Jessica Simpson Reveals Children’s Reactions to Returning Home After Wildfires

Jessica Simpson’s family is back home following a mandatory evacuation amid the devastating California wildfires that have killed 81 people so far and left thousands of people without homes, and her children had an adorable way of expressing their gratitude.

“Recently when we were evacuated from our home due to the fires in California, we came home, and Maxwell and Ace both ran to put on their favorite costume,” Simpson told PEOPLE prior to Thanksgiving of her children, 6-year-old Maxwell and 5-year-old Ace, whom she then said “hugged each and every stuffed animal they have one by one, every time saying, ‘We are so lucky.’”

Last week, Simpson revealed on social media that her home had been saved by the first responders working in California to save people and structures affected by the Camp, Woolsey and Hill Fires. “Eternally grateful for the firefighters, strike teams, emergency responders, and all the men and women who helped save our home,” she wrote. “Words cannot begin to express our gratitude to you.”

Gratitude is not just something Simpson said she hopes her children express around the holidays, but is a quality she tries to impart on them every day of the year.

“I’d like to think Eric and I show our children gratitude through our example every day,” Simpson added. “I have learned that it is almost impossible to teach your kids anything you don’t live yourself. We are constantly grateful for the blessings we have been given.”

Maxwell and Ace are especially grateful this year for their soon-to-be baby sister, as Simpson is currently pregnant with her third child, a little girl. Last month, the mom-to-be told PEOPLE all about how her children are handling the news that there will be another little one running around the house.

“The questions I get on the daily from Maxwell and Ace are hilarious,” Simpson said at the time. “They want to know every detail — like how milk comes out of mommy, how the baby will actually get here and if my belly button is a speaker to communicate with the baby.”

Simpson said that she and husband Eric Johnson “are constantly cracking up and trying to figure out how to be honest … but not traumatize them or the friends and teachers we know they are sharing every detail with!”

Photo credit: Instagram/Jessica Simpson