CELEBRATING MOTHERS

and the Modern Mo m

A look at motherhood in today’s world

In some ways, the challenges of motherhood are the same as the many women who have labored before us. All mothers have felt the sacrifice of motherhood in her body, through her body, and from her body. We have all fought to recover what it means to be both an individual and a plural. Every mother has felt both her child’s pain and joy as if it were her own. Every mother has felt the pull of that first cry.

But every generation of mothers also has its own unique struggles. We struggle with what it means to protect, encourage and bolster our children to be thriving adults in this current environment. We make different decisions and take advantage of new opportunities. Today’s moms have more opportunities to pursue avenues not available to our foremothers. We are moms, yes, but we are also women pushing boundaries in a culture whose societal rules have yet to catch up with our ventures. We are showing our children what is possible.

One such modern woman is Annalee Baimbridge. She began her career in the Air Force, where she met her husband Brandon. Together they share custody of Brandon’s son but eventually decided it would be a blessing to add another member to the family. After 16 years, Annalee left the Air Force for a job as an airline pilot with FedEx. It wasn’t soon after that she joyfully became pregnant with their daughter. She continued to work and pilot right up until three weeks before the baby was born. Since there was no family leave available, she combined her sick leave and vacation time to take six months off. She used that time to heal, adjust to the addition of a new baby and breastfeed.

As the time approached to go back to work, she steeled herself for having to spend long blocks of time away from home (and home for large chunks of time). She instructed her niece on the care of her daughter, who would also be the nanny while she was gone. “It takes a village,” says Annalee. “If anyone besides my niece was watching her, I would have turned around and gone home.” Thankfully, Annalee had the support she needed—both from her husband, who would adjust his schedule while she was gone, and her niece. She had her village. She was ready to go. Now to figure out the logistics of breastfeeding while flying all over the world.

by RACHEL KELLY