Natalie Portman will miss Oscars
Alison Maxwell , USA TODAY

If Natalie Portman wins the best actress award at the Oscars tonight, she won't be there to accept it.

Portman, 35, released a statement Saturday saying she'd miss the event because of her pregnancy.

"Due to my pregnancy, I am unable to attend the Independent Spirit Awards and the Academy Awards. I feel so lucky to be honored among my fellow nominees and wish them the most beautiful of weekends," she said in the statement released by her rep Keleigh Thomas Morgan.

Oscars 2017: Predictions on who will win, who should win
Portman is expecting her second child with husband Benjamin Millepied, a French dancer and choreographer. The couple, who met while filming Black Swan, are parents to 5-year-old Aleph.

Portman is nominated for best actress for her role in Jackie. In the film she plays Jackie Kennedy as she deals with the immediate aftermath of the assassination of her husband, President John F. Kennedy. This awards season Portman won the Critics' Choice Award for her performance and was nominated for a Golden Globe, Screen Actors' Guild Award, Independent Spirit Award and a BAFTA.

Review: Natalie Portman amazes as 'Jackie' in spectacular signature role
A three-time Oscar nominee, Portman won in 2011 for her role as a mentally-ill ballerina in Black Swan.

La La Land's Emma Stone is widely predicted to win best actress Sunday.

Tuna & Tomato Soup

Ingredients

Water400ml
Tomato200g
Tuna, canned in water1 standard can (140g)
Balsamic Vinegar2 tsp (10ml)
Olive Oil2 tsp (8g)
Basil2 tbsp, chopped (5g)
Garlic1 clove (3g)
Paprika½ tsp (1g)
Chilli Powder½ tsp (1g)
Salt1pinch
Pepper, Black1 pinch (0g)


Preparation

1. Take half the tomato's and cut into pieces (if using cherry tomato then just half them) and set aside.

2. Add the rest of the tomato with the spices, olive oil and a little of the water to a blender. Blend for about three to four seconds.

3. Add all ingredients to a pan, with the chopped basil and cook for about 20 minutes (do not allow to boil).

4. Serve with more basil on top, or with some warm bread if you need the carbs after a cold day on the trails.

Smoked Maple Syrup Bacon

Ingredients

1 1/2 gallons water
2 tablespoons sodium nitrate (saltpeter)
1 cup sugar-based curing mixture (such as Morton® Tender Quick®)
2 cups coarse salt
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 (14 pound) whole pork belly maple, apple, or cherry wood chips for smoking

Pour water, sodium nitrate, curing salt, coarse salt, brown sugar, and maple syrup into a large kettle. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook for 10 to 15 minutes until everything is well dissolved. Pour brine into a 5 gallon plastic bucket and cool to room temperature, 6 to 8 hours.
Leaving the skin on the pork belly, cut against the grain into 4 to 6 slabs so they fit inside the bucket, and inside your smoker. Place into the bucket of brine, and weigh down with a glass or ceramic dish to keep the pork submerged. Cover and refrigerate for 5 to 7 days, rearranging the pork in the brine daily.
On smoking day, remove pork from the brine and rinse well under cold running water, rubbing to remove all external brine. Pat pieces dry and place onto smoker racks. Allow pork pieces to stand, preferably underneath a fan, until the surface of the meat becomes somewhat dried and notably glossy, 1 to 3 hours depending on air circulation.
Smoke pork belly slabs using wood of your choice at a temperature of 90 to 110 degrees F (32 to 43 degrees C) for 8 to 12 hours. Remove rind before slicing.

Why are so many kids today Allergic to everything

it is a lot of things. Partly kids aren't as active as they once were. I think that goes without saying. When I was a kid I had allergies to airborne stuff but then again, I was always knee deep in dirt, running around in fields of hay, looking for animals to catch...etc. I was a very natrualistic child, even though I grew up overweight...

I eventually stopped taking my medicine and rarely take any medicine and I have no allergies. Not to animals, not to airborne, not to food, not even to poison ivy...

It is my belief that the more we are exposed to something, the more accustomed our bodies get to it. Hell, if a human mind can be conditioned to exposure to something in a lifetime, why can't a human body? Our bodies sometimes seem to have a mind of their own.

But back on topic, the more kids stay inside the less the are exposed to the natural world, and it's potential "allergens" so...when a kid finally does go out and play and they come home sneezing...the stupid parents (not you) react "OMG ALLERGIES!!!" and take the kid to the doctor.

This is where a major part of it comes in. The pharmecuitical compaines. They want you to believe in allergies. They want you to believe when you are born with an allergy...your ******. Why? MONEY!

It is the same thing with mental health. Notice how many "Depression" commercials you see on the TV? Notice how they are all Women in those commercials?

I'm a guy, I got depressed once. They put me on meds. People thought I was weird.

I stopped taking them. Why? they were incredibly expensive, the doctors INSISTED that I take them for at least 6 months before they can really "start working" and all depression medication MAKES YOU REALLY FAT...

Imagine that? A depression medication targeted towards women that has a strange side effect of making them fat...see a cycle there?

The point is, most kids could build natural immunities to most potentially allergic things, but many do not go outside enough to do so, so when they do, they get overloaded, which puts many on medication...


as far as the kid with the peanut allergy...well...in some rare cases people have biological idiosyncrasies (allergies) where their bodies can't metabolize certain things. Like peanut butter, shellfish, and diet soda. Phenylketonuria is the inability to metabolize compounds like phenylalanine found in artificial sweeteners, like the ever popular aspartame (which also makes you fat by slowing your metabolism down) and so if you read on every diet soda can, it says Phenylketonurics (those are people with Phenylketonuria) : Contains Phenylalanine

so for specific allergies, it is a just a natural phenomena, just something that happens every once in a while...

for basic, general allergies...its a scam from the pharmecuitical companies....

Percentage of kids allergic to PCV vaccine

Life-threatening allergic reactions from vaccines are very rare. If they do occur, it would be within a few minutes to a few hours after the vaccination.
What if there is a severe reaction? What should I look for?
Any unusual condition, such as a high fever or behavior changes. Signs of a severe allergic reaction
can include difficulty breathing, hoarseness or wheezing, hives, paleness, weakness, a fast heart
beat or dizziness.
What should I do?
• Call a doctor, or get the person to a doctor right away.<"

The information here from the drug company and the government simply says that an allergic reaction is "very rare".

">Children should not get PCV13 if they had a serious (life-threatening) allergic reaction to a previous dose of this vaccine, to PCV7, or to any vaccine containing diphtheria toxoid (for example, DTaP). Children who are known to have a severe allergy to any component of PCV7 or PCV13 should not get PCV13. Tell your health care provider if your child has any severe allergies.
Children with minor illnesses, such as a cold, may be vaccinated. But children who are moderately or severely ill should usually wait until they recover before getting the vaccine.<"

http://children.webmd.com/vaccines/pneum...
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/side...
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/dow...

Kids flu like symptoms be

Probably some sort of viral infection that is doing the rounds. The term "flu" is very non-specific & often used by people when they mean some sort of viral upper respiratory tract infections.

Real flu (influenza to give it the proper name) is a very serious illness & would be rare in children. I'm in my mid 40s & have only had flu twice in my life & I was very ill both times.

Kids do go off their food & lie around when they are ill. I'm presuming your 22 month old & 3 year old are better now & your 5 year old has just gone down with the same symptoms? All this points to some sort of contagious viral infection going around that should clear up without assistance (antibiotics do not work against viruses) but if you are concerned & her temperature is high then speak to your family doctor for advice.

You can give Tylenol (paracetamol) at the appropriate dose for her age which will help lower her temperature & ease any aches & pains.

Youre pregnant how do you tell your mom

Coming from a mom whose 18 year old dropout daughter told me that she was pregnant (actually I told her- she hadn't figured it out yet):
Moms love their daughters even when they screw up. She will help you figure out a plan whether you keep the baby or give it up. She will advise you, and she might want to make a decision for you- but you will have to stand up for yourself and remind her that you are 23 and that you will have to live with your decision for the rest of your life, so you have to decide for yourself. She will understand. Moms do. She will give you tons of advice- some wanted, some not. Just remember that she knows what she knows from her experiences- not necessarily from yours. Be grateful for her advice and then take it or leave it. But always know that she loves you. Moms do. Congratulations and good luck!