppy Montgomery: Being A Stay-At-Home Mom Was "Intense"

After a 2-year stint as a stay-at-home mom, Poppy Montgomery says her regular gig as an actress is a whole lot easier.

Being home with her now 3-year-old son Jackson was "more challenging than anything I've ever done at work," she tells USA Today. "It's intense. I can do a 20-hour day on set easier than I can do a full mommy day without a break; at work it's your thing, and when you're with your kids it's all about them. But I loved it."

The former Without a Trace star is headed back to the the small screen this fall in the CBS drama Unforgettable. To take the role, she and her boyfriend Andy Kaufman packed up their son and moved across the country from LA to New York.

Poppy recalls how she explained the trip to Jackson: "I told him, 'We're circus people, we have to follow the circus.' His dad will go away to work because (he's) an actor, as well. I think it's good for him to get a different perspective on life."

Though she's happily settled in NYC now with her "baby daddy," Poppy says the two have no plans to tie the knot - unless, that is, their son wants them to.

"If Jackson, our son, wanted us to (get married), I would for him because sometimes it's important to kids, (but) marriage was never a priority for me," she admits. "I feel like the bigger commitment is actually having a child together, that's really forever. With marriage, you can get a divorce."