Well, I have to say I was a young parent, and now I am the old parent.

Had my first baby at 23 years old, second baby at 43 years old, and third baby at 46 years old.

As far as getting pregnant goes, it took only a month at 23 years old, three months at 43 years old and 20 months at 46 years old.

Gained the most with the first baby, gained the least with the last baby.

But then, I already had more to start out.

Photo credit: Fun with Babies, by TedsBlog / Ted Johnso, on Flickr
Some rights reserved

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
Infertility and Adoption: A Husband and Father's Perspective
by Roy Sokol

-- Roy Sokol offers men a chance to be heard and women a rare opportunity to view the struggle with infertility from a male perspective.

Infertility and Adoption: A Husband and Father's Perspective brings to life the frustration, anger, humor, heartbreak, and sense of helplessness and a mental philosophy learned in Marine Corps training that helps in overcoming the psychological barriers.

While miracles in technology have brought joy to new families, those very advances have placed many couples into a spiraling cycle of hope and heartbreak.

One failed attempt may lead to another, but how do you give up when there is always another doctor, another procedure holding the possibility of your dream for a family?

Roy Sokol has captured the emotional turmoil he and his wife, Elizabeth, endured as they tried to conceive, the years their lives were put on hold, and the excruciating sense of loss and finally great happiness.

He writes too of the couple's journey through the bewildering world of adoption - a path to parenthood fraught with financial, legal, and emotional risks of its own.

Paperback: 48 pages
Click to order/for more info: Infertility and Adoption

Start reading Infertility and Adoption on your Kindle in under a minute!

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I would definitely agree!

My grandmother had 13 kids in 25 years, her last one at age 42.

I have a cousin who at age 45 became pregnant (naturally) and delivered at age 46.

She has a little girl now, 3 years old.


Photo credit: BabyEar, by anitapeppers

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
Zita West's Guide to Getting Pregnant
by Zita West

-- A pioneer in the field of fertility, Zita West's programme is invaluable for couples trying to conceive.

Harley Street's most popular fertility expert, and favourite consultant to celebrity clients, guides the reader through a process of vital physical and mental preparation.

The book is for every couple trying to conceive and has fascinating advice taken from Zita's 20 years of experience as midwife and 7 years as an acupuncturist.

It provides a structured, easy-to-follow step-by-step programme, complete with case studies and and enormously detailed questionnaire.

The guide includes details on:
• when and how often to have sex
• what can prevent fertilization and conception
• everything you need to know about sperm and ovulation
• nutrition, supplements and herbs
• complementary therapies such as acupressure, lymphatic massage and hypnotherapy
• how to overcome stress and other emotional blocks to pregnancy
• PCOS, endometriosis and other health issues
• tests and procedures if there is a problem
• and much much more.

Paperback: 400 pages
Click to order/for more info: Zita West's Guide to Getting Pregnant

Start reading Zita West's Guide to Getting Pregnant on your Kindle in under a minute!

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I can't tell you how many people have told me stories about relatives who had babies over 40's.

Their own great-grandmothers and grandmothers have had a (healthy) last baby at ages 46, 47, 48, etc.


Photo credit: Grandmother and her pals at a lawn tennis club, by jmcarthy99

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
Fathers of a Certain Age: The Joys and Problems of Middle-Aged Fatherhood
by Martin Carnoy

-- A father and son interview dozens of men in their 40s and 50s to discover why these men have decided to delay parenting or start over, and how they feel about fathering children in late middle age.

The result is a timely assessment of the challenges and rewards older fathers face, as seen through their own eyes and those of their wives and children.

Men are becoming fathers at 40, 50 or more, but there is very little information on what issues they will have to deal with or how to cope with the new life phase.

Lots of anecdotes of from families with either delayed or remarried fatherhood.

It offers glimpses of societal changes as we are all living longer and healthier and as a result, may have children later.

Discusses step-kids, May-December marriages, adoption, fathers-at-home, and more.

Paperback: 192 pages
Click to order/for more info: Fathers of a Certain Age

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A reader sent in: 
I think Eleanor of Aquitaine (Queen of England in the 1100's) had something like 8-9 (more?) kids and bore her last while in her 40's.

Life was certainly tougher in the 1100's than it is now!!!

So I did a little research and found:
Eleanor of Aquitaine was born in 1122. She married King Louis VII of France in 1137, and bore him two daughters.

Their marriage was annulled on March 11, 1152 for failing to give the king a son.

She then married Henry, Duke of Normandy on May 18, 1152, when she would have been 30 years old.

Over the next thirteen years, Eleanor bore Henry eight children: five sons and three daughters.

So with her youngest child, she would have been 43/44 years old.

Photo credit: Eleanor of Aquitaine, by moria / Heather Kennedy, on Flickr
Some rights reserved

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
Marriages and Miscarriages: One Woman's Personal Experience
by Kathleen Smith

-- Kathleen Smith shares her experience regarding the three pregnancy losses she experienced.

The trials and emotional changes, the feelings experienced when being around other pregnant woman after having had a pregnancy loss, how turning to God got her through them, and more.

Kathleen, a mother of three and entering her sixteenth year of marriage, relates her personal feelings and emotions.

As you read the book you will experience a conversation with Kathleen about this topic, and learn how one woman dealt and struggled with this topic.

Paperback: 80 pages
Click to order/for more info: Marriages and Pregnancy Losses

Start reading Marriages and Pregnancy Losses on your Kindle in under a minute!

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

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Photo credit: Vintage Family Photo, by Flam /deflam

I was recently doing some research about another family that lived in the mid 1800's.

The mother had had six kids — her first at age 24 and her fifth at age 36.

Then she had her sixth child at age 48 (!!)

Obviously no donor eggs were used!! LOL.

I don't know if she had any miscarriages in between child #5 and #6.

Her husband was six years older than she was.

This last child went on to have six kids of his own.

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:

Ready: Why Women Are Embracing The New Later Motherhood
by Elizabeth Gregory

-- Over the past three decades, skyrocketing numbers of women have chosen to start their families in their late thirties and early forties.

In 2005, ten times as many women had their first child between the ages of 35 and 39 as in 1975, and thirteen times as many had their first between 40 and 44.

Women now have the option to define for themselves when they're ready for family, rather than sticking to a schedule set by social convention.

As a society, however, we have yet to come to terms with the phenomenon of later motherhood, and women who decide it makes sense for them to delay pregnancy often find themselves confronted with alarmist warnings about the dangers of waiting too long.

In Ready, Elizabeth Gregory tracks the burgeoning trend of new later motherhood and demonstrates that for many women today, waiting for family works best.

She provides compelling evidence of the benefits of having children later -- by birth or by adoption.

Paperback: 336 pages
Click to order/for more info: Ready - US | CDN | UK

Start reading Ready on your Kindle in under a minute!

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One thing I was psyched to hear about:

In Japan, there are about 7 - 8 live births per year from women age 47.

Donor eggs are illegal in Japan, so that's why they keep on trying with their own eggs.

Cool, huh?

Photo credit: Japanese newborn
by dantada, on MorgueFile
Some rights reserved

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
The PCOS Diet Plan: A Natural Approach to Health for Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
by Hillary Wright

-- Polycystic Ovary Syndrome is the most common hormonal disorder among women of reproductive age, and if left unchecked, is linked to serious health issues like infertility, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and endometrial cancer.

In this groundbreaking book, registered dietitian Hillary Wright explains this increasingly diagnosed disorder and introduces the holistic symptom-management program she developed by working with hundreds of patients.

With Wright's proven diet and lifestyle-based program, you can influence your reproductive hormones and take charge of your health.

Featuring a carbohydrate distribution approach at its core, The PCOS Diet Plan also zeroes in on exactly what exercise, supplements, and self-care choices you can make to feel better every day.

Paperback: 256 pages
Click to order/for more info: The PCOS Diet Plan

Start reading The PCOS Diet Plan on your Kindle in under a minute!

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