Britney Spears came crawling back to her mom, Lynne Spears. Well, she somehow got her mom to come to her, and then hopefully Britney crawled. We really have no idea as to what actually went down between Britney and her mother, but the most accepted theories seem to be that Lynne was instrumental in forcing Britney into rehab last year after her public baldness-inducing breakdown. Britney never thought she needed to go to rehab, and seemed to cut ties with Lynne shortly thereafter. At one point she hand-delivered a letter instructing Lynne to stay away from her kids, making sure to specify that Lynne might on medication which would impair her. Yeah that’s the pot calling the kettle black, and the kettle retorting, “Shut up you crazy hag!” Or some such thing. Well after Brit’s life has really gone to crap in the last few weeks, she finally summoned Lynne to her home, and I guess Lynne was pretty happy to go.

“Come to mama: Days after losing custody of her two kids, Britney Spears found some solace by reuniting with estranged mom Lynne Spears.

“‘Brit really needed her mom,’ a source tells PEOPLE. ‘So Lynne flew out and they met.’ Sources say Lynne and Britney’s younger sister Jamie Lynn flew from Kentwood, La., to Los Angeles Friday evening. On arrival at LAX, the two were mobbed by photographers. Jamie Lynn, wearing eyeglasses, kept her head low, later covered by the hood of her sweatshirt. Despite the attention, the women made a quiet exit from the terminal, declining to comment or to acknowledge the group.

“Around 3 a.m., Lynne paid a visit to her daughter’s Beverly Hills home before driving the two of them to Spears’s new Malibu pad. The mother-daughter pair had a falling out back in June, when Spears handed her mother a reportedly upsetting letter. According to TMZ, the letter asked that Lynne stay away from Spears’s sons if she is taking any medications that might cause her to be impaired.

“Spears told reporters at the time, ‘I’m praying for her right now. [I hope] she gets all the help she needs.’ Says a source, for now, ‘Everything’s great.’”

[From People]

I have that old Peaches and Herb song, “Reunited and it Feels so Good” stuck in my head right now, with an image of Lynne and Britney holding each other and swaying to the music… while a little bit drunk. I’m really surprised it took Britney this long to ask for her mom’s help and support. I mean things have just gotten worse and worse for her, and then you think she’s at rock bottom and she finds a way to dig herself down into a brand new hole. But if nothing else the girl is freakishly stubborn, and if someone tells her what to do (her mom… or a judge) she’ll flip them the bird and then get shitfaced and dance on some bars with her underwear over her head. And frankly we can’t complain, because at least that means Britney Spears had her underwear on at some point.

Hopefully calling her mom means that Brit has finally reached rock bottom and realizes just how messed up her life is. That’s probably a really scary and overwhelming feeling, but she’s got to understand that before she can correct her problems and get her life back together. Lynne Spears seems to be one of the few Hollywood moms that really has her act together and has given up a lot for her children’s careers, without expecting to be brought along to a lot of Hollywood parties as their own personal coke whores (ahem, Dina Lohan). Let’s hope this is an indication of some type of turning point, and Brit will take a few baby steps towards becoming a decent parent.

Note by Celebitchy: Britney missed a scheduled visit with her children this weekend, but it wasn’t exactly her fault. After first suggesting that the boys meet her at one of the many hotels she frequents, she agreed to return home to prepare for their visit. When K-Fed arrived at the gate, no one answered the intercom. He called Britney on her cell phone to tell her he was leaving, and she begged him to stay. It turns out the intercom was broken and she never heard the call.

And the latest news in the nonstop Britney saga is that she rejected an intervention attempt by her family yesterday. Her mom, sister, and K-Fed all arrived at her Malibu mansion on Sunday to try and convince her to get help.

Her weekend was quite eventful too. It seems that on Friday night she drove around aimlessly with her ex hook-up, producer JR Rotem, and one of his friends. She kicked the pair out before she went home early on Saturday, but then ran back down to the gate, screaming that her house had been broken into. She punctured one of her tires in her frenzy about the supposed break in, and a photographer changed it for her. The cops came and left, and then her family arrived to try and talk some sense into her:

Early Friday evening, Brit, producer JR Rotem and hanger-on Sam Lusty spent hours driving around Los Angeles and Beverly Hills being followed by a caravan of paparazzi, until utlimately ending up at the posh Peninsula Hotel, where Brit had holed herself up for a few days earlier this week, following the decision by Court Commissioner Scott Gordon to give full temporary custody of her two young boys to K-Fed.

Around 2am PT, the three louseketeers exited the Peninsula and drove, screaming at each other the whole way, to Britney’s gated community, The Summit, on Mulholland Drive, at which point Brit inexplicably gave her two traveling companions the boot at the gatehouse.

But the night was nowhere near being finished. A few minutes later, Brit comes roaring down the hill to The Summit’s entrance, where she begins to rant incoherently that her home had been broken into. Her driving was so erratic that she pulled up on a curb, damaging her tire so badly that it required repair — which a friendly photog was more than willing to do for Brit.

Eventually, officers of the law arrived and went up to the house with Brit, JR and Sam, before returning approximately 45 minutes later. No word on whether her house was truly broken into, though all signs point to “no.”

So, in the early morning hours, Brit and her pals packed back into her newly re-tired car and headed up the coast to her Malibu home — where her mom and little sis had just arrived.

[From OK! Magazine]

Then around 7p.m. on Saturday Britney stormed out of her house, seeming to reject her family’s help. She continued her random tour of hotels and restaurants, stopping briefly at the Viceroy Hotel and The Ivy. She was followed by at least 36 cars full of paparazzi.

Britney is still hanging out with her sister, even if the paparazzi think she’s rejecting her family’s help by continuing to drive around. She was seen out yesterday getting coffee and going for sushi with 16 year-old Jamie Lynn Spears. At one point she got lost and photographers told her the way home. Thanks to WENN for these photos.

“Grey’s Anatomy” star T.R. Knight was on “Ellen” the other day, and told a very cute story about getting a puppy from Katherine Heigl. You don’t often hear about celebrity friendships – it seems like once every couple of years “People” will do a story on celebrity best friends, and it’ll surprise everyone because no one had any idea those two actors even knew each other. Katherine Heigl was a very vocal supporter of T.R. Knight during the whole Isaiah Washington “fag” incident – though I’m not sure if the two became best friends as a result, or if they were close from the beginning. Either way, they’re close enough that Heigl surprised Knight at his house with a puppy for his birthday, which he named Arrow. That’s pretty much the cutest thing ever.

“‘I had been talking about [getting a dog] for a while. I guess there’s a point – too much talk and not enough action,” Knight said. “So she made the decision. It was great, yeah, she showed up at my house with it.’”

[From People]

Knight does tell a story that kind of explains some of the things that are wrong with the press… but does so in a way that doesn’t make me want to kick him. It’s actually pretty funny… though quite the insult to Katherine Heigl’s mom, which I don’t think he realized.

“Although he may be happier, Knight insists that coming out hasn’t much affected his love life.

“‘Recently Kate [Heigl] and her fiancé Josh Kelley and me and her mom went out to dinner, and it was reported that it was with me and my new boyfriend. But that was her mom,’ he told DeGeneres.

“‘So I guess I’m dating Katherine’s mom right now,’ he joked.

[From People]

Um, burn? Ouch! Katherine Heigl is beautiful, what must her mother look like to confuse the press into thinking she’s a gay man? I’m going to do my best to dig up some pictures of said mannish-looking mother. Knight also talked about the process of coming out under fire last year.

“‘I feel I’ve learned so much this past year, so, I’m grateful for that, so yeah, that changes you,’ he said on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Thursday. Knight, 34, previously told DeGeneres that hearing his Grey’s Anatomy costar Isaiah Washington refer to him with a homophobic slur gave him the courage tell the world.

“Asked what he thinks about actors who do not come out of the closet, Knight said, ‘Everyone has their own path. You just have to respect that… It don’t think it’s right to force that. It’s impossible to know. There’s a lot of soul searching you have to do.’”

[From People]

What he says makes a lot of sense. We all have a lot of soul searching to do in our lives, and I imagine that it’s hard to guess what it’s like to be a gay person that’s trying to figure out what type of life, and how public a life, they want to live. I think it’s really good that Knight did ultimately come out, but it would have been nice if he did it in his own time and his own way.

Picture Note by Jaybird: Here’s T.R. with Kate Walsh at the Music and Lyrics premiere in February. Header image at Entertainment Weekly’s Pre-Emmy part on September 15th. Images thanks to PR Photos.

Despite being a bit estranged, David Beckham flew home to London today after learning that his father Ted had suffered a heart attack. Two years ago, Ted Beckham had written an unauthorized book titled, “David Beckham: My Son” that had reportedly caused a rift between father and son. However David still rushed home upon learning of his father’s condition.

“David Beckham flew back to the U.K. Thursday after his father, Ted Beckham, suffered a heart attack. The Los Angeles-based soccer star, 32, dropped everything and dashed to the airport as soon as he was told the news. ‘His father has had a heart attack and is currently being treated in [the] hospital,’ the athlete’s rep confirms. ‘David is flying back to be with him. He is obviously incredibly concerned and wants to be with him.’

“The elder Beckham, 59, from east London, suffered chest pains Wednesday evening. A London Ambulance Service spokeswoman confirms that its dispatchers were called and arrived just after 9:20 p.m. Ted Beckham underwent an operation to unblock his artery, his son’s rep tells PEOPLE. A spokeswoman at the London Chest Hospital says the elder Beckham is in ‘stable’ condition. He is reported to be in the intensive care unit.”

[From People]

And where is lovely wife Victoria Beckham, you ask? Well she was supposedly on “business” in Japan, but rushed to join her husband. And when they say business, I assume they mean the business of shopping, as that appears to be all Victoria does. And Japan would make a lot of sense – it’s a virtual treasure trove of Victoria Beckham-sized outfits.

Picture Note by Jaybird: Here’s some old, but cute, Beckham photos from last September. Images thanks to PR Photos.

Poor Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. They’ve been seriously inconvenienced lately when dropping off their oldest son Maddox at Manhattan’s ultra-posh Lycee Francais school. People are asking them for pictures, autographs, or just having the general nerve to say their names. But if nothing else, these are random street hooligans, right? Well, no. They’re other Lycee Francais parents. A little embarrassing. Considering how fancy the school is, you’d think the parents would be a little more annoyed by the Brangelina hubbub than the other way around, but sadly that’s not the case.

“The New York Observer reports that the Lycee’s director of operations, Dan Cooke, had to ask parents to leave Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie alone. He wrote in a letter, ‘Regretfully, I have seen some parents taking pictures, asking for autographs, talking to the media and even shouting at Ms. Jolie and Mr. Pitt for recognition. Therefore, in the best interests of the school and safety of your child(ren) I must ask for everyone to please respect the family’s privacy and discontinue these practices.’

“Meanwhile, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have made concerted efforts to ensure that the chaos [sic] that surrounds them is kept to a minimum when dropping son Maddox, 5, off for classes. Cooke explains in his letter:

“‘I’m sure you are aware the school has received much media attention recently during the arrival and dismissal times because of the presence of celebrities Ms. Angelina Jolie and/or Mr. Brad Pitt. I want to make you aware that before the first day of school I met with their security team to discuss the best manner in which for them to drop off and pick up their son. Our foremost goal was to cause the least amount of disruption to the school and to ensure the security of all of our students and families.’”

[From US Weekly]

I expected Upper East Side parents to have a bit more decorum about them, just not give a damn, or if nothing else be righteously annoyed by the Brangelina spectacle. Turns out they’re just a bunch of screaming girls at a Beatles concert like the rest of us. Too old a reference? Okay, turns out they’re just a bunch of screaming girls at a Justin Timberlake concert. That could really make those parent open houses awkward. Someone says hello to Brad Pitt, Brad’s security team knocks the parent over and confiscates their cell phone… and their camera… and their binoculars… okay I guess these people really are freaks.

It actually is enough of a problem that Maddox has become afraid of the paparazzi and all the screaming at school lately.

“A source tells the Observer that the constant attention of the paparazzi (and eager parents) has already had an effect on adopted son Maddox. The normally happy Mad got scared and started to cry when his kindergarten class was asked to bring in a picture of themselves.”

[From US Weekly]

Maybe he’s just crying because he’s got that silly Mohawk in all those pictures and he’s too embarrassed to bring one in? I’m kidding, the Mohawk is adorable. He’s probably actually crying because all of the family photos are in Us Weekly.

Picture note by JayBird: Here’s Angelina and Brad picking Maddox up from Lycee Francais. You can see that it looks like there’s a lot of students lined up to look at them, though no visible parents. Images thanks to the Daily Mail.

You’ll have to excuse two Britney stories so close together, but this is too good to pass up. I mean pooooooooooooooor Britney Spears. Britney’s lawyer, Laura Wasser, was stopped on her way out of a hearing regarding Spears’ and Federline’s custody arrangement. She said that Britney “‘just wants to be a mom. I believe this is a frustrating time for her.’” True story. I know lawyers are supposed to put their clients in the best light possible, but saying something like that - which so totally contradict months of behavior - kind of sets her client up to be mocked.

“Britney Spears ‘just wants to be a mom,’ her lawyer, Laura Wasser, said Friday – adding, ‘I believe this is a frustrating time for her.’ Wasser spoke to reporters outside the courtroom after another hearing in the custody fight between Spears and ex-husband Kevin Federline. TMZ.com and CelebTV cited court documents signed Friday saying Spears will continue to pay Federline $20,000 in spousal support, but it’s unclear how long that deal will remain in effect.

“Wasser did not confirm any details about what was discussed. Asked if this is a frustrating time for Spears because of the negative reactions to her appearance last Sunday at the MTV Video Music Awards, Wasser said, ‘Yes. I think she just wants to be a mom, and both of her kids’ birthdays are this week, and I think she would’ve liked to celebrate with them without having to worry about the entire nation – the entire world – being concerned about what’s going on with her personally and her custody battle with Mr. Federline.’

“Wasser, when asked to address a story that Spears tried to offer Federline a settlement, which he was resistant to accept, replied, ‘I don’t believe that’s true. They met and are trying to work it out so they don’t have to have a judge make determinations for them regarding their kids. I don’t know that he was resistant or she was resistant. They are both trying to work to come up with something together.’”

[From People]

I get that this is a hard time for Britney Spears, but she’s bringing most of it on herself, so it’s hard to feel badly for her. The article mentions that Britney and Kevin have a 50/50 custody split, but it sure doesn’t seem like Britney’s with her kids that much. It would be really sad if she had that arrangement to be fair to herself or vindictive towards K-Fed, but left her kids with nannies and babysitters during her time with them. If it’s so important to Britney to be a mom, why isn’t she doing that? And even more importantly, why isn’t she trying to be a good mom? This situation makes me so sad for her kids. Though they’ll have money and advantages from that, that won’t equal out for having a nutcase for a parent (or parents). When I was a teenager I babysat for a 22 year old who had her son at 15, and she treated him in a negligent way that often makes me think of Britney. It was never enough to take her kids away, but it was complete disinterest and an inability to take care of those boring, routine things you have to do for kids day in and day out. Something tells me that, no matter who gets primary custody of Sean Preston and Jayden James, Britney and Kevin will be in court constantly over the next 18 years.

Picture note by JayBird: Pictures of Britney and Kevin during happier times y’all.

The best way to help drug-addicted Amy Winehouse and her equally drug-addicted husband, Blake Fielder-Civil? Don’t buy her records, according to her in-laws. Apparently the couple who raised a professional layabout and leach have decided they know what’s best for Amy: don’t support her career. They don’t make any mention of what anyone should do to punish their son Blake. But it is hard to take something away from someone who hasn’t earned anything.

“The father-in-law of singer Amy Winehouse said Tuesday that fans should stop buying her records to force her to seek help for drug addiction. Giles Fielder-Civil said Winehouse and his son, Blake Fielder-Civil, were in ‘abject denial’ about their problems. He said he believed the couple had used cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin. “‘I think they believe they are recreational users of drugs and they are in control,’ Fielder-Civil told British Broadcasting Corp. radio. ‘Clearly they are addicts.’ He said fans should send a message ‘that her addiction and her behavior are not acceptable. Perhaps it is time to stop buying records,’ Fielder-Civil said. ‘It’s a possibility, to send that message.’

“Giles Fielder-Civil said Winehouse’s record label, Island, should be more ‘pro-active in helping the couple to get better’ and suggested the singer not be given awards until she cleaned up her act. ‘We shouldn’t be condoning her addiction by rewarding her with these awards’” he said.”

[From the Washington Post]

From most of the things that have been printed about Blake’s parents, they’ve been less-than-helpful with regarding their son’s problems and his negative influence on Amy. They’ve repeatedly denied that he even has a problem, and have constantly put the blame on Winehouse. Suddenly they understand he’s a drug addict, but again, the solution is to put pressure on Amy. I understand that his ultimate point (though he doesn’t say it, but let’s assume this is what he’s getting at) is to take away the source of funding for the drugs. But let’s be realistic, Amy’s made a lot of money, and if everyone stopped buying her records today, she and Blake would still be able to get drugs. Poor addicts manage to do it everyday, so I’m sure they’d find a way. That doesn’t treat their addiction, and it’s just a ploy to get publicity for himself. If he really cares about them, he needs to shut up, find his kid, and get him into a rehab facility far, far away. Blabbing to the press doesn’t help anything, and it just demonstrates what an idiot the guy is. He’s never shown any understanding that Blake has some responsibility for their massively messed up situation. Though it kind of explains how he got that way.

Picture note by JayBird: Header image of Amy and Blake out on Friday after their big fight. Images thanks to Splash Photos.

It’s kind of nice, in this day of over-indulged kids, to hear a famous parent say that they are strict with their kids. Brooke Shields talked with Redbook recently about the challenges of being a parent. Brooke and her mother had a famous fallout over her career in the 80’s. A lot of people thought her mom, Teri, was using Brooke and exploiting her celebrity. And by most accounts, she was nothing like Dina Lohan or Lesley Panettiere.

“’I think a lot of these girls are young, and it’s all so tempting,’ Shields, 42, tells Redbook in its September issue. ‘For some reason I wasn’t tempted. I don’t know why.’

”Looking back, she says, ‘Sometimes I wish I was a little more tempted to have a little more fun. But then I see them’ – Shields mentions no one by name – ‘and someone will ask, “Well, what do you want to say to so-and-so?” I don’t want to say anything to them. I want to talk to their mothers.’

”Shields’s own mother, Teri Shields, who originally managed her daughter, came under a firestorm of criticism for her treatment (some said exploitation) of her budding star. The two eventually separated professionally.

“’People used to say my mom used me as a commodity,’ the actress now says. ‘But you know what? She did her own version dysfunctional behavior, sure, but nothing like you see these days.’”

[From People]

Brooke has two daughters, Rowan, 4, and Grier, 13 months. She famously battled postpartum depression and wrote a book where she talked about her struggles in an attempt to help other mothers understand that they weren’t alone. She definitely did a lot of good in taking the stigma away from it. Brooke says that she’s a pretty strict mom, and she knows that she can seem overbearing to others.

“Shields says: ‘I always feel like the odd mom out, because trust me when I tell you I’m on my girls. And every time I am, I know from the outside it looks like I’m an overbearing, controlling parents. But I don’t think we have any responsibility to anybody else but our kids and ourselves.’

”Not that Shields apologizes for being strict. ‘The worst part about it is when I look at my daughter [Rowan], and she’ll be fighting with some other kid, and I have to be careful not to always make it her fault. But I can only tell her what to do – I can’t tell the other kid. I’ll tell her, “Hey, you suck it up; you give him the toy, and we’ll talk about it later.”’

”Admits Shields, ‘So she’s the one who always has to take the high road, which is hard for a 4-year-old.’”

[From People]

That sounds like it might be tough on her kids, but it’s probably better to error on the side of caution and be a little too strict when you’re raising kids in Hollywood. It’s important to find a balance, but it seems like too many parents are trying to be their kids’ friends rather than parents. That’s a blurry line that only leads to trouble (in my inexperienced opinion). Brooke Shields is freakishly smart, so I’d guess her daughters have a pretty good chance of turning out well.

Picture note by JayBird: Here’s Brooke with her kids out wit her daughters in Brentwood, California on August 7th. Header image of Brooke with actress Jill Hennessy at the Hampton Social James Taylor concert this past weekend.
Images thanks to WENN.

It’s weird that Kevin Federline is starting to seem not just like the better parent, but like a good parent. He’s done a good job of staying out of the public eye the last few months. Not only do you not see him out with his idiot friends or partying at clubs lately, you also don’t see him out using his kids as photo ops. Not to be too gullible, but that makes you wonder if maybe his motivations are decent. I mean how easy would it be to plop the kids in the car and take them to the park for the paparazzi? He’s been laying low, and from most reports has aligned himself with the entire Spears family – minus Britney of course. Now that the two are officially divorced, Federline’s lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan had a few statements about K-Fed’s plans here on out.

“’When they are with him, he is going to shield his children from unwanted media attention,’” Kaplan said. “’You will not find a picture of Kevin parading with the children out in a public place.

“’He’s focused right now on being the best parent that he can be,’” the attorney added.

[From the Washington Post]

As of right now, K-Fed and Britney will have 50/50 custody of their kids, and she will pay him $15,000 monthly in child support and an additional $20,000 in monthly spousal maintenance. For some reason even though their divorce is final, their child custody isn’t, and K-Fed is supposedly going after full custody – with the support of Britney’s family. When his lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan was questioned about the financial settlement, he pointed out that famous people just plain need more money than the rest of us.

“However, Kaplan said Federline’s life as a celebrity father comes with different demands than many other fathers face, including huge expenses. When they go out, Kaplan said, there must be a nanny and security guards.

“’There are people you have to pay so your kids can pretend they’re like everyone else,” said Kaplan. “When you are a celebrity parent, there are financial dynamics that others not familiar with it can’t understand.’”

[From the Washington Post]

That’s fair. Though I really have doubts abut how much of that monthly $25,000 is going to security vs. mansion mortgage payments and diamond-encrusted trucker hats, but at this point, what’s his is his. He’s certainly the lesser of two evils, and perhaps (surprisingly) has the potential to be a good parent. That’d be awesome, because Britney’s kids will really need someone good in their lives to balance all the crazy.

Note by Celebitchy: Sorry for chiming in so much on JayBird’s posts, but I really don’t feel like writing an entire post about this. Both US Weekly and Life and Style are running stories about what a shitty parent Britney is in light of that big fight her bodyguard got into, which resulted in Sean Preston being hurt. US is saying she tried to get Sean Preston’s teeth whitened. This isn’t new information, and came out a few months ago in an OK! Magazine article about her nanny tell-all. It is news to me that she gets him to fetch cigarettes for her, calling them her “lollipops.” Oh and she also threatened to kill a photographer. That is all.

Header image thanks to TMZ.