1. Brangelina - Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt met on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith in 2005. Jolie was single with her first adopted child, Maddox, and Pitt was married to Jennifer Aniston. After divorcing Aniston, Pitt and Jolie went public with their relationship in 2006 and had their first child together, Shiloh later that year. Pictures of Shiloh generated more money than any other celebrity child in history. The couple became a philanthropic force, using their superstar power to fund charities around the globe. They are now a family of eight, with three biological children and three adopted children.
  2. Blogging Parents – All over the web people can find what amounts to a daily record of a family’s life, complete with pictures and videos of growing children. Mommy Bloggers have become a marketing force; prompting companies to pay many of them to blog about products, enabling these new entrepreneurs to work from home and continue writing about their beloved families. The movement has increased awareness of the buying power of parents.
  3. Celebrity Parents – Never in history has so much fascination been paid to the pregnancies and children of celebrities. The decade followed closely the families of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, Madonna, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner and many more.
  4. The Duggars – The Duggars are the featured family on the show 18 Kids and Counting who have a total of 19 children all with names starting with “J”. All the children were naturally conceived and the family harbors strong religious values. They have been voted by many organizations as the “Parents of the Year” for their impressive ability to stay organized and raise moral, hard-working children.
  5. Helicopter Parents – The term is also called “over-parenting” and refers to parents who “hover” over their children, whether needed or not. The movement has resulted in an offshoot of opposing ones such as “Free-range Parenting.”.
  6. Political Parents – The Clintons, Bushes, McCains, Palins, Bidens, Cheneys and Obamas are the political families of the decade. The Bushes ushered in an era that mimicked a dynasty with two generations serving terms as president. The Palins and the Obamas continue to dominate the spotlight.
  7. Gay Parents – Adoption by gay couples is still only legal in 14 of the 50 United States even though there have been no studies able to prove any detriment to children raised in gay households. Gay icons like Clay Aiken, Cynthia Nixon, Sara Gilbert, Melissa Etheridge, Mary Cheney, Rosie O’Donnell, Wanda Sykes, and Anne Heche have raised families in the spotlight and made gay parents a more socially acceptable entity to many.  
  8. Parents of Multiples – The increased use of infertility treatments shone a spotlight on families of multiples like Octomom and Jon and Kate Gosselin. These famous parents of eight have been the poster-parents for fertility treatments and refusing selective reduction of fetuses. Their instantly large families have generated both awe and outrage from around the world.
  9. Attachment Parents – Attachment parenting is a concept publicized by Dr. William Sears. It’s believed that bonding through baby-wearing, natural birth, and breastfeeding leads to the creation of stronger relationships throughout a child’s life. Many have taken this movement to the extreme.
  10. Single Parents – The divorce rate has risen sharply over time and the number of single people pursuing artificial insemination techniques has too. Single parents are no longer an anomaly in society and are continuing to prove that good children can be raised in single parent households. The increase in the number of single parents is helping to push legislation that supports breastfeeding in the workplace, health insurance coverage and affordable daycare.
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