A Tale of Two Mothers

Lately you can’t turn the channel or scan a newspaper without mention of Nadya Suleman, the now infamous octuplet mom. This past Sunday’s New York Times style section featured an article about the backlash of raising large families. The issue most talked about in my mom circle is not  the quantity of children, but rather the quality of their mother. This is a woman whose own mother has admitted she has emotional issues that compelled her to give birth to 14 children —all through IVF. Unlike the women who struggle to conceive at all or the others who amazingly care for more than the national average of 2.1 children, Suleman is sort of a Frankenmom.

On the eve of her NBC appearance, there were calls for boycotts of the station, advertisers, etc. It didn’t work. She’s getting her 15-plus minutes of fame. My advice is let’s turn our attention to another mom who is doing something positive with the unique ability we have as women. If you haven’t seen the video making the rounds on You Tube of Salma Hayek, here’s a link. I couldn’t watch it without stifling a lump in my throat. I’m a nursing mama. Every time I look down at my nine-month old, suckling my breast, I can’t help but feel grateful for the nutritious gift that will allow her to grow into a strong, beautiful girl. Hayek has been know for her charity work, but letting a hungry baby latch on for a healthy meal in a country where breastfeeding past the first few months is frowned upon takes “giving of oneself” to new heights.

Thank you Salma for showing the world we can use our bodies for good instead of evil.

This was an original post to NYC Moms Blog. In between nursing her nine-month old, and writing about motherhood at this blog, Perillo is in the kitchen testing recipes for her other blog, The Mama Chronicles. As food editor of Working Mother magazine, she also knows a thing or two about feeding the whole family.