Later Motherhood

If, as it has been said, "some people give birth to children and some give birth to culture," then for the 20 percent of us who are not biological mothers, it is important to acknowledge that we have, in fact, been culture mothers, the mothers of necessity, the mothers of invention.

Here's another later-fertility story from Pew Research Center. This month they report that fewer women are having kids.

Hot on the heels of last month's fertility scaremongering about ovarian reserve came a new scare for women planning to start their families later, this one about autism.

Like quite a few people I know, I had my first child in at 39. My maternal grandmother had a child at 39, too, but that girl was her eighth baby and her last.

Released from old biological constraints, women have flooded the universities and climbed career ladders, redefining "women's work" by expanding it to include just about every field, and doubling our national talent pool.

While wishing Happy Daddy Day this weekend, let's take a minute to appreciate how much more involved in the lives of their kids dads are today.

Out gay women become moms for many of the same reasons as straight women, but accident is not one of them. These highly intentional moms are changing our understanding of what family can mean, and their successes inspire more change.

Later moms are the agents of enormous social change, because their business savvyness and credentials are getting family and women's issues a hearing they've never had before