Jennifer Lopez on Trying Out Nannies, Recovering From Delivery

VIRGINIE LEFOUR/ AFP/Getty

It’s a busy, bad day in the Lopez-Anthony household — Jennifer Lopez has a bug she caught from her infant daughter and is also interviewing nannies. There’s none of the typical accoutrements the public has come to expect from the former J. Lo; instead, she wears no makeup and as her unwashed hair pulled back into a ponytail. "I’m trying out my first [nanny] today," she whispers to the reporter. "But I still can’tstand the sound of my babies crying without tending to them myself." With that, Jennifer heads upstairs and returns with her 7 ½-month-old twins Max David — clad in a black sequined onesie — and Emme Maribel, who has her ears pierced.

Although she is feeling sick the day of the interview, Jennifer says she has been doing well adjusting to parenthood, but admits to hitting a rough patch in the weeks immediately following the twins’ delivery. "At the tenth day after giving birth all that chemical stuff did peak –that hormone thing — and I did cry a lot that day because I was havingso much trouble moving," she explains.

"I had a c-section. Have you everseen a c-section? I told them I didn’t want to know anything, butafterwards they told me they had cut six layers. That’s why you can’twalk afterwards. I couldn’t get up fast enough to feed the babies. Itwent on for about three days. Marc was helping out a lot and I wascrying and crying and going, ‘Oh, Papi … they’re going to knoweverybody more than me.’"

Miming herself crying, Jennifer accidentally wakes up a sleeping Emme, who had been dozing in her arms. "Don’t worry, baby. I was just acting," she tells her daughter. "Mommy is an actress and she does dramatic things."

Source: The Daily Beast

Comments

What a weird excerpt! I think the interviewer means to mock Jennifer by revealing specificities that make her seem like an atypical celeb mom (sequins on a baby?). Its true that Jennifer sort of set herself up for this, but I’m not surprised that many celebrities mistrust interviewers!

- xan on October 10th, 2008

Such an honest interview! It’s true and often not talked about just how debilitating a c-section can be, and how emotionally difficult it is for a new mom to not be able to get to her babies quickly, walk or sometimes even hold them at the beginning. It’s so nice to hear Jennifer discuss her emotions honestly, and glad she got through it.

- Jurnee on October 10th, 2008

wow. I seriously dislike everything about that interview. and first nanny? she just means the first to interview that day, right?

- carie on October 10th, 2008

Ummm, that was very strange. All I can say is that I really cant wait until these kids are older and write a tell all. I will be the first in line to buy it!

- dsmom on October 10th, 2008

I dont get what people are getting from that article that they are reacting so negatively. Other than the idea of a tacky sequined onsie, she sounds like a normal mom to me. She has her first nanny, but isnt ready to give over control; she is sick; she had the baby blues. What is so strange about it?

Seriously people, get over yourselves.

- dickie on October 10th, 2008

I doubt this was her first nanny. This whole thing seemed very weird, I don’t know what to make of it. Waking up a sleeping baby to tell her she was just acting when the baby wasn’t even aware of what was going on? I don’t get it.

That being said, I’m glad she was honest about C-Sections. It’s not an easy thing to go through at all!

- Nicole on October 10th, 2008

She sounds like a great mom, i want to see new pics of those babies!!

And yet again, people have to nit pick. I think some come here just for that reason *rolls eyes*

- Brittany on October 10th, 2008

I found the onesie weird, I found the idea that she said this is her first nanny weird….since she has clearly stated before that she had nannies right after the birth…and like it was mentioned, waking up a sleeping baby to say what she said…yeah, that’s weird!

- carie on October 10th, 2008

Oh, I take back the waking up thing…I just reread it and saw the “accidentally” waking up part…I swore when I read it the first time it was a purposeful waking-up…so I stand corrected on that, but still find the rest of it weird…just the overall tone.

- carie on October 10th, 2008

Shortly after I had a c-section, I watched the operation performed on The Learning Channel. I figured if I got too grossed out, I could shut it off. But in the end, it was kind of fascinating to actually see a filming of what I had just gone through! However, when they aired the face-lift, with the surgeon’s scalpel cutting the sides of the face, THAT I could not watch!

- Tricia on October 10th, 2008

It feels like everyday there’s an interview with her talking about how much she loves her babies, how devoted she is, always talking about if she does or doesn’t have nannies, etc. I like to see pictures of her out once in awhile with her babies, they are almost 8 months old. I don’t expect a photoshoot but majority of celebrities salma hayek, nicole richie, jen garner, katie holmes you see them out with their kids. And I see lots of pictures of her at events with marc in general, so instead of an interview a few pics of her out and about with her kids will be nice.

- brooke on October 10th, 2008

Actually, this probably IS J-Lo’s first nanny. What they had right after birth were Baby Nurses, not nannies.

After that, they went nanny-free for awhile (J-Lo mentioned that in an interview) and relied on J-Lo’s mother and sister to help out when they needed to go out with out the babies.

Now, as J-Lo mentioned in another recent interview, they have finally decided to get a nanny.

It also sounds like J-Lo’s C-section probably wasn’t elective, since it sounds like she isn’t happy she had to have one. It was probably either medically neccesary (due to, for example, one or both babies being breech) or her doctor pushed her into it (that DOES happen, especially with twins. Most doctors don’t like doing vaginal deliveries with twins).

- CelebBabyLover on October 10th, 2008

Sounds like Jen loves her twins very much and is very devoted to her twins.

- Mary-Helen on October 10th, 2008

Dosen’t Jennifer know that sequins could easily come off and her baby choke on it. Not too smart.

- roseanne on October 10th, 2008

For some reason, it seems like Jennifer is going out of her way to prove to the world that she is hands on mom who is very involved with her children. Jennifer like a lot of wealthy people can afford help, first with the two baby nurses and now with a new nanny.

I don’t take issue with Jennifer’s decision to hire 1 nanny or even 2 but I still get the sense from Jennifer that she is major diva who is more likely to be seen at a fashion show in NY than playing with her kids in Central Park.
Lastly, I feel bad for Jennifer about her pain after her C-section. I think that everyone who is thinking about have that procedure done should think about the potential pain involved.

- Di on October 10th, 2008

People have mentioned the silly sounding jumpsuit, but no-one has said anything about a 6and a half month old baby having her ears pierced. My 14 just got it done, pain & swelling for her. No reason for this to be done to a little baby!

- Tiff on October 10th, 2008

I do think her nanny comments are funny. There is nothing wrong with having a nanny, baby nurse etc. Yet she seems very concerned that it will send the wrong message – when it is quite clear she loves her kids.

No matter what you call it, nanny, nurse, baby-sitter, family member — it is the same, someone else is watching your kids. We have seen her out with her husband so we know the little ones are not watching themselves!
It is not the end of the world.

- Elizabeth on October 11th, 2008

I had a C-section and recovered fine. The first 24 hours were a bit tough as I was still hooked up to the epidural, but after that I didn’t need pain relief. I was walking the next morning and was able to tend to my baby fine. So I’m not sure if J.Lo’s account is an “honest” account of C-sections, it’s just her experience with one.

- sadie on October 11th, 2008

Aren’t Max and Emme actually 7 1/2 months old?

- CelebBabyLover on October 11th, 2008

Seriously, they pierced a baby? They made holes in their little girl?

- Hea on October 11th, 2008

Surprising how no-one has commented on the pierced-ears things … I know in my part of the world (France), this is very frowned upon. I guess not in the US! Not nit picking here, wouldn’t be my style for my babies, but each to its own!

I think she should be cut some slack for the nanny thing: twins must be hard work. No one ever thinks abou how hard it must be to relinquish some of her responsibilities over to someone she hardly knows yet! And before anyone says “well, dont take a nanny then”, she is a working mum, and shouldn’t be criticized for searching child care to enable her to get back to work. Just my humble opinion though (I’m no JLO fan, just trying to be objective here!)

- Sarah on October 11th, 2008

“and Emme Maribel, who has her ears pierced. ” So what if the baby has her ears pierced? That’s so common in Latin countries…My mom pierced mine herself when I was 3 months old, there’s no big deal

- Dounia on October 11th, 2008

The entire interview freaked me out for obvious reasons… and I agree that maybe actions speak louder than words and she’s just talking a bit too much about how devoted she is.;) Other than that, I’m sure she’s over the moon with her babies. I imagine that for someone like her, who’s been so extremely ambitioned and busy all her life, the recovery must be hard. (Not that it’s easy for anyone, but I’m just saying she seems like a control freak. um, hope you know what I mean)

- kaya on October 11th, 2008

I have to agree that I am not particularly excited about reading a new interview with Jennifer Lopez every other week (or so it seems) in which she tries to prove that she’s a good and devoted mom – which I do not doubt at all, it just seems sometimes that she feels she has to prove it to the world. That is kind of sad, because she shouldn’t (have to) care about what everybody thinks of her and her parenting skills. Maybe it is just a part of her personality, or maybe it is an attempt to try and ‘redeem’ herself for her ‘diva past’. As mere onlookers, we will never know for sure.
However, there is one thing that has bothered me in previous comments, which is the fact that everyone seems to take her statement of this being her ‘first nanny’ to mean that she has never had a nanny before, when she has clearly stated before that she did indeed engage one after the twins were first born (but got rid of her quickly). To me, the statement simply meant that she is currently in the process of trying out new nannies and that day she was expecting her first candidate to watch them interact with the children. I think that is a perfectly normal approach to finding someone to help out with your children. You won’t just hire anyone, but instead try out several candidates to find the most appropriate and trustworthy nanny. She will have to trust that person to look after her children after all. So the word ‘first’ probably just refers to the first of several more candidates to come. I am surprised that no one has even considered that possibility.

- Isabell on October 11th, 2008

I loved that interview. I thought it was great the way she spoke of all the issues that come up with motherhood. As for the sequined onesie…I can’t remember where I saw them but believe it or not, they are very cute. And the little sequins aren’t sewn on. They’re built into the fabric so they’re safe for baby. I’m sure all of us have dressed our little ones in outfits that seem silly. It’s just a personal preference thing. And as far as I’m concerned, little Princesses should sparkle. =-D

- Dara on October 11th, 2008

I don’t find anything weird about that article either. I don’t get the fuss. Except I did have to read the sequins onsie part a couple of times to make sure I read that right…for a boy and tried to picture what it looks like, but who knows. I was thinking full on sequins, but maybe it just says Max in sequins or something like that. Not sure until we see with our own eyes. They sound like great loving parents and it’s sad how much they get picked on. I do wonder though….why is there a reporter there when she is interviewing a nanny???

- Becky on October 11th, 2008

My ears were pierced at 3 months by my doctor. What’s the big deal?

- J-Lin on October 11th, 2008

Actually, I’m not surprised Emme has her ears pierced, in Latin America, or at least in the Carribean, it’s very common for mothers to get their baby girl’s ears pierced. My mom did mine herself (I am not advocating this!), but it’s less painful and intrusive when girls get their ears pierced earlier.

- Massiel on October 11th, 2008

Maybe baby Max’s onesie was “sequined” like from a bedazzler, which are usually attached better than just sewn on sequins? I know I’ve seen some baby clothes that say “Rockstar” in glitter or something before. (Either way, I think the editor just wanted to emphasize JLo’s diva stereotype, by pointing that out.)

As far as Emme’s earrings, although I personally wouldn’t pierce a child’s ears, it isn’t uncommon especially in some ethnic communities.

- Autumn on October 11th, 2008

NO one has said anything about Jlo’s sister Linda having her baby…Wonder if she helps out..

It was nice to see Jlo with
her girlfriend…girls night
out…this was taken from an
article that Jlo tried not
to get published so it was on the internet..

- JENNIE SMYTHE on October 11th, 2008

For Hea and other ladies on pierced ears: as it has been pointed out piercieng a baby girl’s ears at a young age is a cultural tendency.I had mine done when I was two months old by a nurse and my daughter had hers at 6 months at her paediatrician’s.

Some cultures don’t see pierced ears as holes in a baby’s body (it’s not an attempt to harm the baby or turn her into a decorative accesory for mom’s outfit).

For us is a way to express the girl’s femininity and present her with something of value (Jewelry)as a token of our love for her.In some South American cultures golden ear rings are perfectly acceptable presents for a new born baby.

- eva on October 11th, 2008

Glad to see so many people have issue with JLo and her constant need for publicity. And now she’s pulling her kids into it. And it didn’t surprise me at all that out of all the celebrities who sold their baby pictures, she didn’t give her money to charity.

- Anais on October 11th, 2008

Isabell, I don’t think anyone’s comments had anything to do with whether or not she should interview a nanny first! It was taking issue at whether it was the “first” nanny. Of course you interview nannies.

Earrings on babies…doesn’t bother me. And it’s a common practice in many communities, as stated. Babies aren’t going to remember it…I mean, circumcision is a common practice…a little hole in the ear is not the end of the world in comparison.

- carie on October 11th, 2008

i had my ears pierced when i was 2 days old…i’m not kidding! the doctor did it himself. it’s completely normal in Latin American countries. i was actually kind of surprised when i heard a friend of mine from the states say that she had finally given her 9 year old daughter permission to have her ears pierced.

- Denisse on October 11th, 2008

Dara – I totally agree…little princesses should sparkle, but they were talking about Max, the boy, wearing the sequins onsie :S

- Becky on October 11th, 2008

I think what Isabell was saying…or at least what I got from it…was that she was not saying this was her first nanny ever, it was the first nanny interview of the day.

- Becky on October 11th, 2008

Whether it is a cultural tendency or not does not make it right! Putting a baby through unnecessary pain for what can only be described as vanity on the part of the parent(s) is absolutely disgraceful. It is of no benefit to the baby whatsoever. Surely this decision should be left to the child when it is old enough to make it’s own decisions!

- Lizzie on October 11th, 2008

So Lizzie, if you have/had a boy, would you have him circumcised? That causes pain and is technically unnessacary.

I just dont understand the big deal with ear piercing. If they don’t like it when they’re older, take the earings out. It’s not a big deal.

- Becky on October 11th, 2008

Lizzie,I understand why the concept is odd for you and apprently it gets you all worked up too. However valuable and valid your feelings are on the subject you can’t say that something is wrong about a community you don’t know or don’t care to understand. That’s called ethnocentrism,and that is the real disgrace, not something as minor as an earring on a baby girl.

If it’s such a terrible parenting desicion, does it mean that all mothers of baby girls with pierced ears are vain?cruel?selfish?

There’s an element of vanity attached to it.Our concept of beauty is different from yours, don’t call us disgraceful just because we’re not like you.I find many things about other cultures to be strange and unnecessary but there’s always an explanation for these things in a culture’s history and heritage.Then I guess our history and heritage would also be completely wrong and offensive.

As for the desicion part, a grown up girl can easily decide to stop wearing earrings and that would be the end of it all.

I don’t remember having my ears pierced but I enjoy wearing earrings every day for the past 29 years and couting.

- eva on October 11th, 2008

I just thought I’d add that Latina.com states Jennifer originally banned this interview from being published in Elle magazine. The magazine then hired another reporter.

http://www.latina.com/entertainment/daily-latina/more-daily-latina/fallout-begins-overly-candid-jlo-interview

- Ria on October 11th, 2008

Becky, i get your point but circumcision is actually also a health thing, it decreases the spread of HVI on a ridiculously large scale.
Earrings on the other hand actually are just a vanity thing, culturally driven or not.
The thing that bothered me about the interview was how self involved she sounded. She woke her baby and then just said oh mummy’s an actress.me, me me..

- Emily on October 11th, 2008

I have to agree the the earrings are a vanity thing as opposed to a possible health thing, as with circumcision. An ear is not going to get infected the way a male’s penis can, except maybe when you stick a hole in it! It is a personal choice, but just because someone doesn’t like it on babies doesn’t mean they’re taking a shot at your culture. People are way too sensitive.

I wonder what Jennifer’s camp will do about this, since apparently she tried to keep this interview from getting out? I’ve never heard of something like this!

- Nicole on October 11th, 2008

Wow, I feel like I read a different interview than everybody else! I don’t think there is anything wrong with this interview. If anything, it sounds like the person that interviewed Jennifer doesn’t like her and tried to write her in a negative way.

I cannot believe the things that people nitpick about on here! It’s like people examine every interview to see what they can complain about. If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all!

- Rachael on October 11th, 2008

I understand that someone saying “I don’t like ear piercing for little girls” or “I would not pierce my child’s ears because this or that” is not taking a shot at another person’s culture.If anything it is reflective of someone’s conception of beauty and parenting, not something to be judged.

However, that is not what the person I was addresing said. The choice of words was harsh and thoughtless.”Absolute disgrace” is not the same as having an opposite opinion, it’s aggressive.

- eva on October 11th, 2008

Emily- If you read the interview carefully, you’ll see that it clearly says that she woke Emme ACCIDENTALLY. She didn’t do it on purpose! I think her “mummy’s an actress” comment, was actually her way of apologizing to Emme for waking her.

As for the earring thing…The other posters are right, it is a cultural thing in Latin American. J-Lo, I believe is Latina. Also, if Emme doesn’t want to wear earrings later, it’s no big deal.

I have a friend who had her ears piereced as a baby…only to develope a severe allergey to almost all earrings (she can only wear pure gold earrings. All other earrings cause her ears to start swelling up within minutes).

So what did she do? Simple! She pretty much stopped wearing earrings (she does still wear gold ones occasionally)!

- CelebBabyLover on October 11th, 2008

Anais- J-Lo is hardly the first celeb to sell their baby pictures and not give the money to charity.

In addition to J-Lo, Christina Aguilera, Nicole Richie, Jessica Alba, Matthew McConaughey, Jamie Lynn Spears, Tori Spelling, and Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have sold their baby’s (or babies’, in the case of the Jolie-Pitts) first photos.

Of those celebs, the only ones I know for sure donated to charity are the Jolie-Pitts. I’m guessing Christina did as well, as I remember hearing that she donated the money from selling her and Jordan’s wedding photos to charity.

I’m also guessing that Nicole and Joel donated the money from Harlow’s first photoshoot to their Richie-Madden Foundation.

However, I never heard a thing about Jessica, Matthew, Tori, and Jamie Lynn donating the money from their babies’ first photoshoots to charity.

In otherwords, very few celebs actually donate the money from their babies’ first photoshoots to charity.

Also, in regards to J-Lo’s “need for publicity”, she has actually been very low-key since getting together with Mark. Remember how private she was with her pregnancy at first? She didn’t confirm until she was about six months in!

I think she learned her lesson after the whole “Bennifer” thing!

- CelebBabyLover on October 11th, 2008

Amen Celebbabylover!!

- Becky on October 12th, 2008

^ Matthew and Camila’s $$ for Levi went to his j.k. livin foundation, there was a big sidebar in the article about it.

- Brandi on October 12th, 2008

Wasn’t she the one who said she learned her lesson about speaking to the press about her personal life, saying she wasn’t going to share personal details anymore?
Am I the only one who is confused by this?

- emily on October 12th, 2008

I don’t get the big deal, the woman was under the weather and wasn’t giving the most elequent answers. Not to mention this is an EXCERPT from a larger interview. She clearly loves being a mother and wants to be there for her twins. Meanwhile, if she was talking about something other than her kids, the armchair critics would be all over.

As for the pierced ears thing, that’s not really a big deal to me. My daughters both had their ears pierced as 18 and 2 months respectively and found it was easier to take care of than an older child who would pick @ them.

- Mary-Helen on October 12th, 2008

I just took the nanny comment to mean she was trying out her first nanny from her most recent round of interviews (since getting rid of nannies awhile back). I don’t think she meant to imply that she has never had a nanny.

Also, I think people get a bit too extreme about the ear-piercing thing. Personally, I don’t like it. I find it gaudy and a little weird, and I’d rather let my daughter make that decision herself (though really, how many things did you decide when you were 10 years old that you stand behind now, haha). That said, I don’t think it’s anything to be worked up about. If you like it, go ahead. Your daughter can always take it out later if she doesn’t like it. As far as the pain, big deal! It’s no worse than getting a shot. Uncomfortable for a moment, but not some scarring, tragic event. I think those of us that don’t like baby ear piercing sometimes get a bit self-righteous about it, and really need to calm down a little

- Andria on October 13th, 2008