“I’d been happily drinking since I turned 21. I’d been UNhappily drinking for years. ‘It’s okay, I switched to wine.’ I couldn’t imagine my life without alcohol. I was so selfish.”
By Emily Richey“I was 24, barely able to make ends meet. As he woke up for the day, I was peeing on a stick. We’d turn into those vindictive co-parents. It was a reason to save our child from parents like us.”
By Erin“We got our first call, a baby girl. ‘It’s just until we find her family.’ I wanted to say yes, but I was terrified. My heart grew in love with a baby I didn’t know existed a week before.”
By Emily Richey“You’ll ask me when you’re older I’m sure. Why not high school or college graduation for a dream? Because ALL dreams begin with a stepping stone and this is yours. Some dream of puddles but you; the ocean. God knows you’ve swam through several already. It’s independence, it’s normalcy, it’s ‘just being a kid.'”
By LJ Herman
“The choosing of the costumes, so much expense on a tiny budget for just a few hours. And the choices…oh, the choices. More thought went into what these children would trick or treat as than went into us choosing our first house. Saving your costume for trick or treating isn’t even a thing this year.”
By LJ Herman
“This summer, we said ‘Yes!’ It was a leap of faith. I suited up in PPE and they placed her in my arms. ‘Meet Julia.’ All I could do was thank God.”
By Emily Richey
“One of my kids screamed, ‘They’re here!’ I gathered her things and met her momma. The exchange spoke a million words. That was it. The moment that healed.”
By Emily Richey
“A cold wash of panic flooded my chest. I blinked rapidly. ‘Oh my god, how did poop get in the washing machine?!’ I do not want to have to buy a new washer. Nonetheless, I had to address the situation at hand.”
By LJ Herman
“I blamed myself for not being like other moms who had it all together. I would halt a workout and walk out of the gym if I spotted a fitter girl. It drove me into a pit of despair.”
By Erin
“As I posted photos of us together, more questions came my way. I didn’t have anything to hide. On National Coming Out Day, I texted my dad. ‘In a perfect world, you could be happy for me.’ I was freed.”
By Erin
“He wouldn’t look at me, he would hand me money and say he wanted a six pack of Natty. He handed me a debit card and a grocery list and told us we could spend $20 on ourselves. I jumped for joy as soon as I shut the window. A couple hair cuts later, he hands me a check.”
By LJ Herman
“Tears were toppling from my unmoving gaze, the sound of them dripping onto the pillow beneath me was deafening. ‘Please just let me see his face. I can still feel the panic washing over me as my husband left my side. I can still hear the final scream hanging in the sterile air.”
By LJ Herman
“People began to talk and rumors were spreading. ‘You’d do anything to keep your man.’ It all seemed too big and scary. What was bigger and scarier was living without each other.”
By Devon Ledbetter
