There is a growing number of American women who are requesting delivery by elective cesarean section. Is this trend due in part to celebrities such as Victoria Beckham, Britney Spears, Claudia Schiffer and Christina Aguilera?

The media has dubbed the movement ‘too posh to push,’ after Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper’s Spice Girl mama Victoria Beckham. The British beauty, like some of the other celebrity moms in question, claimed that her C-sections were under doctors’ orders. But were they simply trying to avoid abdominal stretching? Or the pain of natural childbirth?

Read below to see Celebrity Baby Scoop’s round up of celebrities who went for a natural childbirth. Who had a C-section?

Who went for a natural birth?

Beyoncé New parents Beyoncé, 30, and Jay-Z, 42, are “in heaven” with baby Blue! After their daughter arrived on January 7, The superstar couple released a statement, shattering rumors that the little girl was delivered via C-section.
Hello Hello Baby Blue!” they stated. “We are happy to announce the arrival of our beautiful daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, born on Saturday, January 7, 2012. Her birth was emotional and extremely peaceful, we are in heaven. She was delivered naturally at a healthy 7 lbs and it was the best experience of both of our lives. We are thankful to everyone for all your prayers, well wishes, love and support.”

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Gisele Bündchen One of the most outspoken celebrity moms on natural birth is supermodel Gisele Bündchen. The Victoria’s Secret model gave birth to her first child Benjamin in December 2009 and has openly spoken about her drug-free and pain-free home water birth.
My delivery was in a bath tub, in water,” Gisele said. “I wanted to have a home birth. I wanted to be very aware and present during the birth… I didn’t want to be drugged up. So I did a lot of preparation, I did yoga and meditation, so I managed to have a very tranquil birth at home. It didn’t hurt in the slightest. The whole time my mind was focused in each contraction on the thought ‘my baby is closer to coming out.’”

A few weeks later the supermodel looked svelte on the cover of Vogue and spoke of her “empowered” birth experience.
I wanted to experience the transformation,” the model mom said. “It was the most amazing experience of my life, feeling him come through my body. And once he was born, I never felt so empowered as looking at him and thinking, Oh, my God, we did it together!”

The Brazilian beauty later wrote on her blog:
I am blessed to have been able to have a home birth surrounded by love, where I was able to feel safe,” she wrote. “It was a powerful experience. I never felt so vulnerable but so strong at the same time. It was amazing to experience my body become free to do what it was made to do by allowing my mind and my body to let go and be free to experience the changes taking place within… I was just there… focusing on my breathing and relaxing the best that I could… so present, to witness the biggest miracle in my life happen before my very own eyes. To give life to another being, what a gift!”

Earlier this month, Gisele added her voice to the Birth Around the World Project to help promote the humanization of birth.
I had the opportunity to experience the natural process of birth and it was one of the most life changing experiences for me and very very special!,” she said. “I believe it’s a woman’s right to make the decision about how she’s going to give birth to her child. And it’s also her right to have access to the information she needs so she can make that decision from a place of awareness, and not a place of fear.”

Evangeline Lilly Lost star Evangeline Lilly welcomed son Kahekili Kali in May 2011 and shared her birth story.
I actually skipped the hospital … We decided to have the baby at home because we wanted it to be a natural birth, and it turns out that it was 30 hours of natural.”

Of that 30 hours, a full 8 were spent pushing!
Eight hours of pushing, that’s the part that men don’t understand.” the Canadian beauty added. “Women go, ‘Oh, dear, oh, dear God, eight hours of pushing?’ And the men are like, ‘Okay, eight hours of pushing. After about five hours of pushing, my midwife and my birthing assistant said, ‘You know, we have a few suggestions,’” she says. “And I was like, ‘Really? After five hours of pushing you have a few suggestions? You couldn’t have told me five minutes in?’”

Idina Menzel Taye Diggs gushed about his wife Idina Menzel who opted for a natural labor, boasting that she used “no drugs. She is a warrior.”
I was holding her hands and cheering her on. I said I would look two times. I would look when the baby was crowning, and I wanted to look right when [son] Walker came out. And then when he came out, all of a sudden it was like my inner gangster came out. I was like, ‘Yeah baby, that’s what I’m talkin’ about, that’s my boy!’”

Ricki Lake Ricki Lake’s documentary about home birth, The Business of Being Born, empowered women everywhere to have unmedicated births at home. She gave birth to her second son Owen, now 10, at home in a bathtub. She talked about her reasons for making the film.
“I wanted to make this movie after my two very different birth experiences with my children. I felt like I had an opportunity to explore and question birthing practices in this country and perhaps be an advocate for mothers’ rights and better maternity care.”

On the experience of birthing Owen at home, Ricki said:
After the birth of my sons, particularly my home birth with my second son, I thought I wanted to become a midwife. Then I looked at all the years of schooling and training that I would have to do and felt that the time could be better spent doing a documentary on the subject of birth.”

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Michelle Alves Model Michelle Alves and husband Guy Oseary – who is Madonna’s longtime manager – welcomed their third child on December 29, 2011 and opened up to Celebrity Baby Scoop about the “beautiful” home birth of their son Levi.
The baby’s name is Levi,” Michelle told us. “He was born a little bit over 7 pounds on December 29th. It was a natural birth at home with a midwife, a nurse and a doula. It was such a beautiful experience! My mom, sister and, of course, my husband were also in the room.”

Jessica Alba One of our favorite celebrity moms, Jessica Alba, said she didn’t scream at all while she birthed her first daughter Honor without any medical interventions:
I didn’t scream, it was really Zen. It was amazing. The labor was more like meditation. I did yoga breathing. I was focused.”

And her hubby Cash Warren could only marvel at his wife’s quiet strength when she gave birth. “She didn’t make a sound,” he said.

Kaitlyn Olson It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia star Kaitlin Olson and her costar hubby Rob McElenney welcomed their first child, son Axel Lee, in September 2010.
Kaitlin gave birth to their son in the comforts of their home just as her own mother welcomed her. The actress said she is “incredibly grateful to have access to Western medicine” but “[doesn’t] think that childbirth is a medical problem that needs intervention unless there is a complication.”
I decided on a home birth because I believe that as long as a pregnancy is normal and complication-free, your body knows what to do and does not need medical intervention. I think the key to having a baby naturally is being able to completely relax and get out of the way of your body’s ability to get the job done.”

She admitted, however, that her decision to give birth at home came with “a lot of mixed reactions.”
“Most of our friends have been very supportive because they know us well enough to know that we are the kind of people who do our research and make informed decisions,” she explained. “The people who panic and think we are crazy are the ones who haven’t done any research themselves.”
I don’t blame them though,” she added. “We aren’t really taught much about childbirth and labor in America. On TV and in movies, most of what you see on the subject are women screaming in pain and a lot of emergency c-sections. The fact of the matter is that countries whose standard is for women to deliver their babies at home with midwives have the lowest complication, intervention and infant fatality rates.”

Melissa Joan Hart Melissa Joan Hart underwent “a lot of medical intervention” during the birth of her firstborn son Mason. She wanted a drug-free childbirth when it came time to deliver her second son Braydon in March 2008. The Sabrina star recalled her birth story:
I told my mom and my husband, don’t let me have [the drugs]. I kinda regret that one! But the thing is, the healing was so much faster. I didn’t have to get the drugs out of my system and was moving around a lot more. I labored at home for 9 hours and then went to the hospital for an hour and a half – two pushes and he was out. When you’re feeling all that, you want to get that out as soon as possible, so you really work. You’re like, ‘I’m gonna push really hard but I’m only doing it once.’”

In speaking with Celebrity Baby Scoop, the busy mom-of-two was asked if medical interventions are often overused during births.
I don’t think pregnancy or labor is easy in any capacity. I think it is unfortunate that people are opting to make birth a medical issue instead of a natural process but it is a very private choice and you will never hear me lecture someone on the difference. Now if someone wanted to know the ins and outs of how I did it, I will tell them about every minute and detail.”

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Maria Bello Maria Bello said she “can’t imagine giving birth in a sterile environment like a hospital,” and that’s one reason that she labored with son Jackson Blue, now 11, in her bed. The actress shared that during the “22 hours of labor,” she “had a midwife and a thunderstorm with nothing more than an aspirin.” Although there were “times where I wanted to say, ‘Get the ambulance — I’m done,’” Maria told herself she could get through it.

Pamela Anderson Former Baywatch babe Pamela Anderson gave birth to both of her sons – Brandon and Dylan – at home, with a midwife, without any drugs. The Canadian native talked about her water birth with talk show host Larry King:
I gave birth at home both times–natural–with a midwife, in water…with nothing. Not even Tylenol.”

Thandi Newton Thandie Newton’s daughters Ripley and Nico were both born in a birthing pool. The Crash star talked about her medication/intervention-free births.
[It was] very challenging in the best way possible. Every fiber of your being is alive. It’s like you are conducting electricity, literally creating something. I’d like to give birth every year if I could, just for that experience.”

Alyson Hannigan Alyson Hannigan has quickly become one of our favorite celebrity moms since the birth of her first child, Satyana, in March 2009. Celebrity Baby Scoop sat down with the How I Met Your Mother star – who is currently expecting her second child with husband Alexis Denisof – and asked about her drug-free homebirth:
Yes. I did use a midwife and a doula. We had the option of having a doctor there, but even he said you’ll only need me if you need to be transferred to the hospital–which thankfully, I did not need.”

Mayim Bialik Mayim Bialik has really ‘blossomed’ into an amazing and outspoken mother! An advocate of attachment parenting, Mayim also empowers women to consider medication-free homebirths. The Big Bang Theory star and mother of two talked about her second son’s home birth, while her elder son watched.
Fred, yes, was born at home, and Miles was able to watch the whole thing from his high chair while eating granola. Fortunately it was a very fast labor because I think Miles would’ve been bored if it was longer than the hour and a half it was. He loves it, he still talks about it. It was something we talked about with our pediatrician, and believed very strongly in older siblings being present, and giving the choice. We gave him a choice before, we prepared him with videos about homebirth that our midwife prepared. Even during, I said, “If Miles wants to go the next room he can!” But he said, “No, I fine!” He got freaked out by the blood, but it was still nice.”

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Nelly Furtado Canadian songstress Nellie Furtado is a self-proclaimed “hippie mom” and has opened up about the birth of her daughter Nevis in September 2003. The mom-of-one – who has written/sang hits such as I’m like a Bird and Maneater – proudly said, “I had a home birth with midwives.”

Cindy Crawford Model mom-of-two Cindy Crawford had both of her children – son Presley, now 12, and daughter Kaia, now 10 – at home with her husband Rande Gerber and three midwives on hand. She spoke of the home birth experience:
I didn’t tell anyone last time because a lot of people are against home birth and tell you horror stories. Even my husband said at first, ‘Why are we doing this?’” But she went on to say her home birth was ‘absolutely surreal.’”

Jennifer Connelly One of the latest celebrities to join in the home birth craze is Academy Award-winning actress Jennifer Connelly. The 40-year-old actress and husband, fellow actor Paul Bettany, welcomed daughter Agnes Lark Bettany in their New York City home on May 31, 2011. Baby Agnes was born via planned home water birth in a birthing pool.
Everyone is healthy and doing well,” Jennifer’s rep said. “The family is very excited.”

Erykah Badu R&B singer Erykah Badu has given birth to all three of her children – Seven Sirius, now 14, Puma Sabit, now 7, and Mars Merkaba, now 3 – at home. The ‘First Lady of Neo-Soul’ opened up about her home birthing experience:
I had all my children at home, naturally,” Erykah said. “First my son [Seven Sirius] was born at home in 1997, because that’s the natural environment, the old way. There’s not a lot of fuss and moving around. I had a very wise doula and midwives giving me the freedom to continue living my life. I didn’t have to uproot myself… Maybe to some it’s scary, but preparation is the whole key. When a mother has found out she’s going to have a baby, her whole life — her diet, her mood, her energy — should kind of prepare her. After she prepares herself, fear is never a part of it. I expected success and health, so I made sure I surrounded myself with it. By the time I had my third baby, childbirth seemed a very natural part of life to me.”

Who went for the C-section?

Tori Spelling Reality TV star Tori Spelling and her husband Dean McDermott welcomed their third child, daughter Hattie, in October 2011. After three C-sections, the Beverly Hills, 90210 told Celebrity Baby Scoop she’s “sad” she didn’t get to experience a natural birth.
I hate when people say, ‘C-section is so Hollywood.’ If I could’ve, I would’ve chosen a natural birth. That’s what I wanted to do. It does make me sad that I won’t be able to experience it because I’m the type of person that likes to experience everything – bad or good, pain or not, I want to experience it all. And let me just say that a C-section is no walk in the park! Everyone thinks it’s so ‘she-she.’ It’s major surgery and the recovery is much longer and harder and painful. So I definitely wouldn’t have chosen it if I had the opportunity.”

Christina Aguilera Christina Aguilera gave birth to her first child, son Max, in January 2008. The Beautiful singer talked about her decision to go for an elective C-section.
I didn’t want any surprises. Honestly, I didn’t want any [vaginal] tearing. I had heard horror stories of women going in and having to have an emergency C-section [anyway]. The hardest part was deciding on his birthday. I wanted to leave it up to fate, but at the same time I was ready to be done early!”

Britney Spears In 2005 prior to the birth of her first son, pop star Britney Spears told Elle magazine that she was spooked to give birth naturally because of her mother’s description of vaginal childbirth as being the most excruciating pain she had ever endured.
I have a feeling I’m going to have an operation. I don’t know why, but I hope so. My mom said giving birth was the most excruciating thing that she’s ever gone through in her life. So if a caesarean doesn’t happen, I’ll be like, ‘Epidural, please!’ Hopefully my athletic abilities will take over.”

Rumor has it she wanted to schedule her second C-section birth to coincide with Sean Preston’s birthday, but her then-husband Kevin Federline persuaded her to move the date forward. Sean’s birthday is September 14, 2005 and Jayden’s birthday is September 12, 2006.

Angelina Jolie A-lister mama Angelina Jolie had a scheduled C-section with her first biological child, Shiloh, due to her breech presentation. The mother-of-six talked about the “fascinating” experience.
We were in this little hospital in Africa when Shi was born. I don’t think there was anybody else in the hospital. It was just a little cottage, the three of us. It ended up being the greatest thing. We had wonderful doctors and nurses. It was lovely, very personal, all three in this sweet room. We had an American doctor with us, who had met the Namibian doctors, and they worked in tandem because it was a C-section and my first and we didn’t know the country. He spent a few weeks with us. There was only one pediatrician in town, and one anesthesiologist, who had to come in for that — you have to plan it. I had a C-section and I found it fascinating. I didn’t find it a sacrifice and I didn’t find it a painful experience. I found it a fascinating miracle of what a body can do.”

Angelina’s now 3-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne were also born via C-section.

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Victoria Beckham The very woman who inspired the phrase “too posh to push,” Victoria Beckham, has had four scheduled C-sections. While she has publicly stated that they were medically necessary, others have speculated that Vickie is not only too posh to push, but she wanted to avoid abdominal stretching and the pain of natural childbirth.
While her hunky hubby David Beckham has said they’d love a fifth child, another pregnancy is likely not in the cards for the 37-year-old mother of four as doctors have warned that her body couldn’t handle a fifth C-section.

Claudia Schiffer Former supermodel Claudia Schiffer and husband Matthew Vaughn welcomed their third child, daughter Cosima, in May 2010.

“Mother and child are both doing very well,” Claudia’s spokesperson said, and added that the baby was born via C-section at Portland Hospital in London. Reportedly, this was the third C-section for the 41-year-old model who is also mom to son Caspar, 9, and daughter Celmentine, 7.

Who wanted a natural birth, but mother nature had other plans?

Kate Winslet Kate Winslet said that when her daughter Mia was delivered via C-section in 2000 she was left feeling “like a complete failure.”
I’ve never talked about this. I’ve actually gone to great pains to cover it up. But Mia was an emergency C-section. I just said that I had a natural birth because I was so completely traumatized by the fact that I hadn’t given birth. I felt like a complete failure. My whole life, I’d been told I had great childbearing hips. There’s this thing amongst women in the world that if you can handle childbirth, you can handle anything. I had never handled childbirth, and I felt like, in some way that I couldn’t join that ‘powerful women’s club.’”

But the Academy Award-winning actress opted for the VBAC for her second child and had her “triumphant” birth:
So it was an amazing feeling having Joe naturally, vaginally. Fourteen hours with no drugs at all, but then I had to have an epidural because I was so tired. I honestly thought I’d never be able to do it. It was an incredible birth. It laid all the ghosts to rest. It was really triumphant.”

Camila Alves Camila Alves labored at the hospital for 60 hours before her son Levi was finally delivered via C-section. Dad Matthew McConaughey famously recounted the birth story:
Contractions started kicking in. We had a 14-hour session, her and I did. I sat there with her, right between her legs. We got tribal on it, we danced to it! I was DJ-ing this Brazilian music. We were jamming! She was sweating. No painkiller, let’s go. She just clicked into that gear that only a woman has at a time like this. We’d been up for 40-something hours, and we went from dead tired to a really steadfast, ‘Let’s handle this… let’s stay in the rhythm. Don’t let the contraction be more than you.’ The doctor wanted to give her an epidural, and we said, “Give us a few more hours to keep rocking with this.’ I wasn’t speaking for Camila. She had the option of saying, ‘Give me an epidural, right now,’ whenever she wanted. This is where I learned – and no one tells you this – but having a baby is a bloody, pukey, sweaty, primeval thing! And I mean that as a beautiful thing. It is wild. But the vacuum didn’t work, and the doctor said, ‘C-section.’”

Kellie Martin Life goes on! Kellie Martin was set on giving birth naturally and was disappointed that she had to be induced when her daughter Maggie didn’t want to come on her own.
I was induced, and I really, really wanted to have her naturally. No drugs, no nothing, because that’s what my mom did with me so I figured — you know — I’m as tough as my mother!

Maggie changed her mind after her water broke, but Kellie’s husband and her nurse helped her get through it.
We got a couple of hours into the real, good contractions and they broke my water… and once that happened, I said ‘Okay, no, no, no,no… can’t do it. Can’t do it! Drugs! Somebody help me…I have to have drugs.’ And my husband knew how important it was to me to have Maggie naturally so he just kept changing the subject, and my nurse kept changing the subject…She’d be like ‘Ooooh, look! It’s so beautiful outside!’ And I was like, ‘Seriously, no one is listening tome.’ And by that point I’d really forgotten that I needed the drugs,and it was time to push.”

Laila Ali Laila Ali had planned on having an unmedicated home birth. The professional boxer ended up in the hospital and required pain relief and medical support during labor.
He is healthy, he is here, and even though everything didn’t go the way I would have liked it to have gone… that’s the way it was supposed to be,” Ali said.

It’s a hot topic for moms-to-be in Hollywood as well…

Marla Sokoloff Actress and musician Marla Sokoloff is set to welcome her first child – a girl – at the end of this month. The mom-to-be talked to Celebrity Baby Scoop about her low-key birth plan and her hopes for a natural delivery.
My birth plan is simply getting her out safely! I’m not one of those pregnant women who have a 40-page birth plan ready to go. One of my best friends had it all planned out then wound up having an emergency C-section, so you really never know. I’m really trying to go with the flow the best I can in every capacity of pregnancy. Not to say I’m being flippant about the process – I’ve definitely thought about it and educated myself on labor and delivery. I trust my doctor 100% so that is also giving me the confidence to take this on without added anxiety.”

The mom-to-be went on about her doubts of a drug-free birth.
I plan on delivering in the hospital and would LOVE to tell you that it will be a drug free experience, but I don’t think that’s in the cards for me.”

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Celebrity Baby Scoop is one of the most popular blogs on the topic and the foremost provider of everything celebrity-baby, featuring baby fashion, baby names, baby trends and up-to-the-minute celebrity baby gossipand pics. Get all the latest news, updates, and photos about Hollywood’s most beloved celebrity moms, dads and their babies. Who’s the latest Tinseltown baby? Who’s due next and who just announced a pregnancy? It’s all on Celebrity Baby Scoop.

Most parents look forward to that special bedtime story with their little ones. It’s a time when moms and dads devote their full attention to their kids and the day to day distractions are put on the backburner. Celeb mommies agree and tell CelebrityBabyScoop that there’s nothing better than that bedtime reading and cuddle time:

Full House alum Jodie Sweetin, currently stars on Can’t Get Arrested
“We love to read! We have story time every night before bed. It’s about twenty minutes and they get to pick three books. Usually it’s the same ones. We have Goodnight Moon. ButPajama Time by Sandra Boynton is their favorite. It’s really cute and has a song – it’s our favorite cuddle book before bedtime. The baby loves her first-words-books. I’m a big reader myself, so I love reading to the girls. That’s a really big thing for me.”

Jessica Seinfeld, founder of Baby Buggy
“My family loves reading poems by Shel Silverstein together. We’ve read his poems so many times that by now we can all recite them by heart. At bedtime, we read a few together, using different voices for each character. After reading time, we try to give each child about 20 minutes alone time with mom or dad, to talk about issues that have arisen at school or home that day. We always try to end the day with some big laughs.”

Actress Jennie Garth
“Skippyjonjones is a favorite book of ours, it makes them laugh. And I like Crysanthemum. And then there’s always Goodnight Moon, which always makes me feel peaceful and sleepy!”

Samantha Harris – ET correspondent, collaborator on the ‘Samantha Jean’ for DL1961
“There are different favorite books for each of our two girls for bedtime. Right now, each night,10-month-old Hillary gets to cuddle before her bottle with “Good Night Moon”. It was one of my favorites growing up. Josselyn gets to pick two books to read while cuddled up in mommy and daddy’s bed with us each night. Before we bring her to her room for lullabies, our favorites come from the Elephant & Piggie series by Mo Willems. “I Broke My Trunk” and “Elephants Cannot Dance” are at the top of the list. My husband, Michael, does the elephant’s voice and I read the piggie’s parts. It cracks up all three of us!”

CelebrityBabyScoop.com is one of the most popular blogs on the topic and the foremost provider of everything celebrity-baby, featuring baby fashion, baby names, baby trends and up-to-the-minute celebrity baby gossip and pics. Get all the latest news, updates, and photos about Hollywood’s most beloved celebrity moms, dads and their babies. Who’s the latest Tinseltown baby? Who’s due next and who just announced a pregnancy? It’s all on CelebrityBabyScoop.com

Actress and author Denise Richards can now add entrepreneur to her list of accomplishments. The single mom-of-three is launching her own haircare line with a fun giveaway on her official website. A perfect fit for the gorgeous mama who always seems to be having a good hair day!

Denise opens up to Celebrity Baby Scoop about the new line, her recent tropical getaway with her ex-husband Charlie Sheen, and her three gorgeous girls: Sam, 7, Lola, 6, and Eloise, 7 months.

CBS: Tell us about your new haircare line.

DR: “My haircare line was something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. I have tried every product out there, and wanted to come up with something that was healthy for the hair without weighing it down. I’m giving away products, please check my website for details.

CBS: Your hair always looks perfect! Do you wear extensions? What’s your secret?

DR: “I don’t wear hair extensions, I never have. My hair takes a lot of wear and tear from working, constantly being exposed to heated irons and dryers. The conditioner I came out with is excellent for hydrating your hair.”

CBS: How was your recent tropical vacation with your ex-husband Charlie Sheen and your girls?

DR: “I had an amazing vacation with Charlie and our girls. It was a good trip for them for the holidays. They are great travelers and are always up for a fun adventure. Eloise was with us too which made it even more special.”

CBS: Was there an adjustment period for you and the girls when you brought home baby Eloise?

DR: “There wasn’t an adjustment period with baby Eloise, we can’t imagine what life was like before she was born. Sami and Lola are the best big sisters. They love to make faces and do dances for her and she has this big belly laugh watching them. She loves them so much.”

CBS: How is baby Eloise doing?

DR: “Eloise is the happiest baby; she always has a smile on her face. She doesn’t want to miss anything, especially with her sisters. She’s not much of a sleeper. I’ve just learned to function on very little sleep. I think most parents have.”

CBS: What’s up next for you?

DR: “I have two episodes of 30 Rock that are airing at the end of January. It was a dream working with that cast.”

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Celebrity Baby Scoop is one of the most popular blogs on the topic and the foremost provider of everything celebrity-baby, featuring baby fashion, baby names, baby trends and up-to-the-minute celebrity baby gossipand pics. Get all the latest news, updates, and photos about Hollywood’s most beloved celebrity moms, dads and their babies. Who’s the latest Tinseltown baby? Who’s due next and who just announced a pregnancy? It’s all on Celebrity Baby Scoop.

Hollywood Baby Boom: 10 Pregnant Celebrities

Three cheers for last
year’s Hollywood baby
boom! We met David and Victoria
Beckham‘s adorable daughter Harper, Mariah
Carey and Nick Cannon’s sweet twins, and our favorite baby of 2011, Flynn
Bloom!

Who will be adding to
their families in 2012? We can’t wait to see pics of Jessica Simpson’s first
child. Not to mention baby No. 3 for Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner! Read below
for Celebrity Baby Scoop’s 10 most-anticipated pregnancies of 2012.

Beyoncé

After a surprising
pregnancy announcement on stage at the MTV VMAs, we’ve been dying in
anticipation for baby news ever since! It’s been confirmed that superstar Beyoncé and rapper hubby Jay-Z welcomed a baby girl on Saturday,
Jan. 7 via C-section whom they named Ivy
Blue Carter. Their good pal Gwyneth
Paltrow confirmed the happy news on Twitter: “Welcome to
the world Blue! We love you already,” she wrote, and clarified, “It’s
Blue Ivy Carter!”

Hilary Duff

Disney darling Hilary Duff, 24, announced her first
pregnancy on her first wedding anniversary. The Lizze Maguire star and husband, hockey star Mike Comrie, are expecting a baby boy in early 2012.

Jennifer Garner

Our favorite celebrity parents of 2011, Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck, will be adding to their
adorable brood any day now. The high profile couple are already parents to
darling daughters Violet, 6, and Seraphina, 3. We can’t wait to hear if
the baby boy rumors are true!

Jessica Simpson

After months of
speculation, singer/entrepreneur Jessica
Simpson, 31, announced she’s expecting her first child with her fiancé Eric Johnson in late October. Jess has
been very open about her various pregnancy cravings. The latest? “Kraft
mac and cheese with Lawry’s seasoning salt is the breakfast for pregnant
champions!!!,” she shared.

Kourtney Kardashian

The Kardashian klan is
growing! Reality TV mama Kourtney
Kardashian and beau Scott Disick
are adding to their family. The on-again-off-again couple, who are already
parents to son Mason, 2, recently
announced they are expecting their second child. And it sounds like the
pregnancy cravings are alive and well for the gorgeous expectant mama.
“What should I make for lunch? I’m SO hungry! ,” Kourt tweeted.

Alessandra Ambrosio

Victoria’s Secret
model Alessandra Ambrosio made her
pregnancy news official on Facebook, debuting her baby bump alongside
3-year-old daughter Anja in a bikini
on the beaches of her hometown of Florianópolis, Brazil. “Anja, Jamie and
I are overjoyed and extremely appreciative of all the wonderful wishes we’ve
received!!” the model mom wrote. “2011 has been a year filled with
incredible gifts and this is the ultimate blessing!!”

Alyson Hannigan

Life is imitating art
for How I Met Your Mother star Alyson Hannigan. Her character on the
hit CBS sitcom is pregnant, and so is the mom-of-one. The Buffy alum and hubby Alexis
Denisof, who are already parents to 2-year-old daughter Satyana, will welcome a new baby this
year.

Maggie Gyllenhaal

Academy
Award-nominated actress Maggie
Gyllenhaal and husband, fellow actor Peter
Sarsgaard, announced in November that they are expecting again. The new
addition will join their 5-year-old daughter Ramona.

Bryce Dallas Howard

Eclipse actress Bryce Dallas Howard and husband Seth Gabel are expecting their second
child together. The daughter of famed actor/director Ron Howard opened up about the second time around. “Everyone
has told me that it’s easier, but to be honest, the morning sickness has been
so intense,” she admitted. Bryce and Seth are already parents to
4-year-old son Theo.

Robert Downey, Jr. & Susan Levin

Once-troubled actor, Robert Downey Jr., and wife Susan Levin are expecting their first
child together – a boy – in February. The Sherlock
Holmes star is already dad to son Indio,
18, from his previous marriage to Deborah Falconer.

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Celebrity Baby
Scoop is one of the most popular blogs on the topic and
the foremost provider of everything celebrity-baby, featuring baby fashion,
baby names, baby trends and up-to-the-minute celebrity baby gossip and pics.
Get all the latest news, updates, and photos about Hollywood’s most beloved
celebrity moms, dads and their babies. Who’s the latest Tinseltown baby? Who’s
due next and who just announced a pregnancy? It’s all on Celebrity Baby Scoop.

We all loved her as Laura Ingalls on the beloved television series Little House on the Prairie. Now, Melissa Gilbert is all grown up and speaking out against a cause close to her heart: teen alcohol and drug prevention. “I know from personal experience the importance of educating parents about the dangers of teen substance abuse,” the mom-of-four tells Celebrity Baby Scoop.

Melissa, 47, sat down with Celebrity Baby Scoop and opened up about the “staggering” statistics facing our teens and her best advice for concerned parents: “I truly believe that empowering parents is the first step in preventing the disease of addiction from ruining families,” she said. The actress also talked about her four sons – Dakota, Michael, Sam, and Lee – whom she’d “rather hang out with more than anyone in the world.” Read on about Melissa’s mission to empower parents with DrugFree.org, and hear about her upcoming Christmas movie.

CBS: We think it’s great you partnered with DrugFree.org for their 25th Anniversary Luncheon! How did you get involved with the organization? Do you have a personal connection to the cause?

MG: “I decided to get involved with The Partnership at DrugFree.org because I know from personal experience the importance of educating parents about the dangers of teen substance abuse. The statistics are staggering – 90 percent of addictions get their start in teenage years, and I truly believe that empowering parents is the first step in preventing the disease of addiction from ruining families. I am currently celebrating my seventh year in recovery and I have faced substance abuse issues within my immediate family in a number of ways.

The Partnership at DrugFree.org is a unique organization dedicated to educating parents and providing them with the resources and tools they need to address a teen drug or alcohol problem with a loved one.

I am proud to join them in their efforts to help parents understand they are not alone and that addiction is a disease that affects 85 million people in the US alone.

I will continue to share my voice and my personal experiences as a ‘cautionary tale’ to get people talking about – and taking action – on this critical health issue.”

CBS: What can parents do to help safeguard their children and teens from the risk of alcohol and drug abuse?

MG: “Parents can start the conversation early, not only talking with their kids about the risks of substance abuse, but also by taking an active role in listening to them and closely monitoring what’s going on in their personal lives.

Who are their friends? What are the trends at school? Have their friends ever asked them to try drugs or alcohol? Setting limits, especially for teens, and setting clear rules also helps a lot. Believe it or not kids not only need rules, they want those boundaries.

It’s important to always remember that above all else you’re a parent – not a friend – to your child. I don’t care if my kids are annoyed that I’m ‘that mother’ who needs to know what’s going on in their lives all the time. It is my job to be THE MOST important influence in the lives of my children and research shows that kids who learn a lot about the dangers of drugs from their parents are up to 50 percent less likely to ever try drugs than those who do not get that critical message at home.

When parents become actively involved in what their children are doing, it is more likely that their kids will make healthy choices for themselves. We can’t shield our kids from every negative influence they are presented with, but taking certain steps and staying engaged in their lives can certainly help.”

CBS: How old are your boys? Do you have just one in the house now? What are their hobbies and interests?

MG: “My boys are now ages 31, 26, 22, and my youngest is 16. I have the two younger ones living with me at home. They both like video games, music, dinners at home, taking naps and watching movies. My older son builds models and my younger one loves acting.”

CBS: How has your relationship changed with them now that they are older?

MG: “Well there’s a lot more we can talk about and share together. Some of our conversations can even become intense debates, but mostly our conversations are very open and honest. I’d rather hang out with my boys more than anyone in the world. And they are fun and make me laugh….a lot!”

CBS: What’s been the most rewarding part of motherhood?

MG: “I have to say that the most rewarding part has been watching my sons grow into happy, successful, compassionate and confident men. Actually, I think I get the greatest rewards from learning from the mistakes I have made through the years. I know that when the boys can say to me, ‘Mom, that’s really unfair,’ or, ‘Mom, that hurts my feelings,’ I have a unique opportunity to tell them I’m sorry and change my behavior. My sons make me a better person.”

CBS: Do you have any plans for the holidays yet?

MG: “So far our plans are all about being together as a family and being home for the holidays. We’ve traveled the last few years during the holidays so this year it’s all about home, healing, and laughter….with lots of carbs of course!”

CBS: What projects are up next for you?

MG: “I am excited for a new film which will air December 12 on the Hallmark Channel called, The Christmas Pageant. Also I have two new books coming out next year so right now I am focused on writing like crazy.”

Celebrity Baby Scoop is one of the most popular blogs on the topic and the foremost provider of everything celebrity-baby, featuring baby fashion, baby names, baby trends and up-to-the-minute celebrity baby gossip and pics. Get all the latest news, updates, and photos about Hollywood’s most beloved celebrity moms, dads and their babies. Who’s the latest Tinseltown baby? Who’s due next and who just announced a pregnancy? It’s all on Celebrity Baby Scoop.

Audiences first fell in love with Esai Morales in the popular ’80s biopic La Bamba. The 49-year-old actor is now known for his roles on NYPD Blue and Caprica. Esai is starring in the chilling true story of one woman’s fight to get her husband released from the hands of kidnappers in Mexico in We Have Your Husband, set to premiere on Lifetime on Saturday, November 12th at 8pm ET/PT.

Esai opened up to Celebrity Baby Scoop about his new role that will raise awareness for an “ongoing problem” about “social cannibalism,” his thoughts on Occupy Wall Street, his “very willful” 1-year-old daughter Mariana that has taught him “you can’t force any situation,” and his reservations on welcoming a second child. Check out what he has to say in the exclusive interview.

CBS: What’s your best advice to parents?

EM: “Teach your kids to learn by learning yourself. The best and most direct form of this is learning from them directly and thanking them for the lessons that they teach you, because they do teach us. If we allow ourselves to learn, we can do some of the important un-learning that has been done to us.

Kids come to the world more prepared than we know – then we educate them out of their natural genius. They ask, ‘Why,’ and we say, ‘Never mind, I don’t know.’ We get jaded as adults because we don’t want to know! So, I think one of the best responses to ‘Why’ is, ‘Very good questions, I don’t know right now. I’m going to find out and get back to you.’ And actually go and find out why!”

CBS: So what has your daughter Mariana taught you in her short life so far?

EM: “That she will not eat anything I try to give her [laughs]! She is very willful. Her mother knows how to work her. And she has to look at it – she cannot just eat blindly. She has to look at the food and determine if she wants to eat it or not. And I’m like, ‘But you don’t realize this is for you!’ But no, she has to look at it first.

She’s teaching me that you can’t force any situation. Children are children and they can’t be reasoned with the way adults cajole each other. We all agree upon certain rules. But children go beyond that and they are just going to exist in a rhythm of their own. We as parents should learn their rhythm as opposed to conforming them to our expectations. They need to know that there’s a limit to patience and generosity, but at the same time we should not be blind to learning a different way. You would think my kid is starving because my wife is always offering her something, but she just wants to know that it’s there and she’ll have it when she wants it.

Sometimes parents fret because kids aren’t molding quickly enough. It’s tough! But it’s so beautiful to wake up and see this completely innocent face. Just thinking of what dreams are going through their little brains. What could they possibly be thinking of. That kind of stuff makes you think about eternity.”

CBS: Sounds like fatherhood has been life-changing for you! Would you like more kids?

EM: “That’s a tough one! What I want is more securities to raise them in. Right now, these times are really, really tough and the loans that I made are not coming back, and friends need this-and-this, so does family. Everybody’s hurting, and so I want more children theoretically, but right now we’re going to keep our family unit as lean as possible so that we can survive the waves of catastrophe that seem to be mounting. Hopefully we’ll have enough resources and resource-fullness to survive, relatively unbeaten.”

CBS: Do you have any favorite holiday traditions?

EM: “I always liked the gatherings, but after awhile I needed to be alone and go to my room. I remember thinking, ‘I’m glad this is not every weekend.’ I think the most important thing is reflection. Family gatherings should be about reflecting on how we’ve grown, or not, or too much!

I think family gatherings are great as long as they don’t get too excessive and there’s no fighting. I think it’s great when families can get together and work through issues. There are so many problems that families create amongst themselves, so if you can focus on the positive and work on some of the negative, maybe we can evolve as a family unit.

It can be very difficult to keep in touch. As kids, all you ever wanted to do is leave! And then you form your own family, and then you think, ‘I want my kids to see their relatives.’ I’m not a traditionalist, I’m more about making the best of now.”

CBS: Do you do Halloween in your house? If so, do you have a costume for Mariana?

EM: “It’s so funny because someone just asked us that! We don’t yet. Elivimar is from Brazil and they don’t celebrate Halloween there. But she said, ‘If she wants to do that one day, fine, but I’m not going to paint her face until she realizes what’s going on.’ So we’ll give her a couple years until she feels the pull from society.

But for me, I loved Halloween until I became an actor! I thought, ‘Wait, I get paid for this, I don’t want to be in costume and makeup.’ I dressed up as a drag queen about two times and that was enough for me! I don’t know how you ladies do the heels thing [laughs]!”

CBS: Tell us about We Have Your Husband, premiering on Lifetime on November 12th.

EM: “It’s a classic Lifetime caper movie based on a true story. A family is victimized by the growing epidemic of kidnapping, especially in Mexico. It was a big surprise to the family. I play Eduardo Valseca, the son of a newspaper magnet. Everyone thought he must be loaded, but it was a large family and he didn’t inherit all that much. They asked for a ridiculous amount of ransom and the system there will only help you to a point. Over there it’s successful if you don’t get killed. But if you get wiped out financially, that’s your tough luck.

The hero of this story is Jayne Valseca (played by Teri Polo), the wife of Eduardo who perseveres, doesn’t lose hope, who is put through the ringer. We see that these crimes are not just against the individual kidnapee, but the entire family. The psychological and spiritual abuse of not knowing where your beloved family member is and how they’re doing and if they’re going to make it. This is the worst form of terrorism. The affects do not just go away at the return of the person and the Valseca family are brave to tour the world and speak out against this problem. Of course governments want to sweep this under the rug because they don’t want to scare away investors or tourist dollars.

This problem is ongoing and it’s become an industry. They are now kidnapping people from hot dog stands and selling them back to their families for one thousand dollars. It’s that ridiculous. It’s Mexico and it’s also elsewhere.

I remember Tommy Motolla‘s wife’s sister — the singer Thalia — her sister was kidnapped for ransom. They paid big money to get her back. Many have this romantic notion of negotiation — kidnappers and terrorists do not negotiate. And this is the only hope families have to get their loved ones back. There was a gentleman on Dateline they showed his story. He did everything he could and they still killed his daughter. I just can’t imagine!”

CBS: Not only is this an interesting role you’re playing, you’re also raising awareness.

EM: “Yes, that’s the key! If enough people say, ‘This has got to stop,’ and if we put enough effort into this, not just PR efforts, something might change. Something has to give! This is a great role! It’s really the woman’s heroics that we see, but this character is such a sweetheart. He was living his dream. They were living in paradise, raising their family on a ranch by gathering all of their resources, and built their home by hand. They put their heart and soul into their hacienda. Their children went to a school nearby that they helped found. And unfortunately human nature, jealousy, greed, and even survival took that away.

It’s easy to just ‘hate’ people. I spoke to the man I portrayed and I said, ‘I’m sure there were times that if you could have killed them with your bare hands, you would have for what they put your family through.’ I asked if there is any virtue in the kidnappers. I think it’s a combination of living in desperate times and having to resort to desperate measures. It’s a form of social cannibalism if you ask me.

The family that I helped portray can’t even return to their home! The system is so entrenched that the problem forms around it. There are people in high places who very well might be in on it. That’s the real problem! It’s corruption and it’s gotten to another level.

If we don’t listen to what this family went through, society won’t take this problem seriously. It’s something that people think is a problem of the ‘very rich.’ But the problem is that you don’t have to be very rich. You can be just getting by, doing relatively well.”

CBS: Did this role make you appreciate your freedom a little more?

EM: “Yes, but when you want to be free to help others on a mass scale, you run into invisible walls. I think that our society – as wonderful as it is – has other problems that we are not conditioned to recognize. So, Occupy Wall Street has been trying to do something about it. And as much as they have been mocked in the media for their lack of organization, I respect people for saying, ‘Enough is enough.’

Seriously, I believe the American people have been kidnapped by their own congressmen and bankers. You can take trillions of our dollars but not lend it back to us? What’s that? To me, it’s all related. Yes, we are free, but how free when our civil rights are disappearing by the day? So yes, I kiss the ground I walk on, but how long will that remain before the social problems that are going on in Europe reach here?

I appreciate the fact that these protesters are being non-violent because violence is what the system wants in order to justify abusive crackdowns. Everything is political if you look deep enough. We’re not conditioned and programmed to ask the deeper questions. It doesn’t seem there are informed populations.”

CBS: What’s up next for you?

EM: “I did a stint on Fairly Legal. And I just did a movie called Gun Hill Road where I play the father of a transgendered teen. It is an amazing independent film that, unfortunately, doesn’t have a big studio behind it so it won’t be seen as much. But the people who have seen this film walk away extremely grateful. It’s a beautiful humananizing portrait that doesn’t preach, just shows what happened to a family (because it’s based on a true story) because the father couldn’t deal with the emerging realities of his son’s sexuality.

I like these great roles because I’m so tired of all this stuff that is just about nothing! Our media sells fashion, our media sells this and that. I don’t mind a little commerce here and there, but when you lose the point you have to ask why. It just feels pointless. I like to be more of an enlightening factor than just an entertainer.

We are the most entertained and least informed society — Americans. It’s the truth. We have the best propaganda money can buy. When I go to another country and I don’t see American advertising, I kind of miss them! We are suffering a Stockholm Syndrome where we miss our porpaganda — we don’t even realize what it is but we miss it. It’s high production value. I always say, don’t just make dollars, make sense!”

We Have Your Husband premieres on Lifetime on Saturday, November 12th at 8pm ET/PT.

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Celebrity Baby Scoop is one of the most popular blogs on the topic and the foremost provider of everything celebrity-baby, featuring baby fashion, baby names, baby trends and up-to-the-minute celebrity baby gossip and pics. Get all the latest news, updates, and photos about Hollywood’s most beloved celebrity moms, dads and their babies. Who’s the latest Tinseltown baby? Who’s due next and who just announced a pregnancy? It’s all on Celebrity Baby Scoop.

Grey’s Anatomy star Sarah Drew is inviting Celebrity Baby Scoop readers to follow along as she experiences her first pregnancy — and she’s even welcoming your questions!
In her second guest blog, Sarah, who celebrates her 31st birthday on Saturday, reflects on the “incredible” experience of her first ultrasound. The mom-to-be also talks about preparing for motherhood: “My priorities and desires are shifting in a very deep and profound way, and I think that I need this time to process that change in me.”
There’s nothing like an ultrasound to make this whole pregnancy thing feel super real. I have to say, my first ultrasound was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. My little person was in constant motion. Baby kept moving it’s arms up to it’s face. It yawned. It kicked it’s little legs out. At one point it was facing us and then squirmed around completely and stuck it’s butt out at us. It was the craziest thing! Having the visual of my little person has really solidified the fact that I am becoming a parent. Every time I feel the baby move, I can now attach the feeling with an image. I’ve found myself talking to my belly quite a lot.
I’ve also found myself thinking about dreams recently. The fall is my favorite time of year, and I think it’s because it feels like a new beginning. When I was in high school, I loved the beginning of the school year. I loved dreaming about what this coming year might bring, whom I might meet, and what exciting things might happen to me. The world was wide open. Anything could happen. Now, I feel like I’m embarking on a totally new chapter of my life. I’m settled. I’m with the love of my life. I’m living my dream in a very real way in terms of my career and passion.
Things are more grounded and less uncertain, and it’s a wonderful thing, but there are times when I wish I could go back to that time when things were totally uncertain and I spent all my time dreaming. As I feel this little person moving around, and as I move into this new place in life, I’m getting so excited about the opportunity to watch my little person experience that wide-eyed-dreaming and that uncertainty. I’m excited to meet whomever they choose as a life partner. I’m excited to see how they discover their identity and passions. I’m excited to walk beside them through first love and heartbreak.
Over the last few weeks, I’ve found myself fantasizing about going to my kids’ soccer games and screaming on the sidelines. It’s funny. I’m living my dream that I would stay awake at night imagining as a child, and now that the excitement about my dream has faded for me, I get to dream about a whole new generation. And believe me, this new dreaming is so much more exciting than my dreams as a teenager.
I think there’s a reason we are given almost ten months to grow a child before we meet them. There is so much that we have to go through as impending parents. My priorities and desires are shifting in a very deep and profound way, and I think that I need this time to process that change in me. It’s such an exciting and emotional time. My mother always said that the only things that are really worth looking forward to in life are marriage and having children, and I gotta say, I think I’m starting to understand what she was talking about.
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Celebrity Baby Scoop is one of the most popular blogs on the topic and the foremost provider of everything celebrity-baby, featuring baby fashion, baby names, baby trends and up-to-the-minute celebrity baby gossip and pics. Get all the latest news, updates, and photos about Hollywood’s most beloved celebrity moms, dads and their babies. Who’s the latest Tinseltown baby? Who’s due next and who just announced a pregnancy? It’s all on Celebrity Baby Scoop.

Actress Nia Vardalos stole our hearts in the sleeper hit My Big Fat Greek Wedding. The Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and her good friend Tom Hanks co-wrote Larry Crowne which is set to hit the big screen this weekend.

Nia opens up to Celebrity Baby Scoop about her adoption journey while shattering myths about the American foster care system. The proud mom-of-one, who has been married toCougar Town star Ian Gomez for 18 years, also talks about their daughter, mommy guilt, and the unexpected success of My Big Fat Greek Wedding: “It was like skiing down a mountain without poles.”

CBS: Congratulations on the premiere of Larry Crowne this Friday! How fabulous to work with Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts!

NV: “It’s been so great! Tom asked a few years ago, ‘Do you want to write a movie with me?’ And of course my jaw hit the floor and I said, ‘Yes please, yes sir!’ And we always hoped we’d get Julia Roberts. Then one day he called and said, ‘OK, Julia is in and I’m going to direct it,’ and I was like, ‘What is happening?!’

So I got to go to set every day and watch. It was like film school to watch the entire process. I don’t even know how this happened to me! He also produced My Life in Ruins. So I’ve had a pretty awesome ride with him. I’m forever trying to find the camera to look into to ask, ‘Is this my life?’”

CBS: Can you tell us about adopting your daughter through the foster care system?

NV: “I became the national spokesperson for adoption because I didn’t know how easy it was to adopt children through the American foster care system. I am a big proponent for adoption from any country – every child deserves a home – but if you don’t have the financial means to adopt a child from another country or speak the language from another country then this process might be for you. It’s non-discriminatory – gay people, single people, older people can adopt – and it’s absolutely cost free. I didn’t know about it because they don’t have the money to advertise, so I stepped up and said, ‘OK, I’m going to use my big mouth to talk about it.’

I recommend that you google your foster family agency in your state. A list of free services will pop up. And these children are legally emancipated. What that means is sometimes people think a child can be placed in your home and then reunited with their parents. That is the fear of adopting from foster care. That’s not true. These children, 130,000 of them, are already legally emancipated. If you are looking to simply foster a child while their parents are trying to get it together, there are 350,000 of those children as well who are looking for a temporary home.

I really think this all happened to me for a reason. At the time, I had such career success but I was hiding this situation that I had been going through for ten years. And now I’m kind of grateful for it all because I’m in love with my daughter! She is my daughter in every way. We all found each other: my husband, our daughter, me, our dogs. We all adopted each other. This was supposed to happen this way.”

CBS: You adopted your daughter when she was 3. How old is she now?

NV: “She’s 6. And by the way, she’s just figured out what I do for a living. She figured it out on the last press tour. We were walking through the airport and everyday she sees the same situation of people telling me they loved My Big Fat Greek Wedding, which is wonderful for her to see her mom getting sweetness from people.

At the airport on Sunday she turned to me and said, ‘Mom, do you have two movies?’ I think she realized what I do for a living in that moment. So I said, ‘Yes honey, I’ve been in a few movies and so has daddy.’ She was nodding, and then I said, ‘Do you know what I get to do now?’ and she said, ‘What?’ and I said, ‘I get to be the mom in the new American Girlmovie.’ She threw her arms around me and screamed, ‘That’s my favorite!’ It was great and I wish I had filmed it because I’m so proud of what I do for a living, but I have the usual guilt of the working mom. After we adopted her, I didn’t want to leave her side. I wanted to watch her every expression until she was 21. And then I realized that I’m proud of what I do and it makes me a well-rounded person. Although it takes me away from her occasionally, I’ve found a way to bring her with me on most things. So I’m proud of it and I think it’s OK for her now. She’s accepted it and she’s OK with sharing me on those occasions when we’re out in public.”

CBS: Are you keeping your daughter’s name private?

NV: “Right now we’re trying as long as we can to keep it private. And we haven’t allowed her to be photographed. There was one photo that was taken by the paparazzi but we asked for it to be removed. We’re just trying to give her privacy. We feel she needs some anonymity to adjust to her new life.

And we honor her life before. We remind her of where she comes from. We say, ‘We can’t wait to meet the man who gave the seed and the woman who gave the egg that made you and we’re going to thank them for helping us be parents.’ We just explain it all because it’s best to have no secrets.”

CBS: Was the adoption process open as well?

NV: “It’s a very open system and on the final day of her adoption they handed us a very thick file with a lot of names and social security numbers. We immediately snapped it shut and handed it to our lawyer and asked him to seal it and keep it so there are no secrets in our home. When we’re all ready to ask the questions and I feel like she’s able to absorb the information, we’ll go together and we’ll find it out. This way when she asks me I can honestly say, ‘I don’t know.’ I asked our lawyer to look through it to see if there is anything that we should know, and he said, ‘No’ so he just keeps it sealed in his office.”

CBS: Do you have any advice for people who are interested in the foster care system, but might be worried the children – for a lack of better terms – might be “damaged?”

NV: “Yes, I say don’t blame yourself for the question. I too had that question because the media will of course seize upon the one in a million story of that child. And that’s not the case. I’ve met these children and they’re the reason why I’ve become a spokesperson and why we adopted from foster care.

I’ve met children who have aged out of the system and have gone on to live healthy and fantastic lives. They’ve gone off to university and become upstanding citizens. You probably know someone who was raised in the foster care system and they’re fine people. I also say that the Menedez brothers weren’t adopted.

There is no damage that has been done to a child that cannot be undone with love. So, I say don’t be ashamed of that fear and I also counsel people not to be afraid.”

CBS: Any plans for another adoption?

NV: “Our family unit works. We are open, but I have not been banging down the doors because I so wanted to be a parent and there is a peacefulness that came over me when I met our daughter. If there is somebody else who could be a first-time parent with a child being placed in their home I don’t want to take that from them. I have become very ‘zen’ about it all. If the phone rings, we would definitely accept that child into our lives, but I feel completely content being the parent of our daughter.”

CBS: Tell us about partnering up with GUM and challenging consumers to live healthier lives.

NV: “Yes, I’m challenging people to take the 28-day PerioBalance challenge and then Tweet me a picture of your healthy smile and I will re-Tweet it. I’m under the very secret name of@NiaVardalos.

I wanted to do something about my smile. We were headed to the red carpet for Larry Crowne and I thought, ‘Oh boy, when that Julia Roberts smiles the whole world lights up.’ So I asked my dentist about something that I could do. I found out about GUM PerioBalance which I love because it’s natural, it’s a probiotic, it’s not a chemical or a bleaching agent. It’s just a simple mint lozenge that you pop in your mouth after you brush and floss your teeth. And by the time you’ve made lunch for your kid, it’s gone! You have fresh breath and it removes 42 percent of the plaque from your teeth.

It’s amazing. It starts working on the first day. It’s the first-ever probiotic designed just for the mouth and I love it because I’m busy! You know when you walk through the mall and they say, ‘Hey, do you want a three-step process to cleansing your skin?’ And you say, ‘Noooo, I don’t have time to add three more steps to my life!’ But this is just so simple, it’s just a package that sits next to your toothbrush. I really like the product. It’s very easy to talk about and it doesn’t feel to me that I’m selling anything because it actually works.”

CBS: What’s up next for you? Will there ever be another Big Fat Greek Wedding?

NV: “I’m open to that concept as well. The idea hasn’t completely hit me. I just tweeted a picture about a month ago of a lunch that I had with Lainie Kazan, Gia Carides and Andrea Martin and we saw the reaction to us just having lunch together in the restaurant. People are so sweet! They were running up to us, hugging us, crying. We thought maybe we should [do a sequel] because it was so nice.

You think you write a little movie about one person and look what happened! It’s so wonderful to go through something like that with everyone. With Rita [Wilson] and Tom [Hanks] and John Corbet. We all became such good friends, even before the movie became such a big success. That’s what means the most to me. I’m so lucky to have the same friends since Kindergarten, and from Second City in Toronto. It’s the same thing that happened in My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Something extraordinary happened to us and we all held hands through it all. It was like skiing down a mountain without poles. It was a lot of fun.

But up next for sure is the American Girl movie. And the best part is that I get to go home to Winnipeg to shoot it. My mom is so excited!”

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Celebrity Baby Scoop is one of the most popular blogs on the topic and the foremost provider of everything celebrity-baby, featuring baby fashion, baby names, baby trends and up-to-the-minute celebrity baby gossipand pics. Get all the latest news, updates, and photos about Hollywood’s most beloved celebrity moms, dads and their babies. Who’s the latest Tinseltown baby? Who’s due next and who just announced a pregnancy? It’s all on Celebrity Baby Scoop.