Madonna rang in the big 5-0 with husband Guy Ritchie by her side at London hotspot Volstead on Saturday.

The pair — who recently denied rumors they plan to adopt another child from Malawi — were all smiles for the celebration.

The material girl glowed in a sheer black blouse with super blonde hair and tons of bling around her neck. Ritchie, 39, dressed dapper in a three-piece suit and stayed close to his wife of seven years.

Their behavior is a far cry from tense outings earlier this summer, when the couple were dodged by split rumors following Us Weekly’s exclusive report that Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez had been making late night visits to Madonna’s NYC apartment.

In July, the Times of London confirmed that Madonna had consulted the same high-profile divorce attorney who worked with Paul McCartney. Us confirmed that Ritchie had sought legal advice from Forsters law firm in London.

See photos of Madonna’s most scandalous moments.

So what did Ritchie get his wife for her birthday?

News of the World reported that he commissioned graffiti artist Banksy (Brad Pitt is a big fan) to design a portrait of Madonna for $900,000.

See photos of Madonna’s worst outfits ever.

On Sunday, Madonna capped off her birthday weekend by hitting a gym in London.

Her Sticky & Sweet tour (following the release of her eleventh studio album, Hard Candy) kicks off in Wales on August 23.

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Madonna wants the media to leave Britney Spears alone. “They need to step off,” she told the Yo on E! satellite radio show. “For real… Let’s go save her.”

Madonna, 49, said her daughter Lourdes, 11, feels the same way.

“She knows Britney, but she doesn’t really watch TV or read gossip stuff,” the pop queen said in the interview. “I think she sort of gets the drift of what’s going on, and I think she feels very protective of Britney.”

Madonna, who also has a son, Rocco, 7, with hubby Guy Ritchie, are raising a Malawian boy, David, who they hope to adopt. “He’s the life of the party,” she said of David, who she brought home from Africa in 2006. “He loves music, he’s an amazing dancer… he’s a character.”

When it comes to caring for David, Madonna says it’s no different from raising her biological children. “I thought it was gonna be, but it feels the same to tell you the truth.”

And as for those rumors that her marriage is on the rocks? Madonna says, “It is ridiculous… I don’t pay much attention to it.”

Madonna, whose new album Hard Candy, arrives April 29, told Yo on E! that she plans to spend the summer in New York, and that she might kick off a tour this fall.

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Madonna is planning to adopt a baby girl from Malawi despite the fact that her son David’s adoption has not yet been finalized, according to London’s Daily Mail.

Officials in Malawi reportedly confirmed they had given Madonna permission to adopt a 13-month-old girl named Mercy from the Kondanani Orphan Care Centre. She could bring the child to her London home as soon as April next year.

In the meantime, a Malawi welfare official will be visiting Madonna’s home next week to assess her suitability as an adoptive parent for David.

Source: Star

Star Magazine

Madonna has caught a break in the saga hindering her and husband Guy Ritchie’s successful adoption of young David Banda – a Malawi social worker was finally given permission to visit and assess the family.

“There has been a change of mind by my government minister,” Penstone Kilembe, the director of Malawi’s Child Welfare Services, said. “I am expected to spend two weeks.”

Previously Kilembe had been refused an exit visa to make the trip, and had warned that this might jeopardize the Ritchies’ efforts to adopt David.

Madonna is “looking forward to this so her adoption process is not hampered,” Kilembe told Reuters Tuesday.

The matter was a “misunderstanding” which “has now been resolved,” he said, adding that Madonna has been informed of the proposed visitation dates.

Madonna, 49, and Ritchie, 38, were granted temporary custody to take David to London after his biological father, Yohane Banda, had placed the boy in an orphanage following the death of his wife.

Malawi’s High Court will rely on Kilembe’s testimony to rule on whether the singer is properly caring for and should get final approval to adopt the child.

Source: People

Madonna’s adoption of one-year-old Malawian baby David Banda hit another roadblock after an official assigned to the case was refused permission to travel to Britain.

The 48-year-old singer was granted an 18-month interim custody order allowing her to take Banda home to live with her last October.

In the meantime, social worker Penstone Kilembe was ordered to monitor the child’s welfare in two trips to Madonna’s home in London and report to the High Court of Malawi.

However, he tells Reuters that the Malawian government stopped the visits, compromising the adoption. “The whole adoption process may crumble and David [may be] sent back to his village,” says Kilembe, who is director of Malawi’s child welfare services.

But the Malawi News reported that Kate Kainja, the country’s minister of women and child development, had accused Kilembe of obtaining a plane ticket and money from Madonna without government approval.

“We feel Mr Kilembe personalized the whole issue when other people can go [and monitor the family],” she tells the newspaper. (He denied the accusations.)

Continued Here: US Magazine