Kate Hudson and Nicole Richie are going to have an additional reason for celebrating the holidays this year. Insiders tell BettyConfidential that both stars are planning to get married at the end of December. Kate and New York Yankee star Alex Rodriguez are planning a Christmas wedding in Aspen, while Nicole and her baby daddy, Joel Madden, are preparing their nuptials for Christmas Eve.

“Kate’s wedding is going to be a big event and she and Alex want their kids to be a part of the ceremony,’’ a pal tells BettyConfidential. A-Rod has two daughters, Natasha, who turns 5 on Nov 18 and Ella, 18 months, from his previous marriage to Cynthia Scurtis, and Kate, who is divorced from rocker Chris Robinson, has a son, Ryder, 5.

“Kate and Alex are so in love that they are floating on cloud nine. A-Rod’s ex, Cynthia, is a psychology graduate and he loves that Kate is a famous actress and in the ‘business.’ She can relate more to his lifestyle.” And, although Kate married Chris in Aspen back in 2000, pals say she’s not superstitious about tying the knot with A-Rod in the same location. “Kate practically grew up in Aspen, so it would be like telling someone they shouldn’t get re-married in their hometown,” a friend says.

Meanwhile, Alex is telling Kate she can plan whatever type of wedding she wants. So she’s telling friends to expect a big celebration!



Kate, 30, and Alex, 33, first met in November 2008 at a party, and have been inseparable ever since. Family, friends and a number of Yankee players and staff will be invited to the nuptials. In fact, A-Rod and Kate are already neighbors with pitcher Andy Petite and manager Joe Girardi in Purchase, New York. “They all live on the same block only houses away from each other.''

After this week, the World Series will be over and whether the Yankees win or lose Alex will need some rest and relaxation time before spring training starts up, so a holiday wedding fits right into his schedule. And Kate always returns to Aspen — to the 75-acre ranch in Old Snowmass that her mom, Goldie Hawn, shares with Kurt Russell — for the family’s traditional Christmas and New Year’s celebration, so, the insider says, “it makes sense for her to want to have her wedding there. It’s going to be very romantic. A winter wedding in Aspen is picture-perfect with its soft falling snow.”