At least she’s honest - Julianna Margulies on being a working mom

8th March 2008

At least she’s honest - Julianna Margulies on being a working mom

posted in Working Moms, Mom Rants, Celebrity Moms, Moms in Pop Culture |

It’s always fun to see how celebrities are quoted about how they handle motherhood and work. So when I came across this story in USA Today I couldn’t resist quoting yet the newest working mom on the block - Julianna Margulies, who’s starring in a new show, Canterbury’s Law, this Monday night. In the series, she plays a ball-buster lawyer. In real life, she’s mom to six-week-old Kieran. I’m sure she was asked the obligatory, “how did you handle pregnancy and working?” question, which elicited this response:

I got pregnant by surprise at the end of April, and in May, we found out we were picked up. I don’t want to be the working mother. We’ve seen it a million times. How do you juggle? And it is impossibly difficult, as I’m now finding out.

Furthermore, she was against writing her pregnancy into the show. Most times I find it irritating when celebrities wax poetic or give unrealistic advice about the beauty of working and raising their children on movie sets or whatever. So, thanks Julianna for keeping it real. It is impossible to juggle.

Tags: Julianna Marguiles, working moms, celebrity moms, Canterbury’s Law

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1 On March 8th, 2008, Amy@UWM said:

A six week old? Man, I’d hate to have to be giving interviews and working six weeks after giving birth. When my kids were in that hellacious stage of no set schedules and the “witching hour,” we hunkered down and hid. No wonder she’s so candid.

2 On March 8th, 2008, Marcie said:

Bwahaha! Speaking of working moms o’babies, I had to share this from today’s San Francisco Chronicle:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/08/DDPRVFCRO.DTL

Summary: Ballerina dances while pregnant, then returns to dance shortly after the birth. But I love, love, love this quote from her husband who is a prominent orthopedic surgeon and faculty member at UCSF. He spoke of going along on tour to be the baby’s nanny:

“It was terrible,” Coughlin recalls wryly. “It was incredibly hard for me. I had thought - silly me - that I would get some things done, some writing work, get to some e-mails, do some academic stuff, and that was just not possible. The baby needed maximal attention. It was an embarrassing learning experience for me.”

3 On March 8th, 2008, Alex Elliot said:

I didn’t even know she had a baby. I really need to get a subscription to People!

4 On March 8th, 2008, crazedparent said:

I don’t think it’s impossible to juggle so long as you go into to it with a realistic mindset. I think it’s impossible to juggle and think you won’t drop any of the balls.

The SF Chron story that Marcie refers to is fantastic — it’s one of the few articles that makes you feel okay about being a working mom. Can you imagine that? An article that includes working motherhood yet doesn’t include mom guilt? Amazing.

5 On March 9th, 2008, Suse said:

That last line irritates me just a bit, even if it is stated for humor’s effect. Jennifer Garner doesn’t say anything about the easiness of raising a child while working, nor does she just leave it to others. She walks the walk,so to speak. She did not work in the first six months after her daughter was born, giving her time to adjust to motherhood, and she takes jobs based on whether or not she will be able to be with her daughter. She worked on broadway,knowing she could be with her daughter most of the day everyday before performing at night, and she takes her to the sets knowing most of her time, she will be able to watch over her and be with her. She also has a lot of professional help, and she also relies on Ben while she is working and he isn’t and vice versa! Those of us who regularly read articles from this site also know that Jennifer Garner spends a lot of time with her daughter. She will go out without make-up and doesn’t really care what the paparazzi catches as long as she can be with her daughter. In other words, she makes some sacrifices to be a good mom. I think she is very real, and I’m sure Julianna will find a place of balance when she has had time to be a mom for a bit longer.

6 On March 9th, 2008, selfmademom said:

You’re right- Suse- I can’t judge her as a mother. I just found that particular article about her and breastfeeding to be kind of annoying. I liked that Ms. Margulies really was honest about not trying to make it seem incredibly easy like some other celebs can do. Marcie, that story is awesome! Love it!

7 On March 10th, 2008, Marcie said: