“We woke up to find him gone. We’d just gotten into an argument because he was caught sneaking out. We couldn’t call him because he had his phone taken away. Panic set in. Was he running away? Or just hiding out for a bit? We turned the corner to police cars, fire trucks, and road closures. ‘Are you Jennifer Chappell?,’ the police officer asked me. ‘Yes.’ I was too late.”
“I woke up to a sign on my door that said, ‘Will you be my girlfriend?’ How could I say no?! I’ll never forget watching Jeremy cry as he held our daughters for the very first time. They are the best parts of him. Jeremy loved being a dad. Just shy of 5 months later, Jeremy was called home to be with God. Two incredible men gone way too soon.”
“‘You’re holding your baby too much.’ ‘Isn’t your baby too old to be breastfeeding?’ ‘You’re weaning soon, right?’ ‘Just let the baby cry. It’s good for their lungs.’ ‘You really need to put your baby on a schedule.’ ‘You better not eat the green beans. It will make your baby gassy.’ Here’s how to respond during the holidays.”
“I’m too busy letting my 6-year-old wear Cinderella underwear as a bathing suit. I’m too busy trying not to fight with my husband. I’m too busy wondering if that wet spot is from water, juice, or urine. I’m too busy apologizing to my kids for throwing away that ginormous popsicle stick art project they brought home from school. I’m too busy apologizing FOR my kids.”
“I’ve always known the ‘middle finger’ could cause a stir, but I never knew the lack of one could cause a bigger stir. When I got back to my room, they all looked concerned. The nurses ‘had never seen anything like this,’ and thought he’d be a good excuse for show and tell. I saw a beautiful, perfect baby boy, but the nurses and doctors saw something ‘different.’”
“‘They died? Why?’ Ira asked, concerned. ‘What happened?’ He shrugged his shoulders and looked at me. ‘Where they go? After they dead?’ ‘You know,’ I said tickling them, ‘You two are miracles. Our babies that didn’t make it out of my tummy alive are in Heaven.’ My boys would usually be distracted by now. ‘It has streets of GOLD. There is no crying, no sadness. No families are broken…we all live together. ‘We all live together there? Daddy too?’”
“While standing in the checkout line at Publix, I was graced by the presence of John Legend’s beautiful face. Phew. John Legend, y’all. He’s the Sexiest Man Alive. But is he really? Can he install a rear-facing car seat? Because THAT is SEXAYYY.”
“I forgot how to be a wife. Or, at least a good one. I lost my temper at absolutely everything. I was hurting him, because I was hurting inside. So, I left. I got my 2 kids, and moved in with my parents. I needed to stop blaming other people for my struggles and look in the mirror.”
“It may make people uncomfortable. It may even make you cringe. But I will never stop talking about my children who died. I usually take the high road with ‘internet trolls,’ but for some reason, I responded. I will not be silenced.”
“I aspired to be a ‘businesswoman’ and make my family proud. I had no idea I was about to join a small team of all men who were both equally hated and respected by everyone in the department. People in the company started to wish me ‘good luck’ and apologize for ‘what was to come.’ The third stall in the women’s bathroom became my second home.”
