“The little people who once hung all over me. Needing me constantly. Poking chubby little fingers under the door of the bathroom. Calling for me, ‘Momma! Watch this!’ over and over. Well, they’re growing up. And their wants and needs seem bigger than anything I can provide.”
Parenting Older Kids Can Feel Lonely Sometimes
‘I’ll never be pretty enough for people to want to be my friend.’ I had to face my hair loss.’: Woman shares journey with alopecia
“I felt like I had no identity other than being the weird bald girl. Every time I looked in the mirror, I was disappointed with what I saw.”
‘My first full sentence was, ‘My back hurts.’ I can’t imagine how heartbreaking that was for my mom.’: Chronic illness warrior says ‘I am brave and strong’
“I asked daily, ‘Why me?’ I was so frustrated and angry at the world. I didn’t understand why I had to endure this much pain and trauma.”
‘My mom said, ‘Christine, you’ve lost 3 babies. Do you think this is God’s way of giving your lost babies back?’ I sat there, crying.’: Mom of spontaneous triplets says ‘they are my heroes’
“The doctor said, ‘You have a rare case, my dear. Your triplets are a week apart in gestational age.’ I didn’t even know that was possible! The jaw-dropping moments don’t stop there.“
‘The pool was cold, green, and dirty. He was in the water for 20 minutes.’: Teenaged friend of drowning victim starts nonprofit for awareness
“He was just 2 years old. I watched his family suffer the unimaginable. I needed to prevent tragedies like this from happening.”
‘In the darkened kitchen, I ate pints of ice cream, boxes of candy, and whole packages of cookies.’: Woman battling mental illness says ‘I overshare so our kids know they can ask for help’
“I’d crawl into bed, face swollen and knuckles bloody. By December of Freshman year of college, I weighed 90 pounds and fit into size 12 kids jeans. I started taking laxatives to purge – some nights 30-40 at a time.”
‘Who’s that?’ I turn the camera to reveal not one, but two babies. ‘We kept it a secret Dad!!’: Mom to 5 surprises dad battling prostate cancer with newborn twins, now family of 9
“I was scared to tell him about my pregnancy. Only 5 months before, I had just delivered my 5th child via c-section. He thought we were nuts. ‘Let’s hope it’s a girl this time.’ When the time came, we sent pictures of newborn Bertie, yet again another boy. But we still had a secret to reveal to everybody.”
‘Were you baked too long?’ Tears ran down my face. ‘You’re EXTRA black.’: Transracial adoptee urges ‘family comes in all different ways’
“’Is she an exchange student? HOW is she your daughter?’ FAMILY comes in all different shapes and colors.”
Sweet Second Child, My Attention Is Always Divided—But My Boy, I See You
“I see you growing and changing right before my eyes. Your teeny tiny baby-ness is slipping away, and you’re learning so, so much. It excites me and breaks my heart all at the same time.”
‘You need to get her to the hospital, but it might not be enough.’ I didn’t know how close to death she was.’: Mom says adoptive daughter is ‘walking miracle’
“She was almost a year old and weighed 9 and a half pounds. She didn’t have much strength left. I knew I’d move the world to save her tiny life.”
‘I received a call. ‘We have a 14-year-old boy. He really needs to leave the home he is in.’: Single mom becomes foster parent to help other families battling addiction, adopts teenager
“After a 3-day binge, I told my husband he needed to choose. He could go to rehab and get sober, or he needed to leave. He chose to leave. I was a single mom with two heartbroken little boys. I knew I wanted to help other kids out there going through the same thing.”
‘I wanted you to graduate without worrying about me.’ It had spread to his brain.’: Woman describes grief of losing both parents to cancer
“After finals, my family came to visit me on campus. My dad was very somber. ‘I didn’t want to hide this from you.’ I can’t describe the pain.”
‘She’ll never walk or talk. Her future is unknown.’: Mother details journey with daughter’s rare chromosomal disorders
“The thing I hate hearing the most is, ‘You just need to wait and see.’ She’s so rare the doctors don’t know the answers to our questions.”
‘I shouldn’t have yelled so much. I should have been more patient. I should have let them let loose.’: Mom reflects on e-learning experience in wake of school reopening crisis
“With only 5 more days left in my kids’ school year and their return to brick and mortar in the fall, I’m looking back. I didn’t savor more of the days, moments, and precious, never-can-I-get-it back time with my children.”
‘Her 9-pound body flopped back lifelessly. She died in my arms at 2 weeks old.’: Mom shares daughter’s journey with rare genetic disorder
“My husband grabbed her from my hands, tossed her over his knees, and started CPR. ‘Please hurry,’ I begged dispatch. I will NEVER forget that night.”
‘The WHOLE table stared at us. I had to prove her wrong in every way imaginable.’: Gay dad of 3 adopted kids writes children’s book inspired by his own family
“I could see she was not approving of my family. But we saved our little girl from a life she was destined to have.”
My Grandmother Always Had Geraniums In Her Window And Today, Without Realizing It, I Brought Some Home
“The last year of her life was completely stolen from her by Covid. I’m holding a place for her here. And I always will.”
‘Your dad’s been waiting for you.’ I cried like a child. I should’ve been there.’: Man finds ways to assist aging parents after medical emergency
“All he could say was ‘Son.’ I apologized for my shortcomings. Mom soothed me while dad weakly patted my head like I was a little boy. I realized how much they need me.”
‘Days before his 24th birthday, we received messages. ‘Jake has not shown up for work or class.’ His roommates hadn’t seen him.’: Woman navigates grief after losing brother to suicide, sister and nieces to car accident
“Exactly 2 months later, my sister and two beautiful nieces were killed in a car accident. I heard phrases like ‘everything happens for a reason’ more times than I can count. I was told my sadness was a result of my lack of gratitude and my focusing on the negative. I was encouraged to move on, to forget, to focus on the positive and live in gratitude with love.”
The Life Of An Abandoned Daughter
“I wait on the stoop in my dirty sneakers until the street lights come on. Until the sky turns shades of pink and red, the same color as my broken heart. I wait until I hear the train go over the track. I keep telling myself I’ll wait five more minutes. I wait until another car drives down my block. It’s not the right color.”
‘There’s a 1-week-old in the hospital.’ I instantly felt he was the baby we’d been waiting for all these years.’: Couple battling infertility adopt son from foster care
“We received a phone call. ‘There’s a family member trying to take placement of him.’ From the first moment we saw his little face, we were in complete and total love.”
‘I called her, sobbing. Her response? ‘I’m driving you. Do you prefer me beside you or in the waiting room? What can I bring over in the meantime?’: Mom shares true meaning behind ‘it takes a village’
“Without hesitating or thinking, she washes bottles. Folds a blanket. Holds James so I can use the bathroom. Her love is instinctual.”
‘The eyes staring back at me were MINE. ‘I can’t believe I actually found you!’: Birth mom finds son on Facebook after 33 years
“‘This is like a DREAM. There are a million things I want to say, and at the same time, I can’t find the words. Just know I love you.’”
‘We’ll love you as long as we have the opportunity.’: Family adopts daughter from foster care, ‘I get the privilege to guide her’
“’We DON’T get to make this decision. The court will move forward however they please.’ We always hear ‘the system is broken.’ It is.”
‘We butt heads. We push buttons. We don’t see eye to eye. I assumed my girl would think like me, talk like me, act like me.’: Mom gushes ‘you are all your own’
“I’m realizing I’m not raising another me. I’m raising a you. And what a beautiful thing that is.”