Having kids over the age of 35 is still sometimes considered “advanced maternal age” in the medical community (we know…). While women of any age can experience infertility, about a third of couples have a difficult time conceiving when the woman is over age 35.
And yet, first birth rates for women in the 35-to-39-year-old age group have increased since the 1970s, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And many doctors are dispelling this statistic as a myth or outdated research.
We’re sure you’ve seen plenty of women over the age of 35 — and even over 40 — giving birth in your communities, and it’s true for Jewish celebrity moms, too. Here are six Jewish celebs who had kids after they hit the big 4-0 — but we promise never to call them “older moms.” They’re just moms.
Families don’t come with a warranty. ⚙ #Atypical pic.twitter.com/HlcwuLUdLn
— Atypical (@Atypical) July 24, 2017
Leigh, who stars in the TV show Atypical and alongside Natalie Portman in the new film Annihilation, became a mom at 48 with her then-husband, film director Noah Baumbach. Their son, Rohmer Emmanuel, was born on March 17, 2010. Seven months later, she and Baumbach divorced. On motherhood, Leigh has said it’s just about priorities and balance (which she knows a thing or two about as a single mom):
I sort of spend every moment that I’m not working doing things with my son. You do the best you can and you make the most of the time you have.
2. Bette Midler
Me and my gal @metgala16…she is the greatest! pic.twitter.com/bTraoa6w0V
— Bette Midler (@BetteMidler) May 3, 2016
Midler became a mom in 1986 at age 41 to her daughter and only child, Sophie von Haselberg, with her husband, artist Martin von Haselberg. Sophie, now 31, followed in her mother’s footsteps and is also an actress. The duo are very close, and von Haselberg has said that her mom is surprisingly supportive but also hands off:
It’s good the way she’s been hands-off with everything. If you don’t figure out how to go at it alone, you’ll become too reliant on getting advice from parents and you won’t let yourself fail.
3. Rachel Zoe
I can’t believe i woke up on March 22nd and have a 7 year old son.. hold on to every minute Mom and dads it goes by way too fast! True loves of my life XoRZ pic.twitter.com/LWCsoZha6U
— Rachel Zoe (@RachelZoe) April 1, 2018
In 2013, Rachel Zoe, a stylist and designer, was 42 years old when she became pregnant with her second child, Kaius, with her husband Rodger Berman. Her first son, Roger, was born when she was 39 — and was apparently unplanned, as Zoe stated:
It just happened. It was the best thing that has ever happened to me and Rodger unquestionably, and we just stare at him and love him more every second of the day, if that is even possible.
jennifer connelly pic.twitter.com/IOujxEv9sP
— Actress HD Pics (@Actress_HDPics) October 9, 2017
The actress, famous for Labyrinth and Requiem for a Dream, was 40 years old when she and her husband, Paul Bettany, welcomed their third child, Agnes Lark. Connelly told Allure that she is done having children, saying, “I knew that we were going to be done after number three. That’s enough for us.”
5. Amanda Peet
A new play by Amanda Peet’s replaces Neil LaBute’s FAT PIG at Geffen Playhouse → https://t.co/idriP9Y4BP pic.twitter.com/vN9cli9cGs
— TheaterMania (@theatermania) February 26, 2018
Peet, best known for The Whole Nine Yards, had her third child with husband and Game of Thrones co-creator David Benioff when she was 42 in 2014. Peet, who has been vocal about suffering from postpartum depression, also opened up about what it’s like raising daughters in Hollywood:
My two young daughters are growing up smack in the heart of America’s youth-obsessed beauty culture. They think watching me spend hours in hair and makeup is normal, and that it’s an integral part of my “work.” They’re learning that, in my chosen field, employability is based on looks.
#WomanCrushWednesday this week goes to the fabulous Watts from ‘some kind of wonderful’ played by the beautiful Mary Stuart Masterson.
“Did you know a girl can be whatever she wants to be?!” pic.twitter.com/xzyP43HAV6
— Hannah Louise (@itsamehannah) March 14, 2018
Masterson and her husband, actor Jeremy Davidson, welcomed their first child when Masterson was 43. Just 17 months later, the couple announced they were pregnant with twins. Masterson told People:
We are four months along, so balancing career and family is becoming increasingly challenging for me…and in five months we are going to have three kids under the age of 2. We are in happy shock about it.
Currently, Masterson lives in a farm upstate with her family, explaining that she moved out of the city because “I actually want to raise my kids and be part of their lives.”
