Britney and ex-husband Kevin Federline were in court on May 6 for the latest hearing in their ongoing custody battle. Although it was not made clear how Britney’s visitation rights have increased, Kevin’s lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan said it was an “expansion of time”, and went on to praise the troubled singer’s progress. He said: “It is a cautious step, but a step forward nonetheless.

We are seeing signs of her progress and her consistency over time is something welcome by Kevin. The children are doing great.” Britney, who was accompanied by her family as she left the Los Angeles court, refused to comment on the ruling.

Britney Spears, below, was awarded extended visits with her sons after a child custody hearing in Los Angeles Superior County Court on Tuesday, The Associated Press reported. Mark Vincent Kaplan, a lawyer for Kevin Federline, her former husband, said the extended visits with the children, Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1, were “recognition of the progress that has been made, a progress of structure and stability.” Mr. Federline has had full custody of the children since January, when the police were summoned to Ms. Spears’s home, and she was taken by ambulance to a medical center after refusing to surrender the boys to Mr. Federline’s bodyguard. In a statement read by a court spokesman, Ms. Spears’s parents said, “We are so pleased with Britney’s progress and we are very appreciative of the court’s recognition of this progress.” A report on the new arrangement was scheduled for July 15.

The judge hearing a custody battle between pop singer Britney Spears and her ex-husband granted her more time with their two infant sons on Tuesday after she was praised for trying to get her personal life back under control.

The lawyer representing Spears' ex-husband Kevin Federline in the extended legal wrangling told reporters the judge had extended her visitation rights, without providing details.

"We all see indicators of progress by Ms. Spears," Federline's lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan, told reporters after the closed door hearing, which heard a report on Spears by a mental health expert.

"What was a seemingly daily state of extreme flux has been stabilized," Kaplan said.

Spears, 26, turned up at court on time, demurely dressed in a brown polka-dot dress and cream cardigan, and accompanied by her parents. It was a striking contrast to weekly court sessions of a few months ago when she failed to appear or left abruptly.

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Exactly three months have passed since Britney Spears slipped away from a psychiatric ward and promptly stirred up a paparazzi car chase, a scene that looked like the beginning of even more erratic behavior for the troubled pop star.

In the weeks that followed, Spears started acting out of character, all right: She laid low and avoided the cameras. She spent time with family members. She found work, and succeeded at it.

With that stability and momentum to build on, it would appear Spears' child-custody hearing Tuesday has the potential for a positive outcome as long as she gets it together to show up this time. All indications are that she will.

The troubled 26-year-old pop star, who has been under the conservatorship of her father since her one-week-early release from UCLA Medical Center, is expected to attend the custody status hearing in a downtown courthouse with her parents. Her ex-husband, Kevin Federline, will also attend, said his spokesman, Elliot Mintz.

Federline has had full custody of his two sons by Spears, 2-year-old Sean Preston and 1-year-old Jayden James, since January, when police were called to Spears' home after she refused to relinquish one of the boys to a Federline bodyguard. Spears was taken by ambulance to a hospital after the incident. Her visitation rights were suspended at the time, but have been gradually restored in recent months.

Tuesday's hearing will include discussion of a psychiatrist's evaluation of Spears, a person close to the case told The Associated Press. The person was not authorized to speak publicly about the case and requested anonymity.

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Britney Spears has dropped out of the race for the perfect pop star as word broke out this morning that the singer has lost a reported $61 million since February of last year.

The news of Spears’s financial ineptness comes in the midst of what many of her doe-eyed fans are calling her resurgence. However, it must be noted that a majority of those fans still believe Spears to be a virgin.

Spears’s campaign had already suffered setbacks after she lost custody of her kids and financial assets earlier this year. Lacking the veneer of familial and fiscal responsibility, Spears took to television to win back voters. Unfortunately, now it seems her cameo appearance on How I Met Your Mother was more of a last ditch effort to replenish funds than to regain voter confidence.

Spear’s camp is set to make an official announcement concerning the matter shortly. It can be expected that the announcement will go something like this: “Over the past year, Ms. Spears has endured great tragedy. She experienced the loss of her children, her fans, and her soul. She did her best to buy them all back, spending every penny her father would authorize. Unfortunately, it was not enough. Please tune in on May 10 to see Ms. Spears reprise her role on How I Met Your Mother; it may be your last chance to help a desperate woman.”

Britney Spears returned to her hometown of Kentwood, La. in a private jet on Friday, May 02, amidst reports that a baby shower is planned for her pregnant 17-year-old sister, Jamie Lynn, on Saturday.

Britney is accompanied by her father and co-conservator Jamie Spears.

Britney's mother, Lynne, who had spent the past few months caring for Britney, leaving Jamie Lynn alone, returned to Kentwood on April 24.

Britney's return home is likely to be emotionally charged. The 26-year-old pop star last visited Kentwood in early 2007, when her aunt died. Since then, she has struggled with her relationships, mental health and a child custody dispute complicated by her mental health.

The pregnancy of Jamie Lynn has also added to the challenges being faced by Britney and her family.

The next court date in Britney's custody dispute with K-Fed is on May 6.

When Britney Spears' father, Jamie, was named her co-conservator on February 1, he took over her financial affairs.  And there have been various reports that have estimated how much money Britney Spears has lost due to her wild behavior and some staggering amounts have been reported.  Many are wondering how much money her little sister Jamie Lynn Spears will lose due to her teen pregnancy but Jamie Lynn can't touch Britney's earning yet and she certainly can't touch her losses.

In Touch Weekly is reporting an unbelievable amount of money that has been lost by Jmaie Lynn Spears big sister Britney.  The magazine is reporting this week that after going through her books, Jamie must have learned just how much of a toll Britney’s crazy behavior, which started in February 2007 when she shaved her head, has had on her bank account - she's lost nearly $61 million, the magazine claims. "It's staggering how much money has been used up,” a family friend says.
The report notes that in addition to the enormous tab for legal bills, rehab and psychiatric care, Britney’s inability to work has cost her a fortune. “By not touring for her last album [Blackout], she lost out on $50 million,” estimates Robert Bianchi, an LA-based CPA who isn’t an accountant for Britney.

Jamie hired his own accountants to sort out the money mess and bring an end to the 26-year-old’s excessive spending. “It’s been quite a challenge getting things under control,” the insider says. Luckily, as Britney’s mental health improves, so does her bottom line. “She’s spending about a fifth of what she used to,” the insider adds.

She’ll be starring in sitcom How I Met Your Mother again…
Britney Spears is to appear in a popular US sitcom for a second time playing a receptionist.

The makers of How I Met Your Mother have invited the popstar back after her previous appearance drew 3 million extra viewers.

Spears- whose estate is still under the control of her father- is expected to record the new episode this week before it airs May 12.
The announcemnet comes as a surprise as actor in the show Neil Patrick Harris told us earlier this month: “She's not going to be a regular on our show… She's not an actress.”

Spears had a mental breakdown early in 2008 and was admitted to hospital. Hopefully news that she is working again means she is getting back on track…

Owning a pet is awesome. Owning two pets is awesome. Owning three pets, while mabye a lot of responisbilty, it’s still very awesome…if you’ve got what it takes. But when celebs start owning more than they can handle what kind of message does it send to the rest of the world?

Author Karen Dawn poses that question in Thanking the Monkey: Rethinking the Way We Treat Animals, and in it accuses notorious party pals Britney Spears and Paris Hilton of being awful role models to young pet owners.

Dawn tells the New York Post, “We’ve already seen Paris go through dogs faster than mojitos, and I bet nobody warned Britney that California might soon force drivers to keep dogs safely restrained in vehicles - like babies. An impulse purchase of a companion for the next 15 years? … Nobody expects them to have the dogs much longer than 15 months.”

At one point Spears had a small collection of chihuahuas, and well, Ecorazzi has reported numerous times on Paris’ personsal farm.

The verdict is in on the Britster's parenting know-how.

But we're just going to have to wait a little bit longer to find out if she gets a thumbs up or thumbs down from the court.

E! News has confirmed that a child custody evaluation report detailing the pros and cons of Britney Spears' mothering has been completed.

The report, commissioned by a Los Angeles family court in Spears' ongoing battle with ex-hubby Kevin Federline over young sons Sean Preston and Jayden James, was filed Friday by Dr. Jane Shatz.

Lawyers for both Spears and Federline declined to comment on the substance of the document.

While no specific positives or criticisms have been made public, the report's findings are expected to get a full airing at the next hearing in the case, set for May 6, when attorneys are planning to debate merits of a modified custody arrangement.

Spears, who has typically avoided courtroom showdowns in the matter, may actually show this time to defend herself.