Celine Dion has been open and honest about her struggle to get pregnant at 41. She’s suffered several failed IVF attempts and at least one miscarriage, after she announced an earlier pregnancy at just a few weeks along. Now Celine is pregnant – with twins! – and is 14 weeks along. It’s likely that the twins are from Dion’s own frozen embryos from a full nine years ago, when she went through a grueling six year IVF process to conceive her first child, son René-Charles, now nine. Back in December, 2008, Celine confirmed that she was trying to get pregnant and said she was using frozen embryos from the last process. When she was pregnant in August, 2009, (which sadly didn’t take) her doctor confirmed that the pregnancy came from an embryo that was eight years old at the time.

Now that Celine is pregnant she’ll tell you all about it, and about how hard it is. She says she feels like she’s been pregnant for over a year and describes the IVF process as “physically and emotionally exhausting”

For Celine Dion, the sixth time was the charm, but her hope to expand her family was an arduous year-long journey.

“I feel like I’ve been pregnant more than a year,” Dion, 42, whose previous IVF attempts had failed, told the French-language Le Journal de Montreal. “I never gave up. But I can tell you that it was physically and emotionally exhausting.”

“Everyone knows that Celine has guts and is determined,” adds husband, René Angelil. “These treatments were truly hard on my wife’s body. It wasn’t simple at all.”

But the perseverance paid off when the couple found out they are expecting twins. “There were truly great emotions after all our efforts,” says the singer.

Those efforts included traveling from her Florida home to New York for months of treatments and also turning to acupuncture from a Montreal-based specialist.

“My doctors had to constantly reassure me. I [wanted] to see the babies,” she says. “Each week I had sonograms. I heard their heart beats.”

Now, having already endured the ups and downs of several in-vitro fertilization attempts, Dion says she’s following her doctors’ orders closely.

“It’s stressful but I’m relaxing. I look at my little belly. I do almost nothing,” she says. “If you tell me I have to stay in bed,

I will stay in bed until November, when the babies are born. To bring them into the world, there’s nothing more important than that. It’s incredible.”

Adds Dion: “We will have a beautiful family nest full of love.”

And though the singer, who plans to kick off a new Las Vegas show next year, says she loves her career, she’s realized that there’s an even higher priority in her life.

“There are no accomplishments bigger than [being a mom]. The trophies and the money, that doesn’t give meaning to life and that doesn’t give you true happiness,” she says. “A baby — yes.”

[From CNN]

I love how open and honest Celine is and how she’s sharing how hard it is to conceive. A lot of celebrities show up with a baby or twins after rumors of IVF and never admit the difficult process they went through. I know that’s private, and it’s entirely their business, but by sharing her struggles Celine is helping a lot of us understand what it entails. It doesn’t sound easy, but the result is more than worth it. I hope everything goes smoothly for Celine with this pregnancy and that her family’s prayers have finally been answered.

Celine Dion and Rene Angelil are shown on 2/16/10. Credit: Jay Kravetz/PRPhotos

Last August, Celine Dion’s rep confirmed that Celine and her husband Rene Angelil were expecting their second child. Unfortunately, it was a “false positive” and by November, Celine’s people were confirming that she was no longer pregnant. Then, in February of this year, Celine opened up to People Magazine about her struggles with in vitro fertilization. I liked how open and honest Celine was with her struggles – even though she doesn’t owe anyone those personal details about her fertility or anything, I liked that she seemed to approach the situation with an upfront, optimistic nature, even telling multiple media outlets that even though the in vitro hadn’t taken yet, she was still determined to keep trying. And she did! And now her rep confirms to People yet again that Celine is pregnant. WITH TWINS!

Céline Dion’s dream to expand her family has come true.

The singer, 42, is pregnant with twins after undergoing her sixth in-vitro fertilization attempt and turning to acupuncture to improve her chances of a pregnancy, her rep Kim Jakwerth confirms.

Dion, mom to 9-year-old son René-Charles, is 14 weeks along. She will find out the gender of the twins next month.

“We’re ecstatic,” her husband/manager René Angelil tells PEOPLE. “Celine is just hoping for a healthy pregnancy. She was hoping for one baby and the news that we are having two is a double blessing.”

[From People]

That’s good that they waited until Celine was 14 weeks along – about three months is what is generally considered the appropriate time to begin announcing things. I like Celine so much, and I hope this pregnancy goes really well for her, and she stays really healthy. She must be so happy – you know she just worships her son Rene-Charles, but I bet she’s hoping at least one of the babies is a little girl that she can spoil and raise up in her own diva image. A little Celine-Rene! Reline, perhaps? That sounds like an arthritis medication, so maybe not. Congratulations to Celine and Rene!

Update by Celebitchy: There’s a lot of speculation in the comments that Celine and Rene may have used donor eggs and/or sperm to conceive. Celine said in December, 2008, that she was trying to get pregnant again using frozen embryos created from when she underwent IVF to become pregnant with her son, René-Charles, now nine. While she has not specified how she got pregnant with twins, it’s possible she used her own frozen embryos from nine years ago.

Header: Rene and Celine on May 22, 2008. Credit: WENN.

Celine Dion is this week’s cover story on the latest issue of People. It’s a welcome change from past weeks when we’ve seen a parade of reality stars like the Duggars, Kate Gosselin and Heidi Montag. Dion talks about her struggle to become pregnant at 41 after several failed in vitro attempts. Back in August of last year, Dion announced that she was pregnant when she was very early in the process. Her husband, Rene Angelil, later confirmed that the embryo didn’t “take” and that Dion lost the pregnancy. He also discussed the difficult process of in vitro and how they were “more determined than ever” to have another biological child. Rene and Celine are parents to son René-Charles, 9, and they’re working hard to give him a sibling.

After four unsuccessful rounds of in vitro fertilization, Céline Dion is not giving up hope for a second child, she tells PEOPLE in an exclusive cover story.

“I’m going to try until it works,” says Dion, 41, who has been giving herself daily hormone shots – and enduring the roller-coaster ride of emotions they bring – after the heartbreaking loss of a pregnancy in August and three other failed IVF attempts last fall.

“Five’s my lucky number,” she adds, “so this is the time it’s got to [work].”

While her husband/manager Rene Angélil, 68, says they “go crazy” waiting for the results after each try, Dion – whose new concert film and family documentary Céline: Through the Eyes of the World, will be released Feb. 17 – stays positive, focusing her energies on son Rene-Charles, 9, who is thriving as a second-grader at his new school in Florida.

[From People]

Celine has always been very open with her fans and this isn’t new for her. I would have a hard time sharing such personal details with the press, but I admire the fact that it doesn’t faze her at all. Maybe she hopes to let other women struggling with IVF and infertility know that they’re not alone. It sounds like such an emotional roller coaster and my heart goes out to her.

On a much more superficial note – how much eye makeup did they cake on Celine for that cover photo? She looks like a raccoon. I haven’t seen a larger version of the People cover but in the small one on People’s website (above) it looks like her giant fake eyelashes would make it hard to blink.

Ordinarily, I would have absolutely no desire to talk about any of this, simply because even celebrity gossip needs to draw a line between what is fun, snarky nonsense, and what is just tragic and personal. I saw the reports last night that Celine Dion is no longer pregnant. Celine either had a miscarriage or, as is being reported currently, the in vitro “didn’t take”. I thought to myself “how sad” and decided not to write about it, thinking that Celine and her family would not be releasing any kind of further statement about it. I was wrong. Rene Angelil, Celine’s husband, gave an extensive and interesting interview to The Montreal Journal about their in vitro struggles, and how they’re determined to try again and again, if necessary:

Céline Dion isn’t pregnant after all – but will keep on trying for a second child.

“We are living the reality of the majority of couples who have to use [IVF]. The process can be long and arduous,” Dion’s husband René Angélil, 67, told the Canadian paper Journal de Montreal of their failed attempts. “But today, we are full of confidence. Celine is more determined than ever.”

Forty-one-year-old Dion’s doctor announced that she was pregnant via in vitro fertilization very early in the process, and it is now revealed that the embryos transferred in August and October were unsuccessful.

“Dr. Zev Rosenwaks believed that the procedure/pregnancy took, but that wasn’t the case. We found out some days later. We were shocked,” said Angélil. They quickly tried again to get pregnant, but were unsuccessful, he added, “But you know Céline. She doesn’t let go.”

The couple have one “extraordinary” son, René-Charles, born in 2001, who was also conceived with the help of Rosenwaks, director of the Ronald O. Perelman and Claudia Cohen Center for Reproductive Medicine at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Center Medical Center.

“I admire all the women who go through such a tough process. Since April, she has undergone numerous examinations, multiple hormone injections and blood tests,” Angélil told the paper, revealing the couple will go to New York this weekend for a third try. “Céline and I didn’t get discouraged … we put our faith in life and in the stars.”

[From People]

God bless. And I mean that. In the scope of celebrity parents, Celine and Rene seem wonderful, and utterly devoted to their son, and they would make great parents to another child. I hope everything works out in the end, and the in vitro will eventually “take”. I do wonder if Celine and Rene would consider adoption, though, if the in vitro doesn’t work out. Maybe they already have considered it, and plan to adopt if in vitro doesn’t work.

Celine Dion is seen leaving her hotel in New York City on October 14, 2009. She even stopped and signed autographs for the flood of fans waiting for her. Credit: INFphoto.com

Singer Celine Dion, 41, and her husband Rene Angelil, 67, are reportedly expecting a second child. Celine said in December, 2008 that she had a frozen embryo left over from the fertility treatment that resulted in her son René-Charles, 8, and that she would love to have another child:

“We’d love to extend the family,” the singer – who herself is the youngest of 14 children – told CBS Early Show host Julie Chen.

Asked if she has a frozen embryo, Dion, whose son was conceived by in vitro fertilization after six years of trying, replied, “Yes, we do have a frozen embryo.”

Only, one may not be enough. “I started to talk to René-Charles about it. He said ‘Can we have four and five?’ ” said Dion.

“So if we’re blessed again, I will be very happy to come back and do another interview with you and talk about it. I will be the first one to be extremely happy.”

[From People, December 4, 2008]

Dion probably had more than just one embryo, and it sounds like in vitro worked for her and that she’s expecting a sibling for Renee. We’re still waiting for confirmation from her, but I hope this is true if she was hoping for it:

Celine Dion is reportedly expecting her second child.

A report in Tuesday’s Journal de Montreal states that the 41-year-old superstar and her husband, Rene Angelil, 67, conceived with the help of a team of fertility doctors in New York. The couple’s first child, Rene-Charles, was born in January 2001. Angelil has three other children from two previous marriages.

Dion, who has publicly expressed a desire to expand her family, has not yet confirmed the pregnancy on her official website.

[From Montreal Gazette]

Until I started covering celebrity gossip and reading up on fertility treatments I didn’t know much about all the options available. It looks like Dion could be having another baby – using her own fertilized egg from nine years ago. That’s kind of amazing when you think about it.

Dion finished her last tour, Taking Chances, in February after a year performing around the world. She previously had a five year run in her Las Vegas show, A New Day, which grossed $400 million, and ended in December, 2007. Dion certainly has an incredibly successful career, and now she could be adding to her family. Congratulations to Celine and her husband.

UPDATE: Celine’s rep just confirmed to “various media outlets” that Celine is, in fact, pregnant. The rep says, “Celine and Rene [Ang[e]lil] are very happy… They are crazy in love over the news and … they are overjoyed.” Congratulations to the happy family!

Celine, Renee and René-Charles are shown on March 23, 2009 below. Credit: Splash News. Celine is shown in the header performing in Miami on 1/23/09. Credit: WENN.com

Celine Dion, 40, said on CBS’ Early Show that she’d like to have more children and even has a frozen embryo waiting. Dion has son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, 7, who was conceived by in vitro fertilization. It may sound strange to people who are not familiar with the process, but from what I could learn online it is common for any extra embryos created during IVF procedures to be frozen for future use.

“We’d love to extend the family,” the singer – who herself is the youngest of 14 children – told CBS Early Show host Julie Chen.

Asked if she has a frozen embryo, Dion, whose son was conceived by in vitro fertilization after six years of trying, replied, “Yes, we do have a frozen embryo.”

Only, one may not be enough. “I started to talk to René-Charles about it. He said ‘Can we have four and five?’ ” said Dion.

“So if we’re blessed again, I will be very happy to come back and do another interview with you and talk about it. I will be the first one to be extremely happy.”

[From People]

The possibilities people have to conceive with the latest technology are truly amazing. Called frozen embryo transfer, an embryo can be implanted into a woman that is menstruating naturally or through chemical means. The embryo is frozen in a process called “cryopreservation” from one to six days after conception, so it’s not anything close to a baby at that point and doesn’t even look like the peanut seen on early sonograms. The success rates for IVF vary and seem to be around 20% or less depending on maternal age and how many embryos are implanted. It can be lower for embryos that are initially frozen as they don’t all survive the thawing process.

Dion was brave to be so open about her desire to have another child and the fact that she’s going to try again. It may seem odd to us that she has a frozen embryo or embryos sitting there ready but it’s just part of the process and she’s honest about it.

Celine Dion is shown out in Monaco with her son on 7/10/08. Credit: Bauergriffin

Many announcement ceremonies for major televised awards shows are done in press conference form, often star-studded, but nothing with any production value. In an increased effort to stay relevant, the Grammys decided to take a different approach, making a mini-event night of it with new stars doing nostalgic performances between the nominee announcements.

CBS aired the Grammy Nominations Concert that was mercifully shorter and even more entertaining than the actual Grammys usually are. The show opened with Mariah Carey in a 60′s inspired Christmas number, “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)”. There weren’t alot of close-ups, but from what I saw, Mariah looked great, sounded great, and wasn’t lip syncing. Christmas songs are kind of Carey’s element.

Mariah Carey “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)”

The show was hosted by LL Cool J and Taylor Swift. LL always seems so laid back and easy going, and hosting works for him. Taylor held her own and got better as the show went on. She’s young and truthfully didn’t seem to know anything more about LL than what was on the cue cards, though. Needless to say, it was LL who mini-interviewed The Jonas Brothers after their first, and only, nomination.

Ne-Yo announced the nominees for Best New Artist: Adele, Duffy, The Jonas Brothers, Lady Antebellum, Jazmin Sullivan.

Celine Dion took the cheese level off the chart with “Too Young at 17″ which is a borderline cheesy song, anway (although, the kind of cheese you can’t help but love, like this garlic and herb gournay from Costco I’m eating right now!). But as great a voice as Dion has, you add her turn of phrase to an already yummy cheese song, it instantly becomes Cheez Whiz. Throw in the way she looks longingly into the camera and it’s spray can cheese.

Celine Dion – “Too Young at 17″

Celine announced the nominees for Album of the Year: Coldplay “Viva la Vida”, Lil Wayne “Tha Carter III”, Ne-Yo “Year of the Gentleman”, Robert Plant & Alison Kraus “Raising Sand”, Radiohead “In Rainbows”

Foo Fighters laid down the Foo on Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain.” I wouldn’t have thought anyone could rock out to a Carly Simon hit, but Dave Grohl can often pull things off you never expected. Loved it!

Foo Fighters – “You’re so Vain” (recorded by an audience member)

Dave then announced the nominees for Best Collaboration with Vocals: Alicia Keys & John Mayer “Lessons Learned”, Madonna Justin Timberlake & Timbaland “4 Minutes”, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss “Rich Woman”, Rhianna & Maroon 5 “If I Never See Your Face Again”, Jordin Sparks & Chris Brown “No Air”

And Best Country Performance: Brooks & Dunn “God Must Be Busy”, Lady Antebellum “Love Don’t Live Here”, Rascall Flatts “Everyday”, The Steel Drivers “Blue Side of the Mountain, Sugarland “Stay”

Christina Aguilera once again vocally blew everyone away with her verson of Billie Holiday’s “I Love You Porgy” from Porgy & Bess. It was fantastic. She also looked lovely, with relatively understated makeup.

Christina Aguilera – “I Love You Porgy”

Taylor Swift did an less than stellar rendition of Brenda Lee’s “I’m Sorry” but Joe Jonas was sitting right in the front row so that had to feel good for her, probably a little uncomfortable for him. Swift’s performance improved considerably when she switched to her own “White Horse” which was just as appropriately aimed at Jonas.

Taylor Swift – “I’m Sorry” and “White Horse”

Taylor announced the nominees for Best Rap Duo or Group: Big Boi, Raekwon & Andre 300 “Royal Flush”, Jay Z, TI, Kanye West & Lil Wayne “Swagger Like Us”, Lil Wayne & JayZ “Mr. Carter”, Ludacris & TI “Wish You Would”, Young Jeezy & Kanye West “Put On”

John Mayer was in his comfort zone, where he actually makes some pretty good music, with BB King, playing and singing some great old R&B. Mayer should make more of this kind of music than his corny pop ballads. He’s not without talent. I do hope he didn’t think the standing O was in any way for him, though. BB King is legend.

John Mayer and BB King (audience recorded video)

Mayer announced the nominees for Record of the Year: Adele “Chasing Pavements”, Coldplay “Viva La Vida”, Leona Lewis “Bleeding Love”, MIA “Paper Planes”, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss “Please Read the Letter”

The 51st Annual Grammy Awards will air on CBS on February 8th.

Shown last night are Taylor Swift, Ne-Yo, LL Cool J, Christina Aguilera, John Mayer, Smokie Robinson, and Natalie Cole. Credit: WENN

Celine Dion gets a lot of slack for that fact that her son René-Charles, 7, has very long hair for a little boy. While longer hair for boys seems to be in fashion and other celebrity kids like Kate Hudson’s son, Ryder, also have long hair, Dion says it has nothing to do with her tastes and that René just hasn’t wanted a hair cut so she hasn’t forced him:

Celine Dion doesn’t let society dictate what’s right for her household. “We decide as a family what’s good for us,” she shared during her recent appearance on Oprah, which aired on October 28. And that includes hairstyles. Celine admitted her son, René-Charles, 7, has never had a haircut – because he doesn’t want one. “I’ve asked him, and he says, ‘I like my hair like that,’” she says.

[From In Touch, print edition, November 17, 2008]

She’s right that it’s every family’s prerogative if they’re going to have their boys get haircuts. Little Ryder Robinson’s dad Chris has long hair so you can see how Ryder would want to have a similar hairstyle. René-Charles’ dad, René Angélil, 66, is a bald guy, but wherever he got his inspiration for long hair if his mom and dad don’t mind indulging him that’s their decision. He doesn’t look comfortable, but who knows with kids and in these pictures he’s dressed up in a suit and getting dragged to a formal affair. Not many kids would look happy in that situation. It’s not something I would chose for my child and I have a hard enough time getting my son to take a bath without worrying about caring for long hair, too. Wash and wear hair is one advantage of having a little boy.

Celine Dion, her husband, René Angélil,, their son, René-Charles, and Celine’s mother, Therese Tanguay, are shown with French President Nicolas Sarkozy when Celine was presented with the French Legion of Honour at the Elysee Palace in Paris on 5/22/08. Credit: WENN

Canadian diva Celine Dion is mostly squeaky clean, but every now and then her wackiness shows. She sometimes has a habit of oversharing- about her sex life, about her body, and many other odd topics that surprise me. In a recent interview, Dion admitted that she and some friends tried some pot while in Amsterdam…but nothing happened. Celine, you’re supposed to hold it in!

Celine Dion has admitted she once tried marijuana – but quit smoking before she was caught by camera-wielding paparazzi.

The Canadian singer was visiting Amsterdam and decided to try the drug in a local cafe.

‘The only time I did one puff was in Holland, where it’s legal. And I went to a cafeteria with some girls, with the little boats and the canals and we stopped and I tried.’

But the 39-year-old insists the substance had no effect on her: ‘Nothing. No. But I didn’t choke. I took one puff and I said, ‘Okay, nothing happened!’ It was funny.

‘It was, for us, like cheating. ‘Oooh!’ You know, there might be paparazzi!”

[From Celebrity Stoners via The Daily Goss UK]

Poor Celine, somebody should have showed her how to inhale. But it sounds like she had fun anyway. I have a hard time believing people when they say that they’ve only tried it once, and it had no effect on them. The last time I tried it, I laughed for about 7 hours straight, then ate an entire bag of Funyuns. I’ve never been to Amsterdam, but I hear that there’s a lot more to the city than legal weed and canals. There’s also the Red Light district, where prostitution is legal. It definitely sounds like a great place to go for an “adults-only” vacation. I think I need to start saving my money now.

Celine Dion is shown performing in Brisbane, Australia on Sunday

Celine Dion is an interesting lady. Her professional life is all about glamour, grand gestures and lots of fanfare. She just finished a four-year, multi-million-dollar stint performing in Las Vegas, where she had a specially-built performance hall just for her show. Before that, she had one of the most lavish celebrity weddings to date, to longtime manager Rene Angelil, in which the couple transformed a Las Vegas casino into an Arabian mosque and dressed like Arab royalty.

But in the face of all that excess, Celine recently kicked off her world tour in South Africa, meeting with Nelson Mandela and bringing her seven-year-old son, Rene-Charles, on a tour of some of the poorest areas of the region.

Celine, her husband Rene and their seven-year-old son Rene-Charles share the special moments of their trip – including a meeting with former South African president Nelson Mandela.

“I take my son around the world so that he can understand the privileges he has,” she says.

[From Hello! Canada]

It must have been quite a culture shock for Rene-Charles, who has spent most of his life growing up in Las Vegas, surrounded by luxury. Even if you’re not a platinum-selling recording artist, I still think parents can teach their kids that there are other people in the world who have it a lot worse than they do. As much as I think Celine’s music is crap, and her visit with Mandela was mostly a photo opp, I have to give her credit for this. Of course, we’ll all have to wait another 10 years to see how Rene-Charles turns out.

Celine Dion is shown with her son (yes, that’s her son with the long hair) and husband at at her final performance at Ceasers Palace after five years there on 12/15/07, thanks to PRPhotos.