Spears & Baby: To Grandmother’s House They Go
It looks like it’s taking a Spears-populated village to help little Maddie Briann adapt to the world.
A source close to the new mom tells News that Jamie Lynn, 17, and fiancé Casey Aldridge, 19, and, of course, their day-old daughter, will be spending their first week or so as a family shacked up at grandma Lynne Spears’ Louisiana home.
Though the young couple already owns a home, complete with baby-ready nursery, in Mississippi, they’ve opted to move in with her mother for the time being to take advantage of the in-house help, which includes father Jamie, brother Bryan and another relative, named Britney.
Aldridge’s family is also close by the Spears compound.
The proud fam already has a plan of action, with Britney and her parents ready to take turns helping the new parents with late-night feeds and other necessities while the new mom rests up.
And, the source tells News, that’s not the only plan Britney has in the works.
Big sis is also eager for Maddie to meet her two cousins, Sean Preston and Jayden James.
“Even before her sister gave birth, Britney was saying how she wanted to take her boys back home with her,” says the contact. “She wants them there so they can meet their new little cousin when she comes home from the hospital.”
There was no immediate comment from Kevin Federline or his lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan, on allowing the Spears-spawn summit.
However, Britney would have to jump through some legal hoops before she could take her kids to Kentwood.
“She’s going to need to get permission to take the kids out of jurisdiction,” says Steve Cron, a Santa Monica attorney familiar with family law issues. “Especially with her track record.
“I think the judge will want to make sure there are some controls in place first.”
It could help Britney that her father is down in Dixie with her, Cron says.
“He’ll want to know other responsible adults are there to supervise the kids,” he said. “But her dad might not be enough. The judge might want someone there who is a little more independent, someone with allegiance just to the kids, not also to the mother.”
Which could mean that Britney would have to pay for a court-appointed supervisor.
While K-Fed remains mum on such a move, a source close to Federline says he hasn’t ruled out family reunion.
“He’s really happy for Jamie Lynn and loves that the boys will have a little cousin to play with,” the insider says. “But I think he’d prefer to wait until the baby is old enough to travel to California.
“She’s so little right now, anyway. The boys can’t really play with her or anything. I mean, what are these kids really going to do together? So why not wait until the timing is a little better for everyone?”
Another “cousin” may have a better shot at meeting the new delivery, though.
Spears family pal and avowed relative of Britney, Alli Sims, was quick to send best wishes to the new bundle of joy.
“Congrats to Jamie Lynn and Casey on their new baby girl, glad to hear everyone is healthy and doing great,” she tells News. “I know she will light up their lives and bring them joy every day.”
Jamie Lynn Sprouts!
The littlest Spears has made way for an even tinier version of herself.
E! News has confirmed that Jamie Lynn Spears and fiancé Casey Aldridge welcomed daughter Maddie Briann this morning, the first child for the young couple.
The tot was born this morning at the Southwest Mississippi Regional Medical Center in McComb, Miss., near the Spears’ home base of Kentwood, La., just after 9:30 a.m.
Jamie Lynn Spears, 17, and Aldridge, 19, arrived at the hospital at 5 a.m. Her parents, Jamie and Lynne, arrived at 5:45 a.m., followed by siblings Britney and Bryan at about 8.
In a statement to OK! magazine, which paid for exclusive rights to the newborn’s first photo spread, a family rep said: “Both mom and baby are healthy and happy. They are surrounded by their close relatives.”
The tyke tipped the scales at 7 pounds, 11 ounces.
After spending the early morning by her sister’s side, a weary Britney left the hospital about an hour after the birth and headed back to her mother’s house in Kentwood, according to an eyewitness.
Jamie Lynn and her betrothed recently purchased a new home on a five-acre lot in nearby Liberty, where they’ve been busy putting the finishing touches on their daughter’s pink, brown and metallic-green nursery.
In town to greet her new niece was aunt Britney, who flew in from Los Angeles along with dad Jamie and brother Bryan on Wednesday morning. The trio touched down in New Orleans and drove to matriarch Lynne Spears’ home in Kentwood, Britney’s first visit to her hometown since Jamie Lynn’s baby shower in early May.
While still mainly known for being Britney’s sis and the star of the Nickelodeon sitcom Zoey 101, Jamie Lynn confirmed that she was about 12 weeks pregnant in December, telling OK! magazine, “I was in complete and total shock and so was [Aldridge].”
“As soon as I found out for sure from the doctor, I took two weeks to myself where I didn’t tell anybody,” she said. “Only one of my friends knew because I needed to work out what I would do for myself before I let anyone’s opinion affect my decision. Then I told my parents and my friends. I was scared, but I had to do what was right for me.”
Despite rumors of trouble in paradise, the teenagers got engaged in March, with plans to tie the knot after their baby arrived.
Uncle: No Shotgun Wedding for Jamie Lynn, Casey
Although they are about to become parents, Jamie Lynn Spears and her boyfriend Casey Aldridge have no plans to wed – yet.
“They may or may not [get married],” says Aldridge’s uncle, Odus Jackson, in an interview outside Aldridge’s house in Mississippi. “You just never know.”
Jackson, who is a pastor at Galilee First Baptist Church in Gloster, Miss., says that while he is hopeful the young couple will remain in a committed relationship, he is also realistic.
“I hope they will stick it out and get married for the child’s sake and their sake,” he says. “But if they’re not in love and it was just a fantasy, they don’t need to make the same mistake twice.”
Speaking about his teenage nephew, who was raised in rural Gloster and attended high school in nearby Liberty, Miss., Jackson says, “He was a typical country boy growing up. He’s never given the family a whole lot of problems – no more than most teenagers.”
But in the past year Aldridge had relocated to California to be closer to the 16-year-old Spears. “To me, personally, when he was allowed to go out to California part of his senior year . . . you know when you put boy and girl together, it don’t work,” says Jackson. “Testosterone is tough to control.”
He also lamented the storm of publicity that has disrupted the family’s quiet smalltown life. “We know that it’s national news, more than just a boy-girl mess up,” says Jackson. “[But] we’re not used to media down here.”
For his part, while the uncle spoke, Aldridge briefly appeared in a pickup with a group of friends. “Can’t talk to you, man,” he said, before driving off up the house’s 100-yard gravel driveway.
Nicole Richie, Joel Madden Shower 100 Moms with Baby Gifts
Not many kids have a foundation launched in their honor before they’re born. But that will be one of the many privileges bestowed upon Nicole Richie and Joel Madden’s baby, due in January.
The couple hosted a surprise baby shower Monday for 100 expectant and new moms at the Los Angeles Free Clinic in Hollywood, where they handed out more than $200,000 worth of gifts. “The looks on their faces were priceless,” Richie told reporters after the shower. “Some of them didn’t even believe us [when they saw the gifts]. They thought we were joking.”
The Richie Madden Children’s Foundation (at richiemaddenfoundation.com), Madden said, was an idea the couple had when they found out they were expecting. “We grew up in Los Angeles,” he said, “and we want our child to be a part of the community, and to know that there’s a responsibility to help the community.”
’Part of a Family’
And it’s a family affair. “We named it the Richie Madden Children’s Foundation because we each have families and our families are close, and our family is involved,” Richie said. By her side with his arm stroking her back during moments in the conference, Madden quipped, “We’re lucky that we have families that get along and love each other,” adding, “I think it’s great that our child will grow up as a part of that family.”
Amongst the goodies given to families in need were Baby Bjorn products, cribs, mattresses and toys from Fisher-Price. “Everything they got, we got,” Richie says, “so everything that will be in their nursery, will be in our nursery.”
Madden felt good about the event. “Sometimes people don’t want to believe that me and Nicole are just a young couple having a baby and we’re really excited. We don’t really get to share our lives with people. It’s nice to connect with people on a real level.”