Up the duff at 30.

...is what my plan was and had always been. But as life would have it, I'd beat the stats by having a bun fresh from the oven at 28.

According to an article in today's Le Monde, the average age of French women at first childbirth in 2009 has symbolically crossed the 30 year threshold. As more and more women our generation feel the need as much as men to have a career and a good work/life balance, they are postponing having children until after their studies, once they have secured a job, a place to live and are in a stable relationship. Still, this does not mean that French women are having fewer children, quite the contrary. We are the country in Europe with the highest birth rate.

My little beanie came to this world by accident. If I were to have planned it, I'd also probably still be waiting for the right job, the right flat, the right city, the right moment and the right guy. Because regardless of how much societies have changed, there is still a moment in a women's life when she'll think twice about having children for fear their job might consequently be at stake. Priorities do drastically shift as you enter motherhood, but as much as being a mum can be fulfilling, many women also find work extremely rewarding. So why not be able to have the best of both worlds?

You can read the full article here (in French).

photo ©LaFranglaise