Jezebel: Mothering

Motherhood More Depressing Than Ever

Erin Gloria Ryan — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 14:14:52 EDT

Dispatches from The Department of Obvious Things! American women who are full time stay-at-home mothers fare worse on mental health assessments than their counterparts who attempt to balance working with motherhood. So, the way to avoid depression in mothers is to make sure that they're working outside of the home? Not so fast- those ladies are depressed, too! More »

6-Year-Old Girl Forced To Film Her Mom Having Group Sex

Dodai Stewart — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 18:25:00 EDT

What the fuck, Texas? A mother in Dallas has been accused of forcing her 6-year-old daughter to use a cellphone and record her having sex. According to the AP, the mother was held on Monday and charged with indecency with a child. It's unknown whether she is still in custody, and her name is being withheld to protect the identity of the kid. More »

Are Scheduled Births Harmful?

Erin Gloria Ryan — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 13:00:00 EDT

Pregnancy can be a huge pain in the ass — literally and figuratively. The process of growing a tiny person requires an expectant mother to knowingly enter into a parasitic relationship between the woman, the host, and a tiny little jerk who steals your nutrients and kicks you in the spleen for several months and then screams and screams and screams and pinches your boobs and doesn't let you sleep and won't get a job. Babies are jerks, and why we keep inviting them into our homes is beyond me. They don't even send Thank You notes. More »

Listen To Nadya Suleman Say "Babies Disgust Me"

Dodai Stewart — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 15:30:00 EDT

A couple of weeks ago, In Touch reported that in an interview, Nadya "Octomom" Suleman said that she hated babies. When Suleman visited the Today show on July 8, she claimed that In Touch's story was libelous slander and that she was considering legal action. Today, however, an audio file of the interview has been posted online, and you can hear Suleman say, quite clearly, "I hate babies." More »

Our Fascination With The Murderous Side Of Motherhood

Dodai Stewart — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 17:31:00 EDT

"My mom is going to kill me." A phrase used so often it has lost its urgency and true meaning. More »

The Best Mother's Day Gift Is Not A Thing

Dodai Stewart — Tue, 03 May 2011 15:41:00 EDT

As Mother's Day approaches, the television becomes inundated with commercials for flower delivery, chocolate-covered strawberries, sappy greeting cards and weird heart-shaped pendant necklaces. If you rely on advertising, it's easy to believe that's what moms want. But you know what moms like even more? A little of your time. More »

"A Girl And Her Room" Photography Project Captures Young Women In Transition

Whitney Jefferson — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 15:20:00 EDT

As a teen, my bedroom served as a canvas of self-expression: magazine cut-outs of my favorite actors and actresses, posters of my favorite bands and movies, and photos of friends covering every inch of free wall space. Photographer Rania Matar's series "A Girl And Her Room" features images of teenage girls in their bedrooms and seeks to capture the transitional period between adolescence and womanhood. More »

Further Evidence Suri Cruise Is An Obvious Fashion Icon

Dodai Stewart — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 14:50:00 EST

We've heard that Suri Cruise is really into fashion before, but in the February issue of Elle, Katie Holmes reiterates how dedicated her daughter is to clothes. More »

Toddlers & Tiaras Baby Strips Down To Madonna Cone-Bra

Dodai Stewart — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 13:09:00 EST

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This is Mia. She's two years old. Her pageant routine involves appearing on stage in a white robe with angel wings as the opening notes of Madonna's "Like A Prayer" play. Then she strips to reveal a gold cone-breasted bustier. More »

Is Fear Of Childbirth Really A Disorder?

Anna North — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:40:00 EST

Some women apparently suffer from "tocophobia" or an "unrelenting fear of childbirth." But is this really that irrational? More »

What's Really Scary? Buying A Halloween Costume For A 13-Year-Old Girl

Dara Chadwick — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 16:04:00 EDT

I'm not usually a big ranter — in public, anyway — but at what point did a "holiday" for children become all about women looking sexy? More »

81-Year-Old Lady Gets Vibrator, "Soaks The Bed" With Orgasm

Dodai Stewart — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 13:53:00 EDT

Pamela Madsen is a sex educator, which she offers as the explanation for why she gave her octogenarian mother a vibrator for her birthday. More »

Did Your Weight Problem Begin When You Were In The Womb?

Dodai Stewart — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:58:00 EDT

Today in fat news: New evidence shows that babies can be prenatally "programmed" to become overweight children. And those kids are more likely to be fat grownups. More »

— Sandra Bullock

Dodai Stewart — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 13:40:00 EDT

on being a new mom. She also tells Now magazine: "I have to laugh at the parallels [to The Blind Side]. If you had told me that this would happen I would have thought you were insane." [Digital Spy] More »

Arizona Immigration Law Is An Attack On All Women

Linda Meric — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 12:30:00 EDT

In addition to the obvious racist and xenophobic implications of the new Arizona immigration law, in addition to the obvious concerns that this unlawful law targets residents based on the hue of their skin and the language on their lips… More »

Mom Returns Gossip Girl Books To Library After 2 Years

Dodai Stewart — Mon, 10 May 2010 10:40:00 EDT

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Tina Harden had issues with the content of the novels and says she "achieved" "a certain amount of good" in holding the books as "a statement." She hasn't paid the $85 in fines she owes, however. [UPI, Earlier] More »

What A Doll

Anna Holmes — Tue, 26 May 2009 12:10:00 EDT

[Breitenbach Breuberg, Germany; May 25. Image via Getty]

American Moms: Overwhelmed & Pissed Off

Dodai Stewart — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 12:00:00 EST

The New York Times reports that the most-read story on Parenting.com is "Mad At Dad," a look at how angry mothers of young children are at their husbands. More »

Milky Way: The Long, Strange History Of Breastfeeding

Sadie Stein — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 14:00:00 EST

A great piece in the new New Yorker explores the history of breastfeeding: the fads and crazes that have controlled centuries of women, and the forces that still have us feeling bad about ourselves. More »

"Distasteful Nanny With A Penchant For Sunflower Seeds And Male Porn"

Sadie Stein — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:30:00 EDT

Look, we'd like to lay off I Saw Your Nanny, we really would. But when someone draws our attention to a post with the above title I ask you, what's a girl to do? The post that follows is so motherhumping odd that we can do no better than to publish it, in its entirety. The commenters really rip her a new one, too! As my friend IM'd me, "This blog just really stepped it up 2 the streets." The post, after the jump. More »

'I Saw Your Nanny' Is Sensitive To A Diversity Of Stereotypes

Sadie Stein — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 12:20:00 EDT

For those people troubled by the lack of diversity on Fashion Week's runways, why, look no further than that beacon of egalitarian humanity, I Saw Your Nanny. The nanny watchdog site (on which people report sightings of "bad nannies") has recently added a charming banner illustration, a gallery of happy nannies of color cavorting with their white charges on a playground. There are, in fairness, a few fair-skinned nannies (or stay-at-home moms) in the bunch — but don't worry: they're all trashy enough that you can be sure they're hired help (a frequent area of confusion on the site.) More »

Nanny Diaries

Sadie Stein — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 15:30:00 EDT

A rich woman writes obnoxious nanny want-ad, becomes an internet phenomenon, a ton of people people apply for the job. Rebecca Land Soodak, "a 40-year-old painter and aspiring writer" with four kids, a building and a country house, has gone through ten nannies and posted a Craigslist ad that begins, “My kids are a pain in the ass,” critiques each kid in turn and goes on to say, “If you are the type who doesn’t notice crumbs on the table, skip to the next post, because crumbs are a deal breaker...I have all sorts of theories on how to stack my dishwasher, and if you are judgmental about Ritalin for ADHD, or think such things are caused by too much sugar, again, deal-break city.” The 25-year-old aspiring midwife whom Soodak hired has committed to stay on the job - which pays $430 a week, with free housing and stipends for living expenses. Sounds like she'll earn it. [NYT] More »

ISYN Update: Bad Perm And Stroller In Street Spark Frenzy!

Sadie Stein — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 18:00:00 EDT

I think it's time to see what's happening over at I Saw Your Nanny, "the quintessential depository for nanny dirt." (Yeah, that's the actual tagline.) Here's a "nanny sighting" from "Conshohocken State Road towards the Post Office - Gladwyne, PA": More »

I Saw A Crazy: 'Nanny' Policing Goes Off Rails

Sadie Stein — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 15:20:00 EDT

I did my weekly scan of "I Saw Your Nanny" this morning. For those unfamiliar with this three-car-pileup phenomenon, it's a site on which people post sightings of "bad nannies." As one might imagine, the snobbery, entitlement, ugliness and paranoia run rampant. But there's also just an element of "wtf?" that makes it impossible to look away. In these covos, there will be, like, five different conversations going on, none of which makes any sense. Take a recent post, "Nudity Crackdown. Starts off pretty standard: a mother complains that her nanny brought her little girl home in wet clothing rather than changing her in public because "the park department is cracking down on naked children at the park because of pedophiles hanging around and perverts standing around taking pictures? Has anyone heard of this? I was at Diana Ross Park on Saturday, (5/24) and there was water to be played in. Many kids were playing in it. Most had clothing on but 2 or 3 were absolutely naked. I thought this was a bit weird given that it was the weekend and there were fathers a plenty hanging out with their children." More »

Who Are Your Fave Pop Culture Moms?

Dodai Stewart — Fri, 09 May 2008 16:00:00 EDT

Time Magazine has a fun double-your-pleasure story about pop culture moms. The "Best Moms Ever" include Florida Evans from Good Times, Marge Simpson, Rusty Dennis (as played by Cher) in Mask and Dumbo's mom. On the "Worst Moms" list are MomCorp's Mom on Futurama, Livia Soprano, Medea, Margaret White from Carrie and of course, Joan Crawford as played by Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest. Now, her mothering skills may be questionable, but one of my favorite Moms is Edina Monsoon, because she is shamlessly shallow and revels in her self-centered insanity. I also like Mrs. Potts from Beauty And The Beast. More »

Which One Of The Five Types Of Moms Do You Have?

Dodai Stewart — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT

Are you ready for a moment of Freud? We're going to talk about your mother. You love her, obviously. But sometimes she drives you crazy, embarrasses you or says something so insane you question whether you're related to her at all. Maybe sometimes you hate her. But, according a new book by clinical psychologist Stephan B. Poulter, your bond with your mother has a huge impact on your life and your unconscious and totally influences how you form adult relationships. You're thinking, well, just like we're all different people, there are many different kinds of mothers, right? Wrong! According to Dr. Poulter, there are only five types of mothers: More »