Kapamilya star Janella Salvador’s mom, former "Miss Saigon” actress Jenine Desiderio (she played Kim in the original production) is not letting her daughter entertain suitors.

“She's too young. She’s only 16. I'm quite old school with my values. With the world that we live in right now, I believe that’s the only way I can protect her,” the hands-on single mom tells Yahoo Philippines. 

But Jenine lets her guard down a bit when it comes to the Yahoo Philippines 2014 Emerging Female Starnominee’s friends.

“I allow her though to hang out with friends and cultivate friendships (with both genders).”

One condition

Jenine has one condition: Janella must be properly chaperoned.

The teen artist is not complaining. She is, after all, a loving daughter even when she was a little girl.

Jenine can’t forget the then four-year-old Janella’s surprise on her birthday.

“I received so much flowers from so many friends that they kept on coming almost every hour. I was still asleep. When I woke up, I opened my bedroom door to find on the doorstep a bunch of santan flowers from our backyard with a handwritten birthday greeting! Ayaw patalo! Lol!” Jenine recalls.

Love language

This started a ‘love language’ only mother and daughter understand.

For sure, Janella also speaks this love language to her younger brother, Russell.

“She's also a very good "ate" to her little brother,” Jenine shares.

The good Ate works seven days a week these days. She plays Ser Chief’s middle child Nikki Lim in the long-running ABS-CBN teleserye “Be Careful with My Heart” and sings and dances in the Sunday variety show “ASAP.”