Speaking of babies...

from Ohdeedoh:

The Best and Worst Places To Be A Mother



We were not surprised to read that the United States wasn't near the top of the latest 'Mothers Index' of best countries in which to be a mom - but we didn't expect it would rate so low. This is the eleventh annual index put out by Save the Children to measure women's and children's health and well-being around the world. Have a guess which mothers have it best?

As if their silken, blonde locks and ski slopes weren't enviable enough, Norway tops the index of 160 countries followed closely by Australia, Iceland and Sweden. The United States was ranked at number 28 right behind Croatia. What puts our ranking so low within the tier of more developed countries: maternal mortality rate (one of the highest in the developed world, 10 times higher than Ireland); under-five mortality (a child in the U.S. is twice as likely to die before their fifth birthday than a child in Singapore); limited access to preschool (only 61% enrollment); and stingy maternity leave policies.

You can read more about the report at Save the Children.

Photo of Norwegian road crossing: Flickr member Wrote licensed for use under Creative Commons.