Pregnant Kristen Bell was on The Ellen Degeneres show today, and the Ellen people sent us some clips. Bell, 32, is pregnant with her first child, with fiance Dax Shephard. I love those two as a couple and hope for the best for them and their baby.
Kristen revealed to Ellen that they knows the sex of the baby but are choosing to keep it a secret. She said she’s due sometime in late Spring, which I would guess to be around May. Ellen wouldn’t take no for an answer on the baby’s sex and she seemed to get some clues from Kristen suggesting that it’s a boy. My favorite part of the interview is when Ellen asked Kristen if she’s considering a natural birth and she’s all “hell no.” This was really funny:
On if she’s going to have a natural childbirth
I’ve got nothing to prove. I feel like when I arrive at the hospital. I want a glass of whiskey, I want the epidural in my back. And, I want to get hit in the face with a baseball bat and wake me up when it’s over because I’ve seen the videos and it looks terrifying.On how she has dopamine-induced high self esteem
I look in the mirror and I think it’s the reverse body dysmorphia because I can understand what my shape is but I see Brooke Shields. And, it doesn’t make a lick of sense but it’s something that the baby’s giving me hormonally makes me feel really giggly and happy.On if Dax Shepard is excited
He is, yeah. In different ways then I am. He’s just thinking about all the off-roading he’ll have in this tiny partner.Ellen says “So, it’s a boy?”
Maybe? Do you have to be a boy off road? Absolutely not.
[From The Ellen show, received via email.]
Kristen also shared this adorable picture of Dax practicing for their baby by putting one of their dogs in the Baby Bjorn. She claims the dog got in there willingly.
And she also dressed her dogs up for Halloween like Downton Abbey staffmembers Mrs. O’Brien and Thomas Barrow. I sh*t you not.
Do you remember the last time that Kristen Bell was on Ellen and she started crying when Ellen told her there was a sloth backstage? (Video is here.) That was just a year ago, and Ellen was punking Kristen, there was no sloth, and kind of exploiting her strange obsession with sloths. Last year Kristen told Ellen how Dax hired a sloth to come to her 31st birthday party. She was so freaked out about it, even recounting the story, and explained that she’s one of those people who cries easily.
Anyway Ellen brought a real sloth on stage with Kristen this time! The sloth’s name was Lola, and Kristen said that she’d actually heard that there was a sloth named Lola in LA. She has all the LA sloths’ names memorized apparently. Kristen really kept it together this time, I was surprised. I cry easily too although I can hold it in if I focus. I could see Kristen struggling not to cry. (My kid has a school project to do on Helen Keller and those YouTube newsreel videos really do me in.) Kristen was working hard to seem calm about the sloth but she was probably dying inside.
Here’s the video of Kristen seeing the sloth. She’s also gifted a baby sloth outfit from Ellen and she loves it. This girl is such a trip.
And here’s the rest of Kristen’s interview:
Header photo credit: FameFlynet
Heee…love it!
No judgement here. Learn about your body and the birth process, make your own decisions. It’s no one else’s business. I went natural but in retrospect i think that glass of whiskey sounds appealing.
Right, but why is she saying she has nothing to prove? Sounds like in her mind all women with natural birth have something to prove. She sounds stupid.
Stop putting words in her mouth. You sound stupid.
Wow, did someone piss in your Cheerios this morning? You sound like a mombie. What she said is a common expression, clearly meant in a self-deprecating manner.
She might be speaking in reference to women who very vocally denounce any childbirth process that is not 100% natural.
I’ve been in the presence of women who drone on and on about how wrong or irresponsible it is to not have a baby naturally or at home, or in a tub. I have had female relatives who swore by giving birth naturally patronize me for having had an epidural as though I was somehow not womanly enough to have a baby “naturally”.
It’s an incredibly infuriating experience to have someone else judge you for making a choice about your own body when they have no context for the actual circumstances that precluded a natural birth. Like, hey maybe a woman has a c-sections because their baby’s life is in danger (not because it’s more “convenient” than a vaginal birth). Maybe an epidural can actually help a difficult labor progress along so a c-section is not needed. The more you know!
I’m actually wondering if by her saying she has “nothing to prove” if shes taking a slight dig at Amber Rose and others (if there are) who have talked about how they are the shit cause they will be doing an all natural birth.
**Remember when Amber Rose was all like…yeah I’m doing it all natural so I can shove it in everyone’s faces including Wiz?
ANYWAYS, I love Kristen Bell and think she is just the cutest thing! And I adore her and Dax together too, I really hope they make it together forever! 🙂
she’s probably saying it because so many celebrities make comments that are often, and understandably, perceived as arrogant and derogatory to women who do not do things naturally enough in that particular celebrity’s judgment
I took it like the other poster who mentioned the self-deprecation. I took it as a joke. If you’ve followed Kristen at all, she’s not really the kind of person to shame other mothers for their choices.
The tone in which she said it, was joking, and I really don’t think it is mean. She explains that she has seen videos of child birth, and that she is freaked out by it, and the comment seems like she’s not trying to prove to herself that she can do it- she’s saying she’s just going to try to do it as painlessly as possible.
I didn’t put words in her mouth, she said it herself. And I said she sounds stupid, not that she actually is. Jesus, this is a gossip site, not the news.
Jenny, who peed in your Wheaties?? Don’t think that Liv said anything to deserve that comment. Cosign with INeedaNap. Jeez, take a valium.
I really envy every one of you who live in developed nations with access to excellent maternal care. Where I come from, one in four women die in child birth. We do not have the luxury of having epidurals, water birth etc. A c section is very dangerous. So when I see this argument on the internet about natural vs drug induced child birth,i just shake my head. You guys do not really know how lucky you are.
Linda: you’re comparing apples to apples to donuts. Many natural birth supporters are the same people who support and work for better maternal care. There are legitimate issues with how birth is handled in America. Just because those issues are different from the issues faced by pregnant and laboring women in developing countries doesn’t make them any less important.
And, yeah, I thought the way she said she “didn’t have anything to prove” was kind of rude, too. Go on with your bad self if you want an epidural, but don’t get one just to prove you aren’t proving something.
Thanks for the help, karmasabiatch! 😉
Adorable, down to earth and funny too.
What’s not to love?
I love her attitude about it. I think the whole natural vs. not so much is just one more battle in the mommy wars that I get so aggravated by. To each her own and f-off to anyone who says otherwise.
I hate it that natural v. epidural has been framed like a petty mommy war thing. The truth is, a lot of women don’t have the choice because their insurance refuses to pay midwives or there is a lack of experienced midwives in their area or a million other reasons. It also sucks that sometimes women go to the hospital because they want to be there in case anything goes wrong, and then feel like their choices go right out the window because they are in a system that isn’t based around allowing them to be the leader in their own birth. It sucks that all these issues get lost and it becomes about bragging rights.
I was very lucky to go to a practice that had both midwives and doctors. I went with a midwife after she was completely ok with me going for the drugs. I knew I wanted them ahead of time. Many midwives are completely ok with drugs during labor. Just for anyone out there going through this process right now.
Also, if anyone is pushing you to go a certain way – screw that! Your body. Your choice! That extends to epidurals people.
Agreed, @ Annabelle. I’m so tired of the mommy wars (and mommy vs. non-mommy wars). I wish women weren’t so judgmental of each other’s choices or circumstances. Unless someone is abusive or criminally negligent to their child/children people need to shut up and mind their own business.
Sorry to all those offended by my comment; I did not have piss in my cereal yesterday morning. I guess I was being extra snarky and was too lazy to go through the whole explanation of how I felt on this comment, which would have been “she said she had nothing to prove to anyone and she is making the best choice for herself; that does not mean she is saying anyone who wants a natural child birth has something to prove. If you assume that is what she meant, then you are putting words in her mouth and then calling her statement stupid for what you are adding into it and not what she verbalized. I was also being snarky in saying the original commenter sounded stupid specifically because I didn’t think it was necessary to say KB sounded stupid and it was too strong an assertion in the original comment, and thereby was poking fun at it by turning the phrase on the commenter.
I respect the hell out of that. I had an epidural, and I’m not ashamed. Every woman and every pregnancy? Totally different.
I was bound and determined to have my second naturally, but when they broke my water, I was BEGGING for that epi. Phenergyn + Staydol + Epidural = me sleeping through labor. I woke up to push like 4 times and she was here. Easiest childbirth ever. I pushed a baby out of my vaginer, that’s hardcore enough for me!
hahahahaha… yup that what i think too.
Until you do it you don’t realize how freaking crazy an experience it is to push out a baby and see it coming out of you. Top 5 life experience for me!
I might be alone on this, but there’s something about her I don’t like. Dax is great, but her… She comes off as having only fair weather concern.
That’ll be a cute kid.
Kristen is now at the top of my list of Celebs I want to be BFFs with.
Love her obsession with sloths. Love her quirky sense of humor. And love Ellen for bringing out a sloth for KB to play with.
Oh and love her maternity style. That dress is fab.
Me too! Love her.
I think she is going on my BFF list too. I have always liked Dax but the more I see/read about her I am liking.
I would have loved a glass of whiskey when I gave birth. And a baseball bat – but I would have used it on Mr. Rochester.
I have always loved her, and the fact that she isn’t preaching the ‘ideal’ childbirth has just further solidified that love.
+1
I’ll always <3 her for being Veronica Mars.
I'd planned to have my daughter without an epidural, but once I went into labor, I changed my mind. My daughter is just as healthy and happy as if I hadn't had one.
She’s so cute! Love her! Also, I’m kind of hoping to see her on Craig Ferguson again while pregnant. I love those two together!
House of Lies is one of my favorite shows, because Kristen Bell is on it!
She’s genuine. She is definitely less enthused because making someone else’s body is tiring, but she’s still her weird ol’ self. As for the natural birth thing, I think a baseball bat to the face is pushing it, but some people just don’t have high pain thresholds, so I can see the girl who cries about everything needing a little assistance. The only part that it’s best to be ‘natural’ is the actual onset of labor itself, since the induction/epidural cycle can really slow down the process (been there)
Its true. I gave birth naturally because I wanted to prove to the world that I am better than you. It had nothing to do with my baby or myself.
Me too!
Ugh. I’m so sick of this debate.
I really hope, while in the delivery room, Chris Rock popped out from behind a curtain to give you a cookie for your effort.
If cats and dogs can have litters of babies naturally, why can’t humans!!?? Amiright?
Actually because humans walk upright, passing a baby through the birth canal is infinitely more difficult for us than for animals that walk on all fours.
Pssst – that was sarcasm!
I gave birth naturally because it’s the safest way to do it … research and education taught me that (I’m a midwife)!!!
Anyone else? Your choice … As long as you know what you’re talking about when you are advocating your choice to other people, have at it (I suspect most are clueless)…
About the sloth: WTF???
I don’t get it. Is she afraid of or in love with them?
Also if she had a sloth phobia, why would Ellen try to scare an emotional pregnant lady? That’s not very nice.
She loves them, she’s crazy about them. This was the cutest clip. Love Kristen, love Ellen, this totally brightened my morning!
Yep, same here!
She loves sloths that’s why she was crying
She is like CRAZY-OBSESSED about sloths..which I thought was pretty obvious, from the sloth-themed baby basket Ellen gave her! That video of her crying with joy about the sloth coming to her house…soo adorable and hilarious.
They are my fave HWood couple!! Love her and Dax. Cant wait to see the baby 🙂
That’s hysterical. Gald she was crying for joy.
You go Veronica Mars!
Anytime anyone asks me about my birthing experience i say this. The hospital was great, the drugs were awesome and my doctor was amazing, wouldn’t do it any other way.
and i immediately wanted a beer after.
She’s always been on my way too irritating and high maintenance list, but I’m going to have to soften that a bit because I’m pretty sure I have to like anybody who puts their dogs in Downton Abbey costumes for Halloween.
I think the don’t have anything to prove comment was in response to celebrity moms like Gisele who feel the need to tell every other mom how they ought to give birth. It’s refreshing when some celebrity seems to grasp that she’s not the first person to ever give birth.
Agree! Those costumes are the wittiest thing ever. And I agree, I dont think that was pointed at natural birthers, more like certain celebs who think they are so perfect when they have given birth.
Hehe she’s adorable.
And I’m sorry, but how is it even possible for Dax and Zach Braff to look so much alike and NOT be related???
She’s super cool. I really like her and how adorable was she with the sloth?
I have to admit, I’ve never thought much about Kristen Bell, but after hearing her say she has nothing to prove in childbirth, I’m a HUGE fan! Thank you so much for realizing it’s not a mommy race to give birth the most “perfect” or “natural” or whatever way possible! Motherhood has become a vicious competition and it’s beyond refreshing to have someone admit they don’t feel the need to compete. Everyone just have your baby your way and let everyone have theirs their way.
Why do moms-to-be always get praised and “You go girl-ed!” by the media (and public at large) when we say we’re planning on getting “drugs” aka, epidurals, the “minute labor starts” (see above and also Megan Fox) but whenever we want to share our happy stories about-or excited plans to undergo-totally natural childbirth we more often than not get chastised as being “preachy” “holier-than-thou” and “judgemental” in response?? I really don’t understand this somewhat new mentality at all; It’s like the very idea of giving birth w/o drugs or elective medical intervention is somehow archaeic or even absurd 🙁
To each their own in labor but I just wish my fellow ladies would more openly discuss the reality of the effects of epidurals on labor-they slow down contractions then require pitosin to make them unnaturally strong which then requires even more numbing drugs-before they casually throw the term around as if it’s just like taking an aspirin or something. It isn’t.
@Patrice – You just answered your own question. Many mothers who choose natural childbirth DO sound judgemental and preachy – just like you did in the second paragraph of your first post. “To each their own in labor” was a good start. Why did you have to add the “but” and then start educating the rest of us?
Actually, I agree with Patrice. I don’t see what is so preachy about women thinking of the pros/cons of medication. An epidural isn’t an aspirin. I myself had no medication, more b/c I was okay with the pain until my water broke and didn’t go to the hospital until the last minute. Yes, the pain sucked, so I get why women wouldn’t want to go through it.
I do think it’s funny when a women has an epidural and STILL moans about how horrible it was. Granted, I heard it from a total drama queen, but it was funny.
I had both worlds when my daughter was born…after 24 hours of hard labour and only being 4 centimeters dilated, I opted for the epidural which helped me get some rest for the next 18 hours until by body was ready to start pushing. Then they had to turn off the epidural while I was actually delivering because I wasn’t “pushing properly”…turns out she got stuck and had to be vacuumed out, while my pain meds were still turned off….so having experienced both sides of the argument, I’m completely in favour of the drugs. But to you women who can do it without, kudos to you.
Can’t speak for anyone else, but I’m not praising her for deciding to have an epidural; I’m praising her for admitting she’ll have one, and for refusing to be ashamed of that fact.
Too many mothers who go the natural childbirth route act as if everyone else is completely uneducated about epidurals and are bad mothers for it. Celebrity mothers tend to be particularly terrible about it. See: Miranda Kerr, Gisele Bundchen, etc.
Lol @shewolf. Thank you! I forgot to mention that part myself; if we’re asked the question and then subsequently respond by sharing our personal stories of natural birth it must mean that we were trying to out due or “compete”. Why is that word even a part of the equation here? Sigh.
Why must we ask pregnant women if they are going to get the epidural? It’s such a tired conversation and I wish people (Ellen) would not encourage the debate. I gave birth a mere 2.5 weeks ago sans epidural and when friends and family inevitably asked if I got one and found out I did not, the reactions ranged from “OMG WHY NOT?” to “that’s SO WONDERFUL, good for you!” Little did they know that I didn’t choose that route to be au naturale but because I have a tremendous fear of needles and that I was totally open minded about it. If I had changed my mind and wanted one, I’d have gotten it, no guilty feelings at all. It’s not always a black and white issue or a super important decision so I wish we would stop pitting women against each other based on this (in the grand scheme of things) very insignificant choice. I’m happy with my birth experience but I can’t understand why anyone else (especially a stranger) would give a sh*t about it.
Yeah–if some moms-to-be WANT to talk about it, fine, but it’s annoying and a little creepy that so many people get pushy and nosy about that stuff. It’s a really personal decision with many possible factors, and it’s really no one else’s business.
When I had my daughter, I wanted an epidural, but the doctor said that my labor had progressed too far for it to be effective in time. So by default I ended up having an all natural birth. I have no judgements on the way a woman wants to give birth, with the only exception being vanity c-sections. I knew a woman who absolutely refused to go through labor because it was messy and strenuous (although, she also hated being pregnant). She scheduled a c-section so that she would look wonderful in the pictures of her with her newborn baby! She DID have something to prove, which was she had to look so much better and put together than the rest of us. I didn’t care how messy my hair was or how tired I looked, the huge smile on my face while holding my precious baby showed it was worth all the trouble, and is one of my favorite pictures. 🙂
Marigold, your comment sounds like the voice of reason.
It is totally appropriate to ask women this randomly. My close friends and I talk about it, but I can’t imagine making this a topic of conversation with acquaintances. There are hundreds of moving parts in any delivery. What goes on in the birthing place is no one’s business.
She is so adorable! I just think she’s so sweet and funny and cute. I haven’t seen her do anything I didn’t love. Sloths? What a little wierdo. I love it.
I hope she didn’t feel the need to say that because she has someone making her feel bad for that choice, and I hope she has a wonderful, perfect birthing experience that leaves her and her baby happy and healthy and feeling whole.
I had a natural birth, but not because I had anything to prove or because I wanted to be awesome. I just wanted to experience it fully. That’s just me. I think the pain is part of the beauty of it and that was the experience I wanted. I LOVE that we now live in a world where women can have the birth they want (as long a nothing unexpectedly goes wrong, of course), and where we are ultimately in charge.
My only hope for other moms is that they educate themselves on what exactly to expect so they are prepared. Then mae the choices that are best for you and your baby and feel strong and powerful because it’s an amazing experience no matter how you choose to navigate it!
Can’t wait to see that little cutie!!
I love everyhing that you said & agree wholeheartedly 🙂
Has anyone else watched her show, House of Lies? I just started watching it – it is soo good!!!
House of Lies is one of the reasons we pay for Showtime (that and Shameless, which is freaking great if you haven’t watched it). I love her, and she’s fantastic on HoL.
@cidee: I did it because-as I continued in the final parts of my post-the truth is, a lot women genuinely don’t know the facts because they aren’t told beforehand. There are so many women in my own family-as well as a few friends-who had genuinely been lead to believe, by their own doctors, that having an epidural was “just like popping a pill” and “no big deal.” When they had them-right at the start of hard labor in just about each case-they had NO idea of the vicious cycle of drugs that it could ultimately lead to because they simply WEREN’T ever told. Sharing this with fellow posters online is not “preaching” it’s sharing, which is what blogs are about.
Never once in my post did I say or even slightly imply that no one shouldn’t ever have an epidural-and I wouldn’t (that would be preaching or judging). What I did is strongly suggest that labor should stop being treated or looked at as an illness and having epidurals shouldn’t be promoted as if they’re like “taking an aspirin”. (My exact words)
If sharing my friend’s, aunts and cousin’s experiences with epidurals that happened to be negative (I never had one), and saying that I wish everyone would study up on them beforehand-as they all wish they did-so that they might be able to avoid going through the same thing, somehow makes me the bad guy then I’m happily guilty as charged 🙂
I agree with you that a lot of women are undereducated on what exactly childbirth is and what can happen and what their choices are in those circumstances. Birth books just don’t cover it all!
Here’s a great website for curious mommies and mommies to be:
http://www.childbirthconnection.org
What vicious cycle of drugs does it lead to? I had one and it was ah-maxing. But no vicious cycle of drugs.
Also, childbirth isn’t an illness but it hurts like crazy. It’s pretty much bigger than anything you “pop an aspirin for” you’re pushing a human being out of your vagina.
Epidural slow labor down in some women, as well as make it harder to feel to push effectively. Once labor slows, most doctors use pitocin, which can make contractions much tougher on the babe. It causes a drop in blood pressure, which is why when you get one they give you an IV (if you don’t already have one) to start pushing fluids into you to keep your blood pressure up. Some women develop backaches and headaches from leaking spinal fluid. And some women get no relief at all from the particular anesthesia they receive. And some women have terrible allergic reactions. Sometimes they can’t get labor to regain its rhythm and a c section is required. C section come with their own set of risks, including hemorrhage (requiring transfusions or, rarely, emergency hysterectomy), higher rates of death (albeit infinitesimally small) for both mother and fetus, higher rates of lung complications, and in subsequent pregnancies, placenta accreta and uterine rupture.
There are a lot of women who know the risks of epidurals and still want it – that’s the hope. There are women who don’t know the risks, whose familiarity with birth comes from What to Expect When You’re Expecting and A Baby Story (both of which portray birth as a fairly alarming situation that must be endured), and end up with some complications they were never made aware of. That’s what people hope to avoid by talking about the risks and rewards of unmedicated and medicated births..
Yeah, I’m curious what the “cycle of drugs” is too. I had a natural childbirth for my first girl and recently had an epidural for my second. There’s been no difference whatsoever in the aftercare or development.
Hi Patrice, I have a question for you b/c you have said that you did a lot of research (not assuming that the other posters that did have an epi didn’t but just b/c of you specifically stated that you did). You said that there is a series of drugs involved and it’s not like popping an aspirin (btw, aspirin kills a lot of people every year so hate that people also feel like that is a “no fear” drug), but aside from the fact that there may be a lot more drugs involved than initially thought – is that necessarily bad in and of itself? Or are there side effects that happen later b/c of the series of drugs (aside from the intended numbing effect)?
She’s so cute. Kind of rude of Ellen to push for details about the baby’s sex when Kristen said they were keeping it a secret, though. I don’t think Ellen meant any harm, but I don’t understand why people are so nosy when it comes to pregnancy and babies.
Three kids, three different ways (with an epidural, without an epidural, and an emergency-C).
I don’t feel one was any “less” than the other. I totally admit that the one without the epidural was the easiest recovery, so that’s something to consider.
But my sister gave me the best advice — comfortable, happy mom is the best thing a baby could have. Get the info you need, make your decision, drop the guilt, and don’t listen to anyone else.
THIS^
Thank you!
Kristen is glowing in that top picture. She looks like she feels beautiful.
Kristen is glowing in that top picture. She looks like she feels beautiful.
Yay…a woman who is genuinely pregnant saying genuine pregnancy things!! *cough cough…BeYAWNce* 😉
A previous commentor sad it best— ‘we do it to prove we are better and not for reasons of the baby or our own bodies’ (sarcasm was intended, paraphrase)– I would try my hardest to have a natural birth, not to be better or trendy or snooty or whatever, but becuase its healthier and, well– natural that way. It has benefits for the baby and I dont like the idea of sawing my entire abdomen in half. Seems somehow more difficult or harmful than shoving a can of baked beans out your nose- but, who am I to say, I’m only thinking from the outside. I havent done it yet.
I have nothing against all sorts of medical intervention, though, because my mind is probably 20 times stronger than my body- I go into shock and stress at things that dont bother me in teh mind- so heck if I ever go into labor I might even go unconscious even if I didnt want to– in which case…
Yeah. Personally, I am less freaked out by huge amounts of pain than I am by a needle going into my spine or whatever. I saw pictures of epidurals. I know I can’t deal with it. It would be a last resort for myself. Not because I think I’m so much more amazing than women who take them- because I’m scared shitless of giant needles.
Same here. I also don’t like the idea of half my body going numb. An epidural may not even be an option for me if I have kids one day because I had spinal fusion surgery for scoliosis as a teen.
She looks sooo beautiful. She really has that ‘pregnancy glow’. And as for the shot of whiskey, an epidural and wake her up when it’s over, love it!
More power to all of you ladies that choose to forgo the epidural, but I just couldn’t. With my firstborn it didn’t take ( I had 2 actually) because the baby was facing out instead of towards my spine, and she cut off the flow of the medication. I had back labor to boot and it was excruciating believe me. The moment she came out, I went numb from the waist down. With my second I was fearful the whole pregnancy the same thing would happen, but it didn’t. Once I went numb it was all good 🙂
Love her! They’ll make great parents! Lucky baby!! Best wishes!
the auto tuned video of Kristen, Ellen & the sloth cracks me up every time!
Cute couple.
Huge fan! I will watch anything with Kristen Bell in it.
Kristen is so damn cute it’s ridiculous.
I think she was doing an admirable job of not crying. I cry at everything now days and I was never a cryer. It must be “The Change” making me a watering pot.
How is this anyone’s business except hers and her doctor or midwife?