I don’t think it ever occurred to me how much and how often women are praised for displaying traits that basically render them invisible. By Shonda Rhimes
motherhood
I don’t want advancement. I just want to do a good job each day and go home without guilt. By Brianne DeRosa
Having a kid before establishing a career was part luck and part madness. By Lauren Apfel
The sparks of ambition, even in the middle of life, can become flames. By Sonya Spillmann
My own aspirations weren’t as important as buying groceries. I had my daughters 80 percent of the time. By Katherine Sargent
When the children are gone will I be something flimsier, something less than I was before? By Lauren Apfel
Judgmental comments can be a reflection of our desire to connect, to become a village once more.
By Gail Cornwall
Maybe she will meet the “right” guy or girl. Maybe she will never be interested in sex.
By Melanie Lopez
I actively chose hope in having a child, and when you choose hope you also choose despair.
By Shannon Lell
We connected through the magic of the internet. Her son was in crisis. Could I help?
By Brianne DeRosa
I want him out in the world. But this process—the leaving process—is excruciating.
By Emily Franklin
Motherwell interviews Andrea Jarrell about her debut memoir, which touches on themes of motherhood, desire and vulnerability.
By stuffing my backpack with toys and dolls, I realized I was trying to control my children’s adventure.
By Andrea Hannah
We trot her out into the world, trying to help her gain confidence through exposure. But it only lasts for so long.
By Linda Pressman
From sitcoms to memes, the mom runs the show while the dad can hardly remember the kids’ birthdays.
By Kathleen Siddell
I learned to meet him right where he was, which was on the floor, counting.
By Rachel Turner
Mothers are not static entities. We evolve in this role, as in any other.
By Lauren Apfel
There’s so much against you: the world’s cruel prejudices, its judgment.
By April Vázquez
She slid into anorexia at 16. She stopped smiling. She ignored her friends. She counted almonds.
By Amy Rumizen
It was hard enough to find somebody the first time, when I was young and untarnished by the scars of motherhood.
By Katherine Sargent
What if our split isn’t the best thing for her? What if it does irreparable harm?
By Robin L. Flanigan
Being an advocate for a cause in general is quite a separate thing from letting your own kid be different.
By Kimberley Moran
I wish the kids could stay this age forever—on the cusp of leaving, but never leaving—only I know it would not end well.
By Catherine Newman
Kids—they break you wide open and expose parts you didn’t even know could feel pain.
By Katie Rose Guest Pryal
He’s passing as a boy now—as long as he binds his breasts.
By Katrin Grace