IT’S THE SECOND CHILD WHO REALLY ROCKS THE BOAT

Most parenting books are aimed at new mothers. But for many parents having the second child is even more life changing than having the first.

For mothers, the clash between career and family comes with the second baby: fewer women return to work full time after the second child, than after the first.

Studying twenty-five couples with two small children, anthropologist Rebecca Upton found many parents overwhelmed by the new demands of family life. Nearly 27 percent of the mothers and 17 percent of the fathers had stress levels so high that they were offered counseling in Robert Stewart’s study of the second child’s impact on forty-one American couples. Other research has found that the birth of a second commences the most difficult year in a marriage.

Jennifer Bingham Hull, an award-winning writer and journalist, chronicles the first three years of life with her husband and two children in Beyond One: Growing a Family and Getting a Life (Seal Press, October 2004). The result: an intimate look at the enormous impact the second child has on a woman’s body, marriage, family life, friendships and work. Jennifer holds nothing back—from daydreaming of divorce to juggling career and family and battling the second-baby bulge. Along the way she provides tips, insights, and plenty of comic relief for mothers who not only want to grow a family, but get a life.

For further information or to arrange an interview with Jennifer please contact:

Leslie Royal
Associate Publicist
Avalon Publishing Group
510.595.3664 ext. 248
leslie.royal@avalonpub.com