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.
‘She murmurs in a low voice, ‘But, um…girls at school will make fun of me for wearing unicorn stuff.’ I was at a loss for words.’: Mom urges ‘let’s show our daughters how to be a kind girl’
“The few that circulated rumors. The few that always had something derogatory to say about you. The few that would always leave you out of the loop and make you feel unworthy of being apart of the ‘in’ crowd. I moved to a new city to begin my career as a Nurse Practitioner. I was hit with the reality the mean girls club still existed.”
‘He quietly wrote, ‘Before I die, I want to see my Quinn grow up.’ We never thought for a second he wouldn’t.’: Widow shares how husband understood the value of a moment, always ‘showed up’
“20 years from now, your kids won’t care whether you were the most successful person at work. They won’t care whether or not you always made the most responsible choices. The days are long but the years are short. Make them count. Take the trip. Do all the things. Every hope and dream we had for our future together died with him that day.”
‘He cannot speak. He plays differently. He may not look you in the eye. Every day, I wonder, ‘Did someone play with him in the schoolyard?’: Mom says ‘thank you’ to young boy for acknowledging autistic son
“‘Hi Riley, see you in the yard.’ This one sentence made me beam from ear to ear. At that moment, I knew that my little boy was OK. My little boy had a friend, one who finally took the time to learn his name.”
‘Is this the time they fire me?’ I see you practicing your speech for your boss on why you have to leave early AGAIN. I see you racing home to MAYBE make it in time.’: Mom details the guilt of being a working parent
“We are told ‘You can be whatever you want to be! You don’t have to live in a 1950’s mindset! You can be a CEO!’ What they don’t tell you is the pit in your stomach you feel when you get a notice about a 6 p.m. conference on the day of your kids practice or activity. The panic when your kid’s school calls and asks you to pick them up because they are sick and you don’t want your bosses to be upset.”
‘Without you, I’d be the same size I was 6 years ago. Without you, there’d be no 3 a.m. panic. Without you, life would be how it used to be.’: Mom says without her children ‘I wouldn’t be me’
“No sleepless nights. No post-natal depression and anxiety. No fights with daddy of who does more. No interrupted conversation. But without you, I wouldn’t know love.”
‘My breasts are different. My hips are different. I’m happy with different. It means I did everything I wanted my body to do.’: Mom says ‘there is no bounce back’ after childbirth
“This amazing thing happens when you become a mother: you transition into something different, something new. I can work out every day and get in awesome shape, but I still haven’t bounced back. I can go out with friends, do the things I’ve always enjoyed, but I still haven’t bounced back.”
‘I wish I could sugar coat it. I watched your $7 iced coffee melt while you settled the score of sibling rivalry.’: Mom says, ‘what we do as moms is not for the faint of heart’
“We were dressed semi-the same. Yesterday’s smeared makeup, leggings and a 2-minute messy bun. I watched you grab your items, round up the kids, and walk out of the store relieved it was finally over. As I awaited our turn in line, I looked down at my arguing boys tugging at each other, causing a scene. I sipped on my half-melted Starbucks drink, put my dry shampoo and concealer on the counter, and smiled.”
‘I look around and mothers are wilting. Marriages are filled with resentment, longing. Moments with our children are hurried and empty.’: Woman explains mental health through gardening
“My husband is a man with a need to accomplish a list. You can throw all the yoga, hot tea, sex, and time together you can dream up his way, but if he’s not daily accomplishing something on that list, he will feel stagnant and unfulfilled. Me? I probably had a list, but I lost it somewhere.”
‘I’m sorry, you have the wrong number.’ ‘Mom, no, stop joking, it’s not funny.’ Click. The phone hangs up. I felt like I lost my mom when she was still here.’: Woman says she has found her mom ‘in so many ways over the years’
“Trying to figure out how to be around your own mom that only remembers you sometimes changes you.”
‘Laura can do it, she’s home every day.’ I was told how hard my husband must have it. They didn’t tell me about the frustrations, the anger.’: Mom tells other stay-at-home moms ‘you are not alone’
“When I had my son, people were asking me, ‘When do you plan to go back to work?’ When I told them I had no plans to immediately go back, I would constantly be told how lucky I am. Then when I had my daughter, I was asked again. I was told I should be so appreciative.”