Eva Mendes Won't Post Photos of Her Daughters 'Until They're Old Enough to Give Me Consent'

Eva Mendes is keeping her kids off social media — for now, at least.

The actress, 46, recently explained why she doesn’t share photos of her longtime love Ryan Gosling or their daughters Amada Lee, who turns 4 next month, and Esmeralda Amada, 5½.

“I have always had a clear boundary when it comes to my man and my kids,” she wrote on Instagram, responding to a comment from a fan. “I’ll talk about them of course, with limits, but I won’t post pictures of our daily life.”

The Hitch star went on to share that as their girls are so young, it doesn’t feel right to make decisions for them about what they are and aren’t comfortable sharing online.

“Since my children are still so little and don’t understand what posting their image really means, I don’t have their consent,” Mendes added. “And I won’t post their image until they’re old enough to give me consent.”

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However, when it comes to posting photos of Gosling, there is one exception to her rule.

“As far as Ryan, I’ll only post flash backs of things that are already ‘out there’ (like pics from movies we did or stuff like that),” the fashion designer shared last month, in response to a fan who said they “wouldn’t mind an appearance by Ryan on this page.”

Mendes added, “My man and my kids are private. That’s important to me so thanks for getting that. Have a beautiful day. Sending so much love!”

Offering up a glimpse into her home life earlier this year, Mendes told PEOPLE that her daughters are already marching to the beat of their own drummers.

“They are so their own women already. And it’s so beautiful to watch,” she said, noting that while she of course wants to “protect them,” she tries not to “give my opinion too much on what they like.”

“My 5-year-old cut her socks, the foot part off, and she likes to wear socks as sleeves,” Mendes said of her older child as an example. “And the other day she wore underwear as a hat and I was like, ‘That’s amazing.’ I wish I could do that. I can’t.”