(Top) Gwyneth Paltrow with daughter Apple and (above) Demi Moore with daughter Tallulah(Top) Jennifer Connelly with son Kai, (above) Brooke Shields with daughter Rowan and (centre) Kate Winslet with daughter Mia

They?re famous, rich, beautiful and smart, with soaring careers ? what more could a woman want? Ummm? marriage and kids, actually. Even tinsel town?s leading ladies are really homemakers at heart. Well, almost. Some have the marriage part down pat, others don?t. But what a lot of Hollywood?s current crop of gorgeous gals have in common is motherhood. And they all seem to love it.

Jodie Foster, for instance, had a tough time being single mom after her first son arrived. But not only did she manage admirably, career and all, she now has another little man in her life. The Oscar-winning actress took time off after each child was born, but her stardom is secure. She took the toddler with her to shoot for King and I in Malaysia. And she was pregnant the second time during Panic Room.

Foster is over 40, while Kate Hudson is married with a baby at age 24. Not only did she film Raising Helen while still breast-feeding son Ryder, the daughter of Goldie Hawn says her work improved with motherhood, even if it was an exhausting exercise juggling the two. Losing 60 pounds with three-hour daily workouts was no mean feat either.

British beauty Kate Winslet, too, admits that her acting has new meaning after motherhood. The mother of two ? daughter Mia and son Joe ? said her performance in Finding Neverland, based on the life of JM Barrie, the creator of Peter Pan, was all the better for her being a parent. At the Venice Film Festival last year, Winslet said she couldn?t have played the part of Sylvia if she hadn?t been a mother (?being a mother myself was invaluable?).

As Kim Basinger said in one interview: ?I think that once you become a mother, your heart is no longer yours. All I know is that my daughter is the greatest thing I?ll ever do in my life? I guess you just have to drop your own agenda when you become a mother.?

Most would argue that having enough money to hire the best of nannies and being able to take your children to work are luxuries not many mothers can afford. But gruelling 12 to 18-hour shooting schedules all over the world means having to miss some of the memorable moments in the growing-up years.

Motherhood is never an easy prospect, but Hollywood?s celebrity mommy brigade has a tougher task ? keeping the kids away from the spotlight and giving them a normal upbringing. Mission impossible it usually is, which is also why these women deserve kudos.

Gwyneth Paltrow and daughter Apple are thronged by paparazzi at every step, in London or New York. The toddler is barely a few months old, but a jet setter to boot, following her mom around the world. The Shakespeare In Love star is sold to motherhood, promising to put Apple before all else. And Paltrow is already planning a second child, so happy is she.

Parenthood inevitably means change. For some, family becomes the priority, for others, career takes a turn. If you?re Madonna, then motherhood means a transition from Sex and Erotica to English Rose. Sex was a book only for adults, while the album Erotica raised even a few hardened eyebrows. Children?s book English Rose came after daughter Lourdes and son Rocco were born.

For Jennifer Connelly, it all happened after first son Kai came along. Being a single mother wasn?t easy, but her career blossomed post-motherhood. The critically-acclaimed Requiem For A Dream was followed by the Academy Award for A Beautiful Mind. She was filming for The Hulk with director Ang Lee when she was pregnant with second son Stellan.

Brooke Shields has taken a rather different turn since daughter Rowan was born. She is now starring in the Broadway musical Wonderful Town. ?I?ve just noticed that I?m OK with being happy in my work,? Shields had said talking about how motherhood has made her appreciate comedy more.

Sex in the City star Sarah Jessica Parker is a new mom, as is actress Liv Tyler. Julia Roberts is a mother of twins, no less. Liz Hurley, too, is a mom, and, rumour has it, wants another baby.

Demi Moore took five years off to live in Idaho with her three daughters and spend time with them. And then made a comeback with a big bang ? as a bikini-clad villain in Charlie?s Angels: Full Throttle, and marrying a man more than 15 years younger. You go, supermom!