LJ Herman is a former editor at Love What Matters and lives in Colorado. LJ is a concert, ticket and technology enthusiast. He has seen the Dave Mathews Band over one hundred times and counting.
‘After one romp of unprotected make-up sex, I knew I was pregnant with our 2nd child. I was having a September Boy.’: Mom holds son back in school after careful consideration
“A September Boy. I was having a September Boy. I was already thinking way far down the road, and clearly so was everyone else. ‘What are you going to do about school?’”
‘How did you know?’ My little baby went completely silent, no words, no babble, nothing. There were warning signs, we just didn’t know.’: Mom’s journey with autistic son
“Does this make me feel guilty? Of course, it does. As a mom you are meant to know these things, you are meant to protect your child. Parents have pulled their kids away from him. They leave him out of play dates. People ignore him, because he cannot talk. This is heartbreaking, but they simply don’t understand.”
‘They used to line up to watch me leave. ‘Don’t forget to beep and wave!’ they’d yell, 5 little faces pressed up against the glass.’: Mom realizes she’s now alone as it’s her children who are leaving
“Even if I was just running to the store for 10 minutes… 5 little faces would be pressed up against the glass. And if God forbid we would forget to beep and wave… so many tears. But today, I stood at that window alone.”
‘My friend started her period. I was so jealous, I could barely talk with her about it. I wore my mom’s pantie liners. Somehow it made me feel better.’: Mom says she will tell her kids things
“I told both of my children about the time I agreed to kiss a boy in the back of the school yard when I was way too young. How I really, really liked this boy. I told them how mortified I was when friends gathered around us and agreed to cover their eyes, but didn’t. Instead, they watched it all and laughed. Love can make you do stupid things.”
‘I send mind blowing messages that get him going. ‘Hey, buy the super absorbent pads, it’s raining Niagara Falls over here. And the baby vomited in my mouth, so some mouthwash, too.’: Mom hilariously recalls differences in sex life after you have children
“Dirty talk for me as a mother now is looking at my husband like I’m Post Malone (frizzy flyaway hair included) who’s smoked a few too many J’s with the sultriest voice I have and say, ‘I’ve showered today,’ flicking my nana undies at him. And him giving me the nod replying, ‘How tired are you?’”
‘I go hunting. This is a picture of me hunting tonight. No guns. No animals. But I assure you, I am hunting. Let me explain.’: Woman’s version of hunting is self care, husband supports her, ‘He knows I need it’
“Sometimes during the week, I’ll be exhausted. Just completely worn out from the day. I’ll come home, and Adam will have supper cooked. Usually, I clean up the dishes, and we take turns with baby baths/bedtime routines. But I have a complete pass on responsibilities when I really need it. All I say is, ‘I’m going hunting.’ Adam just smiles and nods.”
‘In the middle of Target, I had a stabbing thought, ‘You didn’t turn the oven off.’ I’d never felt panic before. This was panic.’: Mom insists ‘anxiety will not win’ after suffering panic attack
“I hear a faint call, ‘Mom…Mom…. MOM!’. On the third ‘mom’ I was snapped back into reality. ‘MOOOOOM!’ A louder fourth one came out 2 inches from my face. I couldn’t stop crying. I couldn’t hide it. I sat on the floor in the middle of an aisle in Target and started bawling.”
‘Once again, I would get shivers in the pew this morning. This generation is not interested in who is right. They are interested in truth.’: Mom realizes important lesson on faith at church
“BAM. So, we get to church, and the sermon was, you guessed it, ON THIS VERY TOPIC. Well played, God. Clearly God is listening to us around the kitchen island, too.”
‘Telling her ‘he is gone’ was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. She has no siblings anymore. Just a big pile of heartache.’: Mom has to tell daughter her brother is dead due to opioid crisis
“John absolutely adored his sister. He was fine with people thinking that this beautiful blonde, this older woman, was his date – he would go out of his way to ham it up for whoever was commenting. ‘Come to me darling,’ I can hear him say. His eyes twinkling with glee. He would protect her. He just loved being with her.”
‘Well, why didn’t you?’ She stared at me blankly. Her question stuck with me for months.’: Mom learns important lesson in politeness after daughter’s candid question
“Stunningly, two women said disparaging things about a close family member of mine. Instead of responding the way my inner voice wanted me to, engaging in a verbal street fight, I was polite. I pulled my daughter aside, got eye-to-eye with her and told her my lie. ‘I want you to know it’s always OK for you to not interact in situations like that.'”