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Kelly Rowland’s seen the daylight!

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By Alex Needs

She’s sexy, soulful and loving the solo life. One third of Destiny’s Child, Kelly Rowland is a woman in control, with a killer sense of humour. Woman’s Day caught up with the 27-year-old Texan during her recent trip to Australia.

Your new song Daylight is about staying up all night. Do you ever get a chance to do that?

I did once, maybe twice, stayed out till daylight. The thing is, it gets so light and you don’t realise it. I had a date and we literally stayed up all night talking. Those were the days… Where did they go?!

You’ve collaborated with a lot of people — Nelly, Eve, Travis from Gym Class Heroes. Is there anyone you’d like to work with still?

Will.i.am. He’s working with a lot of people, but I’d love to work with him.

What motivates you to keep going?

I guess I still love it. I love mouthing off in interviews, performing when you know it’s going to be a fun show. You know…

How different is it performing on your own than with Destiny’s Child?

Completely. By myself, I feel like you can just do you. And with Destiny’s Child you do Destiny’s Child. They’re both beautiful, though.

Labels you love?

YSL. I was so sad to hear he’d passed. Dolce and Gabbana too, and Stella McCartney, Dianne von Furstenberg and Ralph Lauren. He’s the man for American classic fashion.

Would you ever start your own label?

No. I’d really just rather buy the clothes. It’s not my passion. I’m passionate about working with children.

You’re ambassador for the MTV Staying Alive Foundation focusing on AIDS education.

Yes, I’m really excited about this. I’ve sat down with the CEO of MTV and he explained the numbers. They’re not drastically rising, but they’re rising, and we need to keep educating people. HIV is rising among African American women, so we need to keep sewing the seeds of education to make people realise we’re not invincible. And it’s important they know they’re not, that the threat is real and that things could happen to you if you don’t use protection.

For more of this intervew, see this week’s Woman’s Day (on sale June 9).

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Pregnant man update: Three weeks to go

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Just weeks before he gives birth, pregnant man Thomas Beatie shows no sign of slowing down.

Hiding his baby bump under a T-shirt that reads “Define Normal”, the world’s first pregnant man is showing no signs of putting his feet up, tending to his lawn just weeks out from his due date.

Despite saying he’s “always feeling bloated” and is suffering from aching feet and hips, Thomas Beatie has been spotted by his neighbours carrying out “manly” chores at his Bend, Oregon, home, such as taking out the garbage and mowing the lawn, while wife Nancy has been busy preparing their new arrival’s nursery, decked out in yellow.

“I often see him taking out the rubbish. These things have to be done and Thomas is happy to do them,” neighbour Mitch Kahle told Closer magazine in the UK.

“They are just like any other couple expecting a child. Thomas likes to keep busy, and if that means doing tasks around the house, that’s what he has to do.”

Thomas shocked the world when he announced in March this year that he was pregnant. Born Tracy LaGondino, he is now legally a man after a partial sex-change operation 10 years ago, but he was able to fall pregnant because he kept his reproductive organs.

“Ironically, being pregnant doesn’t make me feel any more female or feminine,” Thomas told Oprah Winfrey in what’s believed to have been a million-dollar deal between the talk-show host and People magazine in April. “Having this baby doesn’t make me less of a man. Wanting a child is a human desire. So I decided just to have a chest reconstruction and testosterone therapy, keeping my womb intact. The only thing different about me is that I won’t be able to breastfeed.”

For the full story, see this week’s Woman’s Day (on sale June 9).

Your say:

Is Thomas doing the right thing by being male and pregnant? How do you think it will affect the child? Have your say below…

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Woman’s Day Carer of the Year Award

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Do you know someone who spends their days and nights caring selflessly for a loved one who needs their constant help? Isn’t it time Australian carers got something back?

When her fiancé suffered a debilitating brain tumour, Tania Hayes became his full-time carer. Here she shares her story and explains why she’s getting behind our Carer of the Year competition…

Tania Hayes’ life as a carer began when her fiancé Warren suffered a brain tumour in 1997. The tennis ball sized tumour was tangled around Warren’s brain stem and the operation to remove it left him with severe disabilities, including paralysis of his right side, loss of hearing in his left ear and loss of swallowing reflexes and facial and eye functions.

But the easy option — to walk away — never occurred to Tania, who married Warren and became his full-time carer.

Since meeting her last year in our Make My Day pages, when we treated her to a makeover, Tania has won a prestigious prize for being a full-time carer, and published her experiences in a book. She is now lending her support to the first Woman’s Day Carer of the Year Awards.

“I am excited and proud to be supporting the Woman’s Day Carer of the Year Awards,” says Tania, author of Love Has No Limits. “This award is a great way to acknowledge the unsung heroes in our society.

“Carers in Australia rarely receive the recognition they deserve for the important role they play, silently sacrificing their lives to give their loved ones a life worth living. That’s why it’s great to see Woman’s Day being proud to get behind carers and acknowledge the important role these special people play.”

Today the happy couple have a two-year-old son Joshua. But with a combined income of Warren’s disability pension and Tania’s carer allowance totalling just $23,000 a year, Tania knows how important it is to acknowledge the work that she and her fellow 2.6 million carers in Australia do every day.

“Speak to any carer and they’ll tell you they love what they do. But we should remember that carers save the Government something like $30.5billion a year. If we could just increase the carer pension, that would help reward them. As it stands, most carers can barely pay their bills. They certainly can’t afford to go out and enjoy a bit of life. It’s as if they’re being punished for being selfless.”

Tania met Warren when she was just 19. Falling in love on their first date they were the perfect couple and Warren proposed on Valentine’s Day three years later.

“All we could talk about was our beautiful future,” Tania says. “Warren said he wanted to work seven days a week so he could set us up in a home to raise a family. He spoiled me, he was my protector.”

But after his operation, it was Tania who needed to be there for Warren. Now, each day, Tania lifts his 100kg frame out of bed and into his chair. Washing, feeding, toileting, dressing and administering his medication all fall to Tania, plus helping him with his exercises which include stretching and walking with the assistance of an overhead harness device.

Warren, 40, admits it hurts when people misjudge him.

“Just because my body doesn’t work any more, doesn’t mean mentally I’m not the same person,” he says. “It’s frustrating for me, because I remember how I was — so fit and active.”

Happily, Tania and Warren still make time to enjoy romance.

“We try and go out for dinner often. But we’ll also do simple things like cuddling on the couch. Warren spends most of his days in a chair that supports him, but every couple of weeks I’ll say, ‘Come over here and sit on the lounge with me. Come and sit with me and be normal.’ Because he is normal. Simple things like a cuddle on the couch mean the world to us.”

  • $2000 cash

  • One night’s accommodation for the winner and a guest in the Four Points by Sheraton at Darling Harbour in Sydney, including breakfast

  • Return flights for two to Sydney and airport transfers (if required)

  • A Woman’s Day pamper package including a beauty treatment of choice to the value of $300

Plus, 4 runners-up win a $100 pamper package.

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Smarter problem-solving

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Are you a “fixer”? That’s a person who feels they have to change other people’s behaviours, alter situations, make things better and do it all within a certain time-frame.

Focusing on a problem that has to be fixed, even when it is beyond your control, is a shortcut to stress. Next time you find yourself fretting, try one — or all — of these seven ideas instead.

  1. Acknowledge that it’s not what you wanted. Saying out loud, “Well, I didn’t expect that to happen” is a simple way to defuse the problem’s initial impact. It liberates you from the idea that you should have somehow anticipated every possible scenario, which is, of course, impossible. The only reason a problem is a problem is because you hadn’t planned for it. It’s just a different outcome.
  1. Take time out. Instead of reacting immediately, sit back, shut your eyes and wait, even if it’s just for a minute. Say to yourself, “I can…” as you inhale and “…solve this” as you exhale. Open your eyes. Chances are you’ll do and say something much smarter.
  1. Roll with the punches. You are more likely to solve a problem if you adopt a flexible attitude. Train yourself to see that whatever is happening, good or bad, is just information; life is not a static experience and so it follows that this information will constantly change. If one plan isn’t working, switch to another rather than trying to force the original idea through.
  1. Think ‘white’ thoughts. Problems tend to trigger “red thoughts” that inflame your emotions and angry thoughts, such as “I’ll get him for creating this mess for me to clean up”. Practise “white” alternatives, such as, “I will find another way to help him see things as I do.”
  1. See it happen. Athletes are trained to envisage their goals, to actually see themselves touching the pool wall first, or scoring a goal. Before you tackle a problem, visualise yourself achieving a successful outcome; hold the feeling as you start working towards a solution.
  1. Listen to your inner voice. As you process the problem, different options will come to mind. Let your intuition guide you towards the one that feels right. If it’s a surprising choice, so much the better; the logical answer is not always the best one.
  1. Write it down. “Face your mind’s demons and they become nothing but shadows,” is a traditional samurai proverb. There’s something about committing problems to paper or to a computer file that makes them more manageable, rather than malevolent “demons”. Writing it all down in a journal or diary is also a fluid, evolving approach: if you don’t solve a problem right away, it doesn’t matter. Simply getting it out of your head is progress and helps you to feel calmer. Your journal is a safe place, one where you can scream and complain and gather the strength you need in order to go back out into the world again tomorrow.

YOUR SAY: Do you get stressed out from trying to “fix” things? Tell us below…

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Women and heart disease

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**Have you ever thought you might die of a heart attack? No? Why not?

It’s true that most of us think of heart disease as an “old man’s” health issue, but the tragic fact is that heart disease is the number one killer of Australian women.**

Four times as many women die from a heart condition, as from breast cancer.

This lack of awareness is what’s prompted a Heart Foundation campaign called Go Red for Women.

“Women’s level of awareness is low so, by staging this campaign, we can alert them to be as vigilant about heart disease as breast health,” says the Heart Foundation’s Julie-Anne Mitchell, the Chair of the Go Red for Women Campaign.

Julie-Anne says the first step towards better heart health, should be an appointment with your GP.

“We’re good at getting our partners to a doctor, but we don’t focus so much on our own health,” she says. “So get him there … but make an appointment for yourself too!”

Julie-Anne explains that unless a woman is checked and assessed regularly, she can be oblivious to the early signs of heart disease — which is a build-up of fatty plaques in the vessels that supply the heart.

“Unfortunately for some women, their first indication of heart disease can be something as life threatening as a heart attack,” she says. “A regular check-up with your doctor or GP can put your mind at rest. And if something abnormal is picked up, it can be treated early through medication or changes to your lifestyle.”

While the experts know that heart disease is the leading cause of death for women, they don’t know much about why … yet.

“What is known is that women usually present with heart disease much later in life,” says Julie-Anne. “We know a woman’s natural hormones like oestrogen can be a protective against heart disease, but once she goes through menopause her oestrogen levels are lower and to a large extent that protection is gone.”

  • Regular heart checks

See your doctor regularly for an assessment of your cardiovascular health.

  • Know your numbers.

Become familiar with your cholesterol, blood pressure and waist girth (realistic long-term goals are 88cm for women and 102cm for men). These are all indicators of heart disease risk.

  • Go smoke-free.

Smoking is one of the major risk factors of heart disease. If you stop smoking today, within one year you’ll have halved your risk of heart disease. Avoid passive smoking too.

  • Healthy eating

That means enjoying a wide variety of foods and making small positive and sustainable changes to your diet.

  • Be active every day

Do at least 30 minutes of activity a day. This can be in 10-minute bursts and as simple as walking.

  • Central chest pain — common, but not always present in women.

  • Severe pain into the jaw, neck, shoulder. Tingling down one side of the body.

  • Extreme sense of fatigue. Not just feeling bit tired, but a bone-numbing sense of absolute exhaustion.

Call 000 if you experience any of these signs of a heart attack!

“The faster you get to hospital, the greater the survival rates are,” Julie-Anne explains. “So don’t call your GP, or ask a friend, or be too embarrassed in case it’s indigestion — call 000 because every minute counts.”

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*Sex and the City*: fashion Bible or manifesto for life?

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Manolos? Check. Cosmopolitans? Check. Fabulous girlfriends? Check. Impossibly glamorous designer wardrobe? Check. Hit sitcom-turned-blockbuster-movie Sex and the City is more than just a style guide for women all over the world — it is a manifesto for life.

While fans overseas indulged in the box-office smash weeks ago, Australian audiences had to hold their killer heels back from cinemas until the release of the movie recently. While the flick, which has been touted as a movie-length final episode of the hit series, promises to deliver more pink drinks, sexual fantasies and fashion-forward dressing than any SATC fan could handle, we take a look at the legacy of the SATC phenomenon and just what this pop-cult hit has meant to women the world over.

The phenomenal success of the HBO hit series and the worldwide wave of eagerness for the release of the film is testament to the universal appeal of SATC. What is it that has struck such a chord with audiences? Is it just good old-fashioned escapism for viewers, all packaged in a modern-day designer wrapper? Or is there something more behind the glitz, glam and sexual confidence of these four women that has drawn in audiences far and wide?

For starters, SATC bands together four somewhat contradictory women, who, outside the show, seem unlikely friends, but who support each other through relationship crises, wardrobe malfunctions, illness, children, marriage and much more. The stark differences between the characters of Carrie, Charlotte, Miranda and Samantha give viewers some point of individual identification with the show, while on a universal level, SATC centres around a fundamental truth for all women everywhere — that of friendship. As Carrie so succinctly says, “No matter who breaks your heart and how long it takes to get over it, you’ll never get through it without your friends.”

The SATC theme of femme-power is also one that has struck a chord with modern working women, who may have prioritised career or single life over the traditional values of marriage and family. SATC depicts singledom in such a glamorous way that men are almost side-dishes to the four girls’ fun and exciting lives full of art openings, the “It” bars of Manhattan, egg-white omelettes and designer shoes. SATC embraces the power of friendship, but interestingly, achieved higher ratings when the girls were in relationships on the show. This is testament to the notion that most single women, however satisfied, still maintain the hope that a meaningful relationship can happen to them, too.

While the more serious subjects of friendship, love and life were a major drawcard for SATC, the sizzling and often confronting sex and the glorious Cinderella-like fashion were what made SATC into a Cosmopolitan-infused success around the world.

A unanimous gasp could be heard every time Carrie stepped out of her Manhattan one-bedroom in the latest outfit from the show’s stylist Patricia Field. It appeared that, no matter what heartaches the girls were enduring, there was nothing a new pair of Jimmy Choos couldn’t fix. Fashion was often the armoury used by the foursome when the more serious and painful side of life took over. Field is now renowned the world over for her unique SATC styles, looks that Manolo Blahnik told the UK Sunday Times are “sexy, quirky and fresh, without being threatening. Women liked that”.

SATC offered women a measuring stick for their sex lives and while the sexually charged Samantha campaigned for the more extreme notions of casual, no-strings-attached sex, SATC confronted the full spectrum of sexuality and sexual issues, and challenged and empowered female audiences to embrace and question their sex lives.

SATC is an ingenious blend of fantasy and reality that provides serious life advice and fabulous fun for women everywhere. So, with the much-anticipated release of the SATC movie happening this week in Australian cinemas, put on your best pair of heels, grab an entourage of friends and escape to a world where wardrobes expand by the day, cocktails flow freely and sex is everything it is meant to be, while you ponder life’s more serious questions of love, health, relationships and career — over a Cosmopolitan, of course!

YOUR SAY: Who’s your favourite star of Sex and the City, and what did you think of the hit TV series? Share your thoughts on Sex and the City below…

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Yves Saint Laurent: A tribute to the king of fashion

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One of the greatest and most innovative fashion designers of the 20th century, Yves Saint Laurent, has died in Paris following a long-standing illness.

Saint Laurent passed away on Sunday evening in the French capital; his death announced shortly afterwards by the Pierre-Berge-Saint Laurent Foundation with exact details of his illness yet to be made clear. It was widely known that Saint Laurent’s health had been suffering since his retirement in 2002, which marked the end of a hugely successful career on the international fashion stage.

Considered by many as one of the world’s most ground-breaking and inspirational fashion designers, Yves Saint Laurent has been attributed with changing the face of fashion with his creativity and pioneering designs that reflected women’s changing roles in society. His womenswear encouraged a new-found confidence and liberation both personally and professionally among females throughout the world, and of particular note are his beautifully-cut trouser suits, brightly coloured ethnic prints and designs inspired by the art world.

At 17, Saint Laurent left home to work for the French designer Christian Dior who, on passing away in 1957, left young Yves, then 22, in charge of rescuing the Dior fashion house from financial ruin. It was a challenge the young designer rose to, and he saw the revival of the Dior fashion empire through with great success.

Shortly afterwards Yves Saint Laurent was conscripted to serve in the French army, where he was subjected to ridicule and abuse by fellow soldiers for his sexuality and which ultimately led to a nervous breakdown. Consequently, Saint Laurent was institutionalised in a French mental hospital to be treated with psychiatric therapy, however was later released and went on to begin his own label, YSL with partner Pierre Bergé.

YOUR SAY: Share your thoughts on Yves Saint Laurent below…

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In the mag – June 9, 2008

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On sale Monday June 2, 2008

Nicole’s heartache: Keith’s love child scandal

The pregnant star is upset over rumours her husband has a secret daughter.

Brad and Ange: Wedding at last!

After three years together the couple make their union official with a wedding in France.

Simone Warne exclusive: ‘Shane wants me back’

Mum-of-three Simone Callahan tells how her ex-husband is begging to come back to her.

Kate Ritchie’s new man

One week after announcing she’s single again, the Aussie star moves on with her ex’s former rugby team-mate.

Sexy Sarah Jessica Parker: ‘I’m really a dag!’

The Sex And The City star talks about fashion, her figure and her two families.

Plus: Our interview with SJP’s co-star Cynthia Nixon.

I can’t have babies of my own so I make them

After years of trying to have a child, Eve Newsom decided to make a baby herself — piece by piece.

  • Jane Hall and Kym Valentine feud over Vince Colosimo

The love triangle gets nasty as the women wage war on the home and work fronts.

  • Julia Roberts’ family bliss

The star can’t hide her joy over being a mum.

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Nicole’s heartache: Keith’s love child scandal

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The pregnant star is upset over rumours her husband has a secret daughter.

Nicole Kidman is devastated over cruel claims that her husband Keith Urban is the father of a secret love child.

The heavily pregnant star, who should be enjoying her final trimester instead of deflecting hurtful allegations about her husband’s past, has been left distressed by claims allegedly made by two LA-based Australian women that their sister had a daughter with the singer in 1994. It’s claimed that the little girl was given up for adoption.

At the time the pregnancy was supposed to have taken place, Keith was with former fiancée Laura Sigler, who says the music star had affairs during their eight-year relationship.

“He had numerous flings while we were together,” Laura told the UK’s The Mail On Sunday.

“He is very attractive and when he talks the talk, he can be very seductive.”

For the full story, see this week’s Woman’s Day (on sale June 2).

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Brad and Ange finally wed

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After three years together the couple make their union official with a wedding in France.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have at last agreed to wed, with a private ceremony set to take place in the south of France any time now.

The globe-trotting stars have finally put down roots in the French countryside after finding their new $65 million home, and are at last free to wed after legalities in France and the US have cleared the way.

“It’s on!” a friend confirmed to respected UK magazine Grazia. “Brad and Ange are planning a small wedding to be held within weeks and that means having it in France. Ange is finally convinced that marrying Brad is the right thing to do and he thinks it is the perfect time to do it.”

As the wedding buzz grows, Today show entertainment reporter Richard Reid revealed that Angelina was spotted shopping for a wedding gown in the south of France.

Under French law a couple must reside in the country for more than 40 days before marrying. Brad and Ange arrived in Cannes on April 30, so the wedding could legally take place as early as June 9.

For the full story — including details on Brad and Ange’s flash new French abode — see this week’s Woman’s Day (on sale June 2).

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