Mother's Day: Fast Facts About Motherhood, Part One

Anna Jarvis organized the first Mother's Day in 1908. Observances were held in Grafton, WV and Philadelphia. In 1914, Jarvis succeeded in pursuading Congress to designate the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day.

In honor of Mother's Day, Lake Saint Louis Patch offers five fast facts about motherhood, courtesy of the U.S. Census Bureau:

• How many mothers are there in the United States? In 2008, there were estimated to be 85.4 million. (The Survey of Income and Program Participation, 2008 Panel Wave 2.)
• How many children per woman? In 2008, the highest end of the spectrum was 2.6 children per woman, in Utah. At the low end was Vermont with 1.7 per woman (2008, National Center for Health Statistics).
• What is the average age of first-time moms? In 2008, first-time  moms were an average of 25.1 years old (2008, National Center for Health Statistics).
• What is the month with the highest number of births? July has the highest number of births, with 375,384 in 2008. (National Center for Health Statistics)
• How many births were the mother's first? Forty percent of births in 2008 were the mother's first; 32 percent were the second born; 17 percent, third born; and 7 percent, fourth (2008, National Center for Health Statistics). No statistics were available on how many of the fourth borns whine about having to wear hand-me-downs.