Marcia Cross sure knows how to plan a romantic getaway - she and husband Tom Mahoney skipped their honeymoon in the summer of 2006 in favor of IVF treatments, as Marcia was 44 and knew her clock was ticking:

She said: “We decided to skip our honeymoon and try in vitro after the wedding. I had already been through infertility treatments.

“It’s very, very difficult to get pregnant in your 40s. It’s costly and tough on your body and your relationship.”

The 45-year-old actress - who gave birth to fraternal twin girls Eden and Savannah last year - is considering adoption because she doesn’t want to put her body through another IVF procedure.

She said: “”I don’t think I’ll have any more kids, but I’m not 100 per cent sure we won’t adopt.”

Marcia - who tied the knot in June 2006 - also revealed she wishes she had become a mother earlier in her life, because she wants to spend as much time with her girls as possible.

She added to Health magazine: “I wish that I’d had my girls in my 30s. Then I could be around longer for them. But they’re an incentive for me to stay healthy, take care of myself, and live as long as possible.”

Sydney Morning Herald

I suspect that many busy working people have skipped their holidays to spend time injecting themselves with hormones in an attempt to have a baby, and it’s probably the best way to attempt IVF, because you’d be more relaxed than if you were balancing doctors appointments and work. Also, it makes a great honeymoon because it gives your new husband the chance to see you at your hormonal worst - apparently IVF really messes with your mood like nothing else. PMS in hyper-drive!

I’m glad that Marcia mentions the cost of IVF treatment and the havoc it causes to your body - it is a really hard process to go through. Marcia is lucky to have two beautiful girls as a result, many couples never have a baby as a result of fertility treatments.

Soon, Marcia’s little girls will be old enough to play with a replica of their mommy - a range of Desperate Housewives dolls are available. And an Ugly Betty doll. Who would buy these for their kids? Although I guess it’s for adult fans of the show, as it’s not children’s viewing. At least I hope kids aren’t watching it!

The dolls actually look like they all have the same head, just with different colored hair and eyes. I guess the plastic parts of the actresses match the dolls, but that is about as close as it gets. My husband is convinced that Teri Hatcher’s pregnancy storyline in the show is the result of a breast enlargement, although I’m not so sure. I am pretty sure he shouldn’t be looking at another woman’s breasts that closely!

Note by Celebitchy: I think Marcia Cross’ conception was also with donor eggs, as she told USA Today that “I don’t like the average woman being misled into thinking that fertility is something that goes on forever. When a woman gets older, they get donor eggs, which doesn’t make the baby any less beautiful or perfect. One’s own eggs only last so long, and sometimes at 43 or 44 you can have your own baby, but statistically it’s very difficult and expensive. You don’t want to wait that long.”

Marcia Cross is shown out on 2/10/08 with twin daughters Eden and Savannah, thanks to WENN. She is also shown on 2/7/08 with daughter Savannah, thanks to Splash News.

It’s interesting to hear what different actors decide to do with their time off during the writer’s guild strike. I have a feeling there’s a lot of kicking back and vacationing going on. But some of the more civic-minded celebs have been volunteering or championing social causes. Desperate Housewives actress Marcia Cross has jumped on board the women’s advocacy bandwagon and joined several prominent congresswomen (and a few men) to lobby for the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act of 2007. The bill mandates that women have the right to spend at least 48 hours in the hospital after having a mastectomy. Currently many women are forced by their insurance providers to be sent home the very same day. The bill has been languishing in congress for almost a dozen years.

One in eight women are diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime,” Cross said. “I’ve seen it up close and personally. I’m sorry to say I don’t have a friend, but friends who’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer, and when I first heard about drive-by mastectomies I was shocked.”

Cross said for her part, she would like Hollywood to get more involved with the issue. She said roughly 20 million people a week watch ABC’s Desperate Housewives, the same number who signed the petition, and television can be a powerful medium. Her show already has a character with a different kind of cancer, but she said she’d suggest other shows, such as Grey’s Anatomy, dedicate an episode to drive-by mastectomies.

“I don’t want this to be a one-hit day,” she said after the news conference. “I really want to raise awareness and get this done after 12 years. I don’t want it to go another five or 10.”

[From the Baltimore Sun]

The Lifetime network has been pushing the bill for quite some time, and has a petition you can sign on their website. Marcia Cross is one of those actresses that always seems to have her act together. She has a master’s degree in psychology – not something a whole lot of celebrities can claim. It’s great that she’s using her celebrity to bring attention to important issues.

Picture note by Jaybird: Marcia Cross at a news conference to raise awareness of the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act. Cross delivered 20 million signatures collected online that urge Congress to pass legislation to stop “drive-through” mastectomies yesterday. Images thanks to WENN.

If you’re a celebrity you better have a shredder and use it. A garbageman hired to take out Marsha Cross’ trash came across 200 completely intact photos of her naked. He also got ahold of her tax return.

He says she’s a real redhead, and that the law says that it’s finders keepers when something is in the garbage. He tried to extort a bunch of money from her in exchange for the sexy pictures, which are said to have been taken by her husband before she was pregnant, but she has understandably hired a lawyer and is fighting to get them back:

“There are some pictures of her showering outside,” Schmidt tells us. “She looks absolutely gorgeous. And yes, the carpet does match the curtains.”

Schmidt is representing the owner of a carting firm hired to remove trash from Cross’ home in L.A. According to Schmidt, one of the firm’s employees discovered the photos when he got to the dump.

Cross is demanding their return. Her lawyers argue that no matter where the photos were found, they are the copyrighted property of Cross and her husband, Tom Mahoney, who may have taken some of them. Cross’ attorneys maintain the photos were thrown out by mistake.

“The pictures were not stolen,” says Schmidt. “When you throw something away, you forfeit that property.

“We recognize the copyright issue, but U.S. copyright law stops at the border,” he adds. Schmidt won’t say whether he’s ready to shop the shots abroad.

Just as he did earlier this year, when he offered to sell Paris Hilton the embarrassing contents of a rent-due storage locker that went up for public auction, Schmidt has invited Cross to buy back her trash.

“I’m not looking to mortify Ms. Cross,” says Schmidt. “I just want the most money for my client.”

He says that Cross’ representatives have so far balked at his price, which he won’t name.

Schmidt says his client also has Cross’ tax returns. “I know how much she made, but out of respect for Ms. Cross, I won’t discuss it,” he says.

Cross is pregnant with twins due in April, and doesn’t need the stress from a lawsuit. She’s sure to look gorgeous in the nude photos and how damaging can it be if they get out? I don’t understand the big deal over some nude pictures, but I live in Europe and am used to seeing a bunch of naked hairy fat guys when I take a sauna at the gym.

Pictures and story via The Blemish.