Jennifer Lopez used to bug me, but I’m easily influenced by my friends and now that Kaiser says that Lopez is ok, I’m sort of warming to her too. Lopez has been able to mask her diva side while she’s promoting the hell out of this artificial insemination film, and I have to admit that I find her acting tolerable. She’s believable in these romantic comedies and it’s not like she’s Madonna trying to branch out into a field that she’s completely unsuitable for. In fact I think she should hang up the lipsyncing and the catsuits and focus on acting full time. It’s the singing that seems like a stretch for her now.

In a new interview with USA Today, they take pains to portray Lopez as this approachable down-to-earth celebrity, and maybe she is now – on a good day. She gives some decent quotes about how she’s trying to create a normal life for her twins by being there for them and making sure they’re not too exposed to the paparazzi:

“We’re not ones to parade the kids around. Marc is really adamant about that. He’s really protective. We don’t want them getting used to that life,” says Lopez. “It’s a weird existence. I used to be of the attitude, many years ago, that I would just live my life and not care. … But at the same time, you shouldn’t just throw caution to the wind, because there are consequences to that lifestyle.”

Lopez and Anthony have been out more in the past few months, ringing in the new year in New York, going to the Oscars and attending the Super Bowl. Does she feel guilty about being away from the kids?

“Oh my God, yeah. That’s something people never tell you. In the beginning, before you start working again, you just feel guilty if you go out for an hour and have lunch. You go out and you’re like, ‘I gotta get back to the babies.’ There’s a tremendous amount of guilt that they need you and they want you to be there,” says Lopez. “They miss you and they wonder where you are, and as they get older, it only increases.”

Her Plan boyfriend, Alex O’Loughlin, says Lopez is “super-cool” and “very hands-on as a mum.” He shoots down any notion that she’s demanding or standoffish.

“The thing that surprised me the most was how grounded she was. … She’s approachable and she’s present. She gave great wrap gifts. She gave me a beautiful, enormous basket of the most beautiful fruits and cheeses and spreads. This thing lasted me six months. She’s really courteous like that.”

Indeed. As Lopez gets up from her seat and heads to the exit, she scans the dining area for that Kuwaiti fan to whom she promised a photo. Perhaps that’s the reason for her enduring celebrity. Where other celebs might flee, Lopez stops and smiles and poses like the pro she is.

[From USA Today]

The article also discusses Lopez’s career and the sort of mediocre success she’s had in both films lately and in music. She’s going to press on with her music, though, and explains her split with label Sony as due to the fact that her former manager, Tommy Mottola, left the company.

As for Lopez’s claim that she doesn’t parade the twins around, that seems to be true. We haven’t seen many pictures of the twins and she’s not staging constant photo ops with them like we see with Suri, for instance. (I’m not even opening up the can of worms that is the Jolie-Pitt clan. I just think the paparazzi follow them wherever they go, although they do seem to be hanging out on the balcony more than necessary.) The thing is, Lopez is conveniently forgetting the massive photo spread she did with the twins in People Magazine, for which she posed in couture and was paid a reported $6 million. Unlike the Jolie-Pitt baby photos, none of that money went to charity, at least that we know of. That’s “parading” in my book, and it still counts even if it was a couple of years ago.

In related news, Lopez is on the cover of US Weekly showing a lot of skin and talking about how she lost the baby weight. The tabloids love to go with the weight loss angle to move copies. US Weekly has some quotes online, and she said she was “fat” after the twins were born but that she’s now back to her pre-baby weight. “Before I was always able to fit into sample-size clothes from designers, and now they have to take them out just a bit… It’s no big deal.”

Oh and the premiere of The Back Up Plan was last night in LA. Lopez wore a tight silver asymmetric wrap dress. The dress is pretty, but the cut is not flattering and there’s something reptilian about the print running down her arm. Also, when she is going to quit posing with her mouth open like that?

Photo credit: WENN.com US Weekly cover via Cover Awards