In the year 2000, the average American woman in the U.S. was almost 25 years old when she gives birth to her first child. In 1970 she was 21.4 years old. A woman's body is designed to bear children at a young age, but it has become almost taboo to have a child before the age of 25. It has also become a stereotype that certain socio-economic classes and races bear children too young. This is a condition that preexists: even as early as the 1800s wealthy white women typically had children at the age of 24 and African-American slaves bore a child before they reached the age of 20.

My photographs look at young mothers trying to live their lives both as normal teenagers but also adjusting to the enormous responsibility of having a child. These young women are trying to balance the concerns of teenagers with the responsibilities of an adult. They have brought a child into this world and they have decided to fulfill their role as mothers.

Certain young mothers appear comfortable while others do not. Some girls look awkward with their new child while others have a strong bond with their child. Sometimes the father of the child is still a part of the young mother's life. If so, I have included them when possible. These girls and their new families make up an alternative tradition of the American family. The young mother's have broken standard customs and created a new type of family life. From my perspective, I seek not to judge but instead to show the complexities of family life.