Marla Maples revealed her daughter with Donald Trump marked a big milestone on Monday.
The GOP presidential candidate's ex-wife, who is competing on "Dancing with the Stars," told FOX411 backstage that daughter Tiffany Trump, 22, "had her first job interview this morning. She had to go to New York ... I was like, wow, we're both overcoming our fears and we're both stepping into the unknown now. It's amazing."
Protective mom Maples, who danced jive to the theme of "my most memorable" year on Monday night's "DWTS," told viewers hers was 1993, the year her daughter was born.
And after her performance, she said of Tiffany's job interview, "My first instinct was [to tell her], 'I feel so bad I can't be there with you.'" But she added, "I don't think I would be able to be there with her anyway! She's probably glad I'm not there, [because I would say] can I just walk you there? Did you eat before? We've gotta make sure you get food first!"
Although Maples told FOX411 she couldn’t yet reveal the job Tiffany was pursuing, she did give her some advice: "I told her, 'you've gotta think, how are you going to shine there?' It's not just about [whether] they're going to like you. Are they going to be what you need to take you to the next level?"
In paying tribute to her daughter, Maples told the "DWTS" cameras, "I met Tiffany's dad when I was 20 years old," and recalled that the Donald made quite an impression on her as she thought, "What an interesting person."
Maples, who became the billionaire businessman turned politician's second wife in 1993, wound up raising Tiffany as a single mom after their divorce six years later.
Tiffany told "DWTS," "My mom and I have always had the strongest bond. I am so proud of her."
When asked about her biggest challenge raising Tiffany, actress and reality star Maples told FOX411, "Just trying to get out there and work, trying to keep myself in the workplace. I always wanted to make the breakfast. I wanted to be there for carpool. And I wanted to make it to every sporting event, every dance, every play and making sure, no matter what, at the end of the night, we could have a great meal at home together.
"She'd do her homework, I'd make dinner, we just got to snuggle together. So the truth was, the biggest challenge was trying to find a way to balance being a working mom and being there for a child full time.
"Her daddy loves her, of course, but it was full-on [for me]—I was the parent that was there in the flesh with her all the time. It was amazing. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. I learned the most I could ever learn from that and it just brought me the greatest joy. And still, we're just there for each other."
On Monday's "DWTS," Maples earned raves from the judges and a score of 21 out of 30 for her energetic dance with partner Tony Dovolani. But the person she thrilled the most was her daughter, even though she wasn't able to be there due to her job interview and attending a math class at the University of Pennsylvania.
"She was the first text I got after it was over and she was so happy," Maples smiled after the show.
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