“At 11, I was getting ready for school when I heard a knock. I opened to blue lights, police closing in. My parents were caught in a drug bust and a reporter was catching it all on camera. At first, my mom didn’t want to be seen ‘behind bars.’ Tears just rolled down both our faces. She put her hand against the glass, and I put my hand against hers. Kids talked about plans for the weekend, homework. I’d write letters to my mom, telling her how much I loved and missed her, and how I wished I could have some of her spaghetti.”
‘Daddy, I choose MY mommy.’ He snuck into my bedroom and set a basket of clothes on fire. He cried with me.’: Woman loses both parents to addiction, re-claims her life, ‘I chose my own path’
‘It’s not fair,’ my daughter said, tears welling up in her eyes. I’ll never forget the first holiday I spent without her.’: Single dad determined to make splitting holidays work, ‘We were together and that’s what matters’
“As a single parent, I had to get creative. I jumped in an Uber and 45 minutes later I met my ex to pick up my daughter. We rushed inside to open presents. We had an hour to spend together in the comfort of our home. All while holding my breath that weather wouldn’t derail any of this. There was no margin for error. I wear sleigh bells and an Elf costume. We have fun with it. We were together, and that’s what the holidays are all about.”
‘I remember holding on to my growing belly, tears streaming as I wondered how I could possibly love this baby.’: Mother of two doesn’t think she has enough love to go around, later looks back on that ‘ridiculous’ thought.
“How could I possibly love anyone else as much as I loved Flynn? I always knew having 2 under 2 would be a challenge. I’d considered the practicalities of it, but I hadn’t fully considered the emotional implications. People will tell you that your love doesn’t divide as you have more children, it multiplies. That your heart just expands and you find space you didn’t even know was there.”
‘I do my part to make friends. I wave at school pick-up. I smile at the girls in my workout class who huddle together, leaving little room for a newcomer.’: Mom says it’s OK if you’re not invited to all the holiday parties
“I’ve been in groups that are giggly and fun, but I also never got to know their parent’s names, or their greatest insecurities, or what their dreams were beyond motherhood. Making it incredibly difficult for women like me, who mostly keep to themselves, to find a seat.”
‘Where is the collected mom I thought I’d be? She’s been replaced by a sweaty, shouty mama in dry shampoo and leggings.’: Mom reminds us ‘perfect parents’ don’t exist, ‘absolutely everyone is just getting by’
“I remember my husband and I agreeing our child would only watch 1 hour of television a day. HA! Now, Peppa Pig is basically our 3rd child. ‘We won’t be the parents giving our child a phone in a restaurant.’ Sometimes, watching other children play with play-doh on YouTube is THE only way to avoid death stares. Absolutely nothing can prepare you for life with two under two.”
‘My mother would sleep nude next to me, crowning me the ‘man of the house.’ At 18, I had to make a decision. ‘You and I will never speak again.’: Man overcomes child abuse, ‘The person in the mirror was not the real me, and I knew it’
“On my birthday, I put a gun in my mouth as my girlfriend pounded on the bathroom door begging me not to kill myself. I will never forget the taste of the cold metal against my tongue. I pulled the trigger, but the pin didn’t strike the bullet casing—a failure to fire. I had guns in my life since I was a child and I will never understand why that round malfunctioned. I had to accept I’d survived some of the most toxic environments imaginable. I needed to stop making excuses and take my life back.”
‘These two crazy kids have no clue they’ll be pregnant 8 months later. They have no idea about the twins they will mourn for a lifetime.’: Woman urges ‘love looks different now’ than when first married, so ‘choose well’
“Don’t get married for the way you feel now. Get married because the person you’re looking at is the one you want to struggle with. Marry the one you want to continually choose. You’re going to clean puke off the floor for them. You’ll stand together as loved ones are buried. You will hurt one another.”
‘It’s been 6 months since my husband and I filed for divorce. I pass off my kids to him every other week, for the entire week.’: Woman claims divorce has made her a ‘better’ mom, ‘I’ve learned to cherish each moment’
“The first time I dropped my daughter off at ballet for her father to pick her up after her class, I remember bawling my eyes out in the car, regretting my decision to divorce. I came home to a big, empty house and sat on the couch, just wailing. As a mother, I’m programmed to tend to my children, but without them, what was I to do with my days? Divorce has forced me to step up as a mother. I have no other choice.”
‘I love you. I’ll see you soon.’ My husband kissed me goodbye. ‘My mom donated a kidney!’ My daughters are so proud.’: Mom inspired by 4 daughters’ kindness to donate kidney to stranger
“On the way home from school I asked my daughters, ‘If I have something someone else needs, what should I do?’ It was only a matter of seconds before they answered, ‘Give it away!’ It was that simple to them, and I decided to make it that simple for me as well. I texted my husband. ‘What would you think?’ He responded, ‘I’d love you even more.’ I filled out the evaluation that night. I felt a connection to this stranger.”
‘I was told I should be grateful for being able to have kids in the first place.’: Mom advocates for others with postpartum depression, ‘Don’t ever feel alone in this.’
“I remember them pushing on my stomach trying to get it out and seeing the fear in my doctors’ faces. ’Kiera, we are going to have to take you right into surgery.’ I couldn’t believe it. Was it something I did? Where is everyone talking about the complications that can go wrong? I try and remember that having two healthy, fed kids is all that matters.”