If Mercy James looks a little bewildered, it’s simply because she’s come such a long way. And not just in miles. The little girl who started life in a spartan African orphanage found herself checking into the sumptuous splendour of the Ritz when Madonna brought the family to Paris. Its five-star luxury could offer no starker contrast to the life Mercy left behind in poverty-stricken Malawi when Madonna won her battle to adopt her last month. And her wide-eyed wonder as she arrived at the historic hotel with the 50-year-old singer showed she is still adjusting to a way of life her friends back home would never even dream of. Clutching her new mother’s hand, four-year-old Mercy insisted on stopping in the street as they got out of their car in front of the hotel. Still holding tight for reassurance, she twisted around to take in the beauty of the Paris street and the imposing facade of the Ritz. In a pale pink hooded jacket, jeans and matching pink pumps,she looked like any little girl dressed by a fashion-conscious mother … Mercy is going to have to get used to travelling – albeit in luxurious style – as her pop star mother shows no signs of slowing down her career. Also in the travelling party were Madonna’s adopted son David, 3, and daughter Lourdes, 13. Only son Rocco, who yesterday attended the Harry Potter premiere in London, could not be seen. Meanwhile Madonna is said to be in talks with Simon Cowell about performing on this year’s series of The X Factor. A show source told The Sun: ‘The last series proved anything is possible when Beyonce performed with Alex – the final got 15 million viewers and that is enough to entice the biggest stars onto our stage. “This year is going to be bigger than ever – we are planning to get the best names in music. Madonna would be so sensational.”

Aww … Mercy in pink — so cute!! Yes, I believe that Rocco was not with the rest of his sibs because he stayed back in London for a bit of extra time with his father Guy Ritchie. It must really be a huge shock to the system for little Mercy to go from an orphanage to the most luxurious places in the world. She is absolutely a beautiful child. Madonna is so lucky to be her mother.

[Photo credit: Splash News; Source]

It is plainly obvs that Jesus has fully ingrained himself into Madonna’s very small inner circle. If you are allowed to hang out with her children, you’re in like Flynn. It’s nice that Maddy was able to spend some downtime chillin’ with her family this weekend as her adoption case goes before the Malawian Supreme Court tomorrow. She is not required to be there but I wouldn’t be surprised if she ended up going anyway. I imagine she is very stressed but I’m still hoping for the best for her. Fingers crossed.

[Photo credit: Splash News]

Madonna took a nasty spill while horseback riding in the Hamptons this afternoon. The 50-year-old pop icon, decked out in full riding gear and helmet, was doing jumps at famed photographer Steven Klein’s horse farm in Bridgehampton when she fell around 4:20 p.m. After the fall, about 10 people, including 22-year-old boy toy Jesus Luz, nervously gathered around her before emergency workers arrived. She was carried into an ambulance on a backboard and rushed to Southampton Hospital with Klein by her side. A police source said the injuries did not appear serious and she was taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons. The Material Mom’s day began when she and her sons Rocco, 8, and David, 3, took a helicopter from Manhattan and landed at East Hampton airport around 2p.m. She then went straight to Klein’s compound for what should have been a relaxing day in the sun. Some of her luggage was taken to actress and good friend’s Gwyneth Paltrow nearby home. This isn’t the Pop Queen’s first riding mishap. In 2005, she broke several bones — including three cracked ribs, a broken collarbone and a broken hand — when she lost her balance riding on her London complex on her 47th birthday. Last fall, when her divorce to Guy Ritchie was announced, reports speculated her marriage ended after he coldly reacted to that slip. “If you can pinpoint an exact event or incident which spelled the death knell for them as a couple, Madonna’s horse-riding accident was it,” a close family friend told London’s Sun.

Madonna’s manager Guy Oseary immediately posted a tweet (message) to his official Twitter profile blaming the incident on the paparazzi, he wrote:

Madonna’s rep Liz Rosenberg echoes the blame on the paparazzi and states that Madonna will be hospitalized and kept under observation to ensure that she is OK. I hope for Madonna’s sake that nothing was broken and that she is uninjured. Horse accidents like this can be deadly. I’m sure that all of our thoughts and prayers are with her for a speedy recovery.

[Source, Source]

I gotta say … I was very bummed to see that Madonna showed up at the VF party sans her much younger beau Jesus Luz. I was really hoping she and her boytoy would walk the red carpet together and set the gossips afire with her brazen brash & sassiness. Boo. On the plus side, tho, Jennifer Aniston was happy to cozy up to her beau John Mayer for the cameras … tho, the couple did not make a scene on the red carpet in full view of all of the cameras … they saved their canoodling for inside the shindig. While many folks make the rounds on Oscar night and hit up as many parties as they can, the folks who get an invite to the Vanity Fair party make sure to make an appearance and some end up staying all night long … it’s that good. I’m sure a great time was had by all … now that we’ve got the 81st Academy Awards in the can, I’m sure many folks were rearin’ to get to the celebratin’ (or the drownin’ ones sorrows in free booze … like Brangelina). See, there really ain’t no bizznazz like showbiz.

[Photo credit: Wireimage]

Madonna celebrated her last Sticky & Sweet Tour concert last night in São Paulo at a private party thrown by art director Giovanni Bianco at a club in Pinheiros. She went to the party not only accessorized by her Chanel resort heels, but by 21-year-old Brazilian model Jesus Luz, who she met during her W magazine photo shoot in Rio last week. According to national tabloids, Madonna made out and danced with Jesus during the three hours she spent at the party. She left the club at 5:30 am, and he left in the car right behind her.

Both cars pulled over at the Hyatt where she is staying. Madonna is now officially a Brazilianizer.

LOL. You know, Madonna really does have a type of guy she lurves, don’t she? Except for her soon-to-be ex-husband, most of her romantic involvements have been with Latin-lookin’ dudes (including A-Rod). If these reports are true, it’s not hard to believe that Maddy would be all in this guy’s biz. He is, after all, supermegahawt. After the jump, check out one of Jesus’s modeling pics for reference …

Oh yeah, I don’t blame Madonna for wantin’ a piece of this manhunk. Now that she’s practically single again, I think it’s OK for Maddy to sow her oats again … at 50 years old, she still has a couple of decades left to mack on the youngin’s yet. Do your thang, Madonna … I can’t be mad atcha.

[Photo credit: INFdaily, Source; Source]

Interestingly, New York Yankees player Álex Rodriguez was nowhere to be seen on this particular night. Since A-Rod has been seen with his “just friend” Madonna pretty much every day since Thanksgiving, I’m surprised that he didn’t make the trek down to South America to be with her this weekend … eh, mebbe he finally had to go back to the NY Yankees … or mebbe to his family. In any event, Madonna’s children — Lourdes, Rocco and David Banda — did make the trip down to South America with her and were spotted enjoying a fun afternoon together by (and in) the pool at their hotel:

HMMM … I guess it’s Maddy’s weekend with the kids. Looks like they are having a blast tho, I doubt they miss the cold London weather right about now. It’s unclear if the kids will be staying with Madonna in South America as her tour rolls on (she heads to Chile and Brazil after her dates in Argentina) but I suspect they will all be back home in NYC by Xmastime.

[Photo credit: Splash News]

It’s curious that Guy Ritchie wasn’t present at this family outing but he rarely accompanies his wife and children to the US whenever she travels Stateside so … he must’ve been bizzy with work obligations or something. Anyways, these are really cute pics … it’s always great to see Maddy out with the kiddies. I’m not entirely sure but I believe that this was David Banda’s first baseball game and it looks like he had a great time. You will note that Lola is not wearing the lip ring that she was sporting at a recent Avril Lavigne concert which prolly means it was a fake. Little Rocco is just as cute as can be. He is the perfect miniature version of his father so at least Guy Ritchie could be at the game in spirit. It looks like family fun was had by all!

[Photo credit: Splash News]