Sheryl crow sons levi and wyatt, Sheryl Crow"s got a new album, she's touring the country, and, oh yeah, she's now the mom of two supercool little guys. Writer Laurie Sandell was one of the very first to meet baby Levi. Now it's your turn!
Driving up the road to Sheryl Crow's home, a sprawling, 154-acre ranch on the outskirts of Nashville, it's easy to see why the singer would trade her Los Angeles life for this. The landscape is dotted with barns, cows graze peacefully in the fields, and the only sound is the rustle of leaves. Sheryl, 48, bought the house in 2008 and spent the next few years knocking down walls, rummaging through thrift stores, and putting her unique stamp in every corner, as I get to see firsthand once I've arrived. The wall of one bathroom is covered with antique photos in tiny gilded frames, a giant colorful fish tank with a counter on top doubles as a kitchen island, and a collection of vintage birdcages dress up a porch. Later, on a tour of the stables, I see the saloon Sheryl has built, complete with cold beer on tap, swinging Western doors, and a polished wooden bar she found on eBay. She likes to put her boots up here, after riding her horses with girlfriends.
In the kitchen I am greeted by a nanny and 3-year-old Wyatt, who is shaking a pair of maracas. "Dance!" he cries, giggling and grabbing my hand. Fifteen minutes later, the singer strolls into the room. Dressed in a tank top and jeans, her hair long and loose, she apologizes for the chaos and saves a maraca Wyatt is smashing against the floor. "I actually use this one!" she says with a laugh. I'm still taking in the scene when Sheryl asks, "Can you keep a secret?" Smiling, she points to a wicker bassinet on top of a marble counter. I look inside and see a tiny, swaddled infant; it is her 3-week-old son, Levi James.
"Shock" would be a major understatement to describe my reaction; after all, she hasn't yet announced her adoption of a second son. But the proud new mama can't wait to show him off, so she's giving REDBOOK the very first glimpse.
It's great to hear Sheryl's good news. Given her long history of public service, her down-to-earth persona, and all the iPod happiness she's provided over the years, Sheryl is the kind of person you root for. Yes, she's sold more than 35 million records, won nine Grammy awards, and performed with everyone from the Rolling Stones to Michael Jackson to Luciano Pavarotti. But she's also gutted out some tough moments: Four years ago, Sheryl went through a public and painful breakup with multiple Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. Immediately afterward, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Curling up on a couch in her living room among her favorite guitars — next to mother-son matching drum sets! — Sheryl talks with surprising candor about her romantic struggles, her new album, 100 Miles From Memphis, and, of course, the newest guy in her life, little Levi.
Okay, guess I'm throwing out my original list of questions. You have a new baby!
[Laughs] Yeah, it's been in the works for a while. I was hoping to adopt a child when Wyatt was 2; a lot of the adoptions fell through. But things always work out perfectly. They just do. Generally, when you let go of your vision of how something is supposed to be, the universe hands you exactly what you need. And for Wyatt, 2 would have been too early. It would have been difficult for his self-esteem. But 3 is perfect because he's very well established now in who he is. He helps me with Levi's baths, with the burping. He helps me hold the bottle. He's very involved.
Do adoptions commonly fall through?
Absolutely. There's always that situation where the mom cannot live with the idea of giving the baby up. Generally, all the big choices are made in favor of the biological mother.
Were you in touch with Levi's mom throughout her pregnancy?
No, it was a closed adoption. So we're starting fresh, and there's something kind of great about that. For me, I have such a strong desire to make sure this baby will always know he was terribly wanted.
What did you do on the day Levi arrived — did you just sit around and look at him?
We were in a hotel in Mississippi, where he was born. Wyatt was with me. I wanted to make sure we were in a neutral area when he met the baby so his world wasn't rocked. Also, Levi brought lots of cool things for Wyatt, little toys and presents. How he knew what Wyatt liked... I guess he had a little help. [Laughs] But Wyatt is such a social little bug, I think it will be fun for him to have a partner in crime to pal around with. I'm really close to my family, really close to my siblings, so I love that Wyatt will have his brother. I don't know if there will be more, but we'll see.
Were you open to having a boy or a girl?
I didn't care what color, race, gender, whatever; didn't care.
Do you feel a lot more prepared the second time around?
I used to be a schoolteacher, and I've been around kids my whole life, so there were no big surprises. When Wyatt was first born, I had a really wonderful baby nurse who told me you don't adapt your life to your children's lives; you adapt your children's lives to yours. Wyatt came on the road with me when he was 3 months old; he's seen all the zoos and aquariums around the world. So my life hasn't really changed that much, it's just been enhanced.
How did you get to the point where you were ready to have a child?
I always knew I wanted to be a mom; it was just a matter of when. I'd just been through a pretty painful breakup where there were kids involved, and I'd also been through breast cancer treatment. After that, I felt an acute sense of urgency about how I wanted my life to feel. Since I wasn't married, my idea of what the picture was supposed to look like no longer served any great purpose. So I started the process of doing an adoption "home study," which means you fill out paperwork, get certified in infant CPR. The idea was, if the opportunity came, I would be ready.
Driving up the road to Sheryl Crow's home, a sprawling, 154-acre ranch on the outskirts of Nashville, it's easy to see why the singer would trade her Los Angeles life for this. The landscape is dotted with barns, cows graze peacefully in the fields, and the only sound is the rustle of leaves. Sheryl, 48, bought the house in 2008 and spent the next few years knocking down walls, rummaging through thrift stores, and putting her unique stamp in every corner, as I get to see firsthand once I've arrived. The wall of one bathroom is covered with antique photos in tiny gilded frames, a giant colorful fish tank with a counter on top doubles as a kitchen island, and a collection of vintage birdcages dress up a porch. Later, on a tour of the stables, I see the saloon Sheryl has built, complete with cold beer on tap, swinging Western doors, and a polished wooden bar she found on eBay. She likes to put her boots up here, after riding her horses with girlfriends.
In the kitchen I am greeted by a nanny and 3-year-old Wyatt, who is shaking a pair of maracas. "Dance!" he cries, giggling and grabbing my hand. Fifteen minutes later, the singer strolls into the room. Dressed in a tank top and jeans, her hair long and loose, she apologizes for the chaos and saves a maraca Wyatt is smashing against the floor. "I actually use this one!" she says with a laugh. I'm still taking in the scene when Sheryl asks, "Can you keep a secret?" Smiling, she points to a wicker bassinet on top of a marble counter. I look inside and see a tiny, swaddled infant; it is her 3-week-old son, Levi James.
"Shock" would be a major understatement to describe my reaction; after all, she hasn't yet announced her adoption of a second son. But the proud new mama can't wait to show him off, so she's giving REDBOOK the very first glimpse.
It's great to hear Sheryl's good news. Given her long history of public service, her down-to-earth persona, and all the iPod happiness she's provided over the years, Sheryl is the kind of person you root for. Yes, she's sold more than 35 million records, won nine Grammy awards, and performed with everyone from the Rolling Stones to Michael Jackson to Luciano Pavarotti. But she's also gutted out some tough moments: Four years ago, Sheryl went through a public and painful breakup with multiple Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. Immediately afterward, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Curling up on a couch in her living room among her favorite guitars — next to mother-son matching drum sets! — Sheryl talks with surprising candor about her romantic struggles, her new album, 100 Miles From Memphis, and, of course, the newest guy in her life, little Levi.
Okay, guess I'm throwing out my original list of questions. You have a new baby!
[Laughs] Yeah, it's been in the works for a while. I was hoping to adopt a child when Wyatt was 2; a lot of the adoptions fell through. But things always work out perfectly. They just do. Generally, when you let go of your vision of how something is supposed to be, the universe hands you exactly what you need. And for Wyatt, 2 would have been too early. It would have been difficult for his self-esteem. But 3 is perfect because he's very well established now in who he is. He helps me with Levi's baths, with the burping. He helps me hold the bottle. He's very involved.
Do adoptions commonly fall through?
Absolutely. There's always that situation where the mom cannot live with the idea of giving the baby up. Generally, all the big choices are made in favor of the biological mother.
Were you in touch with Levi's mom throughout her pregnancy?
No, it was a closed adoption. So we're starting fresh, and there's something kind of great about that. For me, I have such a strong desire to make sure this baby will always know he was terribly wanted.
What did you do on the day Levi arrived — did you just sit around and look at him?
We were in a hotel in Mississippi, where he was born. Wyatt was with me. I wanted to make sure we were in a neutral area when he met the baby so his world wasn't rocked. Also, Levi brought lots of cool things for Wyatt, little toys and presents. How he knew what Wyatt liked... I guess he had a little help. [Laughs] But Wyatt is such a social little bug, I think it will be fun for him to have a partner in crime to pal around with. I'm really close to my family, really close to my siblings, so I love that Wyatt will have his brother. I don't know if there will be more, but we'll see.
Were you open to having a boy or a girl?
I didn't care what color, race, gender, whatever; didn't care.
Do you feel a lot more prepared the second time around?
I used to be a schoolteacher, and I've been around kids my whole life, so there were no big surprises. When Wyatt was first born, I had a really wonderful baby nurse who told me you don't adapt your life to your children's lives; you adapt your children's lives to yours. Wyatt came on the road with me when he was 3 months old; he's seen all the zoos and aquariums around the world. So my life hasn't really changed that much, it's just been enhanced.
How did you get to the point where you were ready to have a child?
I always knew I wanted to be a mom; it was just a matter of when. I'd just been through a pretty painful breakup where there were kids involved, and I'd also been through breast cancer treatment. After that, I felt an acute sense of urgency about how I wanted my life to feel. Since I wasn't married, my idea of what the picture was supposed to look like no longer served any great purpose. So I started the process of doing an adoption "home study," which means you fill out paperwork, get certified in infant CPR. The idea was, if the opportunity came, I would be ready.
