“What if we’re biting off more than we can chew? What if my children resent us for it later? Holding our breath, we wait.”
‘I suddenly blurted out, ‘Boys, you know we’re a team, right?’ It’s impossible to know what lies ahead.’: Family shares foster care journey, ‘There’s NOTHING we can’t handle together’
‘Through tears, she said, ‘Tell her I love her. Tell her I didn’t give her away because I didn’t want her.’: Mom of 5 shares powerful open adoption, ‘We’ll forever be grateful for her sacrificial love’
“They were both crying when we walked in. I knew in that moment, I’d spend the rest of my days championing the courageous story of this woman.”
‘I made the leap. I’d come face-to-face with the reality ‘life is too short.’ It was time to live that cliche.’: Woman urges ‘life is beautiful’ after medical miracle
“With the grace I was given to retain my life and 72% of my mobility, it was time to dive into something my heart yearned to do for years.”
‘I used to think my success as a mother was measured by my children’s milestones.’: Special needs mom urges ‘accomplishments don’t equal a life well-lived’
“And then I discovered both my kids had autism. I no longer see scored goals or straight As as markers of success.”
‘I didn’t marry a man who sends roses, or picks elaborate gifts. He doesn’t write love songs, or know the perfect things to say and when to say it.’: Woman urges little actions ‘mean so much more’
“I married a man who saves his cereal milk in a cup for our 3-year-old daughter, simply because she loves cereal milk. I married a man who will walk 20 feet in a monsoon to get the car so I don’t get drenched. I married a man who will get up with the kids early on Saturday and Sunday to let me sleep in, even though he is gone for work before the sun comes up.”
‘She let an ‘I love you’ slip in the middle of a tickle fight. Her shell broke, and she fell completely head over heels for him.’: Mom shares sweet ode to daughter and her bonus dad
“John is not her second dad. John is HER John. Friend, dad, protector. Stepdad and stepdaughter were never in our vocabulary.”
‘Are single people allowed to foster?’ Something in me clicked. I was so nervous my hands were shaking.’: Foster mom says ‘my heart will be broken, but in the best way’
“I had so much extra love in my heart. As I picked her up, I just knew. My life would never be the same.”
‘Am I having a stroke? My kids aren’t old enough to call for help. God, don’t let me die!’ Something was really wrong.’: Mom diagnosed with MS says ‘my life is still everything I dreamed of’
“I could no longer push my daughter in her stroller. ‘Let’s drive the two blocks to the park.’ I was falling apart. I couldn’t imagine life without legs that didn’t work.”
‘We can bring your Leprechaun trap a day late, okay?’ I see the disappointment in his face, pull over, and ugly cry as the mom guilt sets in.’: Mom shares important reminder ‘we’re doing the best we can’
“I feel bad I worked so much this weekend. I feel bad I work so much all the time. I stay up late cleaning up the day’s mess, and washing too many clothes. When it’s all over, I’m tired. If asked, I could have easily provided a mile long list of what I thought was going to be my final straw. Nowhere on the list would have been a leprechaun trap.”
‘He’s so cold.’ She ripped off the blankets, just watched him breathe. I could see she was scared to tell me.’: Mom shares son’s Angelman Syndrome journey, ‘He constantly defies the odds’
“He was so yellow he looked like an old-school baby doll. He was labeled ‘Failure to Thrive.’ Those three words were a punch in the gut. I felt like I failed my newborn.”