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Salma Hayek Tries, Without Success, to Delay Potty Training Valentina

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For many parents, a potty-trained toddler is a milestone that can’t come soon enough — but not so for Salma Hayek. In an interview with Access Hollywood, the 43-year-old actress and producer says that daughter Valentina Paloma, 2, potty trained herself…but mom wasn’t ready for the momentous occasion.

“She’s like, ‘Take these off, Mommy. I can go to the bathroom,’” Salma recalls. “But I’m like, ‘I don’t want you to because I still want you to wear the diaper when we go out because I don’t know how to handle the public bathrooms with you. Give me some time.’ But it’s like, ‘No, I don’t want to wear the diaper. I can do this, Mommy.’”

Graduating from diapers is just one of many important markers Valentina has reached of late, Salma shares.

“I had a talk with her not too long ago. I just said, ‘Listen, you have to slow down because I’m a first-time mommy and I’m not ready for some of the things you’re doing.’ She talks and she’s been walking since nine months. She counts. She knows the ABCs.”

Having recently returned to a film set — her first since giving birth — Salma admits she was nervous to take on her role in Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant because of the long hiatus from acting. That the part is small “was really important,” however, according to Salma.

“I was supposed to do a movie right after Valentina [was born] and it was the first time in my career that I backed out of something because I just couldn’t. I couldn’t.”

The transition was made easier by Valentina’s presence on location in New Orleans, along with husband François-Henri Pinault and his two children from a previous relationship. “She did great,” Salma says of Valentina. “She’s a pro.”

Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant is in theaters today.

Source: Access Hollywood

– Missy

Minnie Driver Calls Henry's First Year 'an Insane Earthquake'

Mike/Splash News Online

Before she was a mom Minnie Driver says she treated her career like a baby, mistakenly believing that “it required as much nurturing and as much attention.” Since welcoming son Henry Story, 13 months, Minnie says she finally sees the difference between the two.

“I’ve discovered there’s no amount of hassle that could ever be bigger than my love of Henry and the hilarity and joy that he’s brought into my life and continues to bring,” the 39-year-old actress tells PARADE.

Minnie says that being an aunt to her sister’s three children helped prepare her for motherhood — somewhat. What it didn’t prepare her for, however, was life with a newborn. “My mind was just on the impending birth and the immediate future,” she explains. “Having a little baby is very different than dealing with your kids when they’re older.”

“You’re not juggling school schedules and stuff. I’m sure that all will come, but the first year of Henry’s life has been just an insane earthquake for me.”

That she has tackled that year while continuing to make movies is something Minnie admits is “incredibly challenging.” Her first film postpartum — Betty Anne Waters, costarring Hilary Swank — was shot when Henry was just 5-months-old, Minnie notes.

“We were in Michigan in the middle of winter and it was ten below,” she recalls. “I was like, ‘What am I doing?’” Between baby boy and her film commitments, Minnie concedes that her singing career was temporarily put on hold. “There’s no time,” she observes.

“If he’s sleeping, I’m trying to sleep and when you’re breastfeeding, you’re the milk machine. There’s no time to, like, pick up the guitar and write a song, much less go for a walk or have a beer. It’s like, ‘Good luck.’ But I’m going back in the studio and I’m just about to start another record.”

When she’s feeling overwhelmed or in need of advice, Minnie reveals that she will often frequent Mamapedia. Calling the site “amazing,” Minnie notes that “you can ask questions and mothers across America can answer, so you can get maybe ten answers and it’s kind of a cool resource.” An online community can only go so far, however. Minnie adds,

“Sitting down and reading about somebody else’s tough experiences of being a mother, you’re suddenly like, ‘My God, I’ve got a kid and I don’t have time to read about this. I’ve got to go do it.”

Source: PARADE

– Missy

Charlotte Church Says Ruby's Tantrums Lead to Fainting Spells

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During a fundraising appearance at a new children’s hospital in Wales earlier this week, songstress and television host Charlotte Church revealed that she is all-too familiar with the fears many parents face when it comes to the health of their children.

Although the condition is not life-threatening, Charlotte’s 2-year-old daughter Ruby Megan suffers from breath-holding spells that have caused her to lose consciousness.

“Ruby does this thing when she holds her breath, especially when she is having a tantrum and wants her own way,” Charlotte, 23, explains. “She will hold her breath until she passes out.”

“The first time it happened it was absolutely horrendous. I took her to hospital and they said some children do this until the age of about three when they grow out of it.”

Doctors told Charlotte and her boyfriend Gavin Henson that Ruby can be brought to by spraying her face with water, or by blowing on her face. “Every time it’s happened she’s been fine afterwards,” Charlotte points out, “but it causes Gavin and I a lot of worry.”

The episodes can be brought on whenever Ruby is displeased, Charlotte said, including “if she sees something she wants like sweets or chocolates.” It’s presented quite a problem for the couple, who now must weigh the pros and cons of giving in to their daughter. “If I stop her [from getting what she wants] it risks her having one of these breathing attacks,” Charlotte explains.

According to the UK newspaper Telegraph, medical experts estimate that about five percent of all children endure spells like Ruby, but it is very rare for a child to lose consciousness as a result.

As for Ruby’s little brother Dexter Lloyd, 9 months, Charlotte says that all is well. “[He] is as strong as a silverback gorilla,” she jokes.

Source: Telegraph

– Missy