New Mom Candace Parker Returns to the Court

its so nice to see a celebrity taking a decent amount of maternity leave to spend with their child not the usual couple weeks!

My husband and I don’t have any children so I have no idea what the normal amount of time is for maternity leave but 7 weeks doesn’t seem like nearly enough time. Besides letting yourself heal physically and emotionally, I couldn’t imagine leaving your newborn so soon. Of course that’s just my opinion!

oh yes im sorry i read the article completely wrong i thought she had taken off 10 months after she had the baby! no i think 7 weeks is not a lot of time to spend with your baby at all!

Many women can’t take more than 4-6 weeks maternity leave here in the states. That’s all that work will allow. It’s great that you could take more time with your kids, Fizubuni (I’m assuming you did and that’s why you made that comment), but you should realize many women can’t afford to take more time (not talking about celebs here, but regular everyday women). I get to stay home with my son and I realize I am very lucky to be able to do that and definitely not the average woman.

Sanja – I’m not sure where you’re from, but I had heard that in Canada the mom get 1 year paid maternity leave. In the US, as MZ mentioned, it is typically 4-6 weeks. I’ve even come across a few families that the mother had to go back to work as soon as 2 weeks after. (This subject also came up in an article about Jill Hennessey a few months back.) I’m not sure about other western countries, though.🙂

MZ,
I’m saying what most child development experts agree upon… that it’s best for babies to be close to their mothers at LEAST for the first two years while their brains and nervous systems are rapidly developing.

If infants are away from their moms for long periods of time their brains do not grow in the same way and they often have problems with attachment.
Many people think that is part of the reason why american kids have higher rates of developmental issues compared to other ‘first world’ countries.

It is a sad state of affairs that many women in the US are not able to stay home with their babies and those who are able to consider themselves “lucky.”

I do not have kids yet because I am not currently in a position to stay at home with them. I think it is unfair to both mother and child to be working so soon after giving birth. It creates a lot of stress for both of them, and I just don’t understand why women would have kids only to put them in daycare at a month or two old. And while friends and family are wonderful resources for short term care, they cannot replace the comfort a child feels with their mother.

I imagine this will draw criticism from many women who have had to go back to work after 4 or 6 weeks… but so be it.
I wish more women would consider this issue before they decide to have kids.

Anna and Fuzibuni: ITA with both of you.

I just wanted to say one more thing. I totally agree with MZ! Some mother’s cannot afford to take more than 4-6 weeks off from there jobs. I understand what some of the posters are saying but two years out of the work force is nearly impossible for some. I think you do what works for you and your family. A happy mother is a happy baby! PERIOD!!