“The first time I met their mother, I was terrified. My mind raced with a million possible scenarios of who she was, of how this meeting would go, NONE of which I could see ending well. Hell no.”
- Love What Matters
- Children
“The first time I met their mother, I was terrified. My mind raced with a million possible scenarios of who she was, of how this meeting would go, NONE of which I could see ending well. Hell no.”
“Joe had lived with a caring foster mother for the past 7 years. He has cognitive disabilities and required ongoing care, even though he was now an adult. I emailed friends, ‘I feel sad he is not with us.’ Less than an hour later, I got her text. We had less than a day to decide.”
“A normal errand changed my life forever. She ignited a fire within me. My mind was closed to the idea I could love more than one person. I worried I’d upset my children. I was a typical 30-something, suburban mom.”
“That photo showed a different time in his life. He looked so happy.”
“I wake up to see nurses running around, pushing my crying husband into the corner. His face goes white. They’re pushing on my stomach, which was just cut open to birth our twin boys, to push out the blood. All I could think was, ‘How? I’m a healthy 25 year old with a 21-month-old and 2 newborns.’ In that moment, I knew I had to be strong.”
“My friend introduced me to a better way to get high: injecting. He left when I got pregnant. I looked at myself in the mirror. ‘What are you doing? You are worth so much more.’ I wanted my kids to have love, but first, I had to find it myself.”
“Wanna know what’s wrong with the world? Crap like that. The word ‘self’ is at the beginning of every single buzz word right now, and it’s a problem. Self-care. Self-love. No, actually, you AREN’T the only one who matters.”
“The severely criminal charge was, in fact, a reference to my 24-year-old. I never imagined that term would apply to him. An unexpected call helped me through his transfer to prison. It had been weeks without contact when I answered the unfamiliar number. I fought back tears. He told me how much my son loved me.”
“I expected to be handed my baby like I was Beyoncé in a floral garden and the heavens open up. Instead, I felt like a potato cake seagulls were fighting over, one stitching me up, one folding my boob like a hamburger to stuff in my baby’s mouth, and one pressing so hard on my stomach I thought she was going to touch my spine. Yep, didn’t count on that.”
“It’s a harsh reality to admit, and I’m sure I’ll get a few gasps. But it’s the honest truth. And I know I’m not alone. I shrug off compliments from strangers about my pregnancy. This is my coping mechanism.”