26．
A.People redefine themselves and their family relationships.
B.Yes，the definition of mother has changed for some women，but not for all.
C.If there was a "mother，" then usually there was a "father."
D.Children need parents who will love them，not own them or use them.
E.After two years of carefully thinking about the decision，Marianne chose to adopt and now has a beautiful little boy.
F.This untraditional parent thinks he is lucky. |
What's in a word？Some words are more difficult than others to explain or define.Some are hard to define because we have strong feelings about them.We have strong emotions about word such as divorce or childhood.We may feel sad，happy，or angry when we think about these words.Definitions of other words have changed as people and the world have changed.Traditionally，the word "mother" meant both female parent and primary caregiver（the person who cares for the children）.The word "father" meant both male parent and breadwinner（the person who earns money for the family）.（1）
In generally，this is still true，but two points of this traditional definition are changing.
There is a growing number of single women who want to be mothers.They have not included a man，or "father，" in their plans.These women are choosing to have babies and raise them alone.They are not widows or divorces.They are mostly women with good jobs.They are economically independent.They are in their late 30s，and they have never found "Mr.Right"（a man they would like to marry）."I decide I wasn't going to turn 40 without at least exploring the possibility of having a child，" explains Marianne Boswell，a single mother living in the Boston area." I wanted it to be a conscious decision，as opposed to something that just didn't happen to me."
These women become mothers in different ways.Some adopt a baby.Some carefully choose a partner.Others choose donor insemination，a medical process that can cause pregnancy.The National Center for Health Statistics reports that 32% of all births are now to unmarried women.In 1960，the rate was only 5.3%.（2）
There is another group that is also questioning the traditional defjye.aiitions.In this group are men who choose to stay at home and care for their children.They，not their wives，are the primary caregivers.As Randall Mitchell says in the movie "Mr.Mom，" "When my daughter wakes up at night，she calls for her daddy" （3）
As society changes，our definitions change. （4）
As a result，we may need to create some new words.Somehow， "single mother" and "Mr.Mom" do not seem like very good names.
