Jennifer Garner

Jennifer Garner gets an early jump on Mother’s Day when she takes 5-month-old Violet out for a little mom-and-daughter bonding Thursday in Cambridge, Mass., where dad Ben Affleck is shooting a film. The actress will have plenty of free time to spend with baby when her series Alias takes its final bow May 22.

In New Orleans on Monday, Jennifer Garner and Reese Witherspoon get to know Tyla Conner (second from left) and Ashanti Chartion, two girls who live in a FEMA trailer park, while on a visit sponsored by the Children’s Defense Fund. “We are responsible, as people who are comfortable, to help others,” says Witherspoon. “Eight months after Katrina, these children deserve more than they are getting.”

With Alias coming to an end May 22, Jennifer Garner tells PEOPLE she wants to spend time being a “good old-fashioned mommy.” True to her word, she and 5-month-old daughter Violet board a private plane Thursday in Los Angeles for a getaway.

That baby weight came off quick!! Jennifer looks great! And from what I can see Violet looks totally cute.