“Last year, it was impossible to find construction paper and crayons. So, I bought the highlighters, because I still have hope.”
‘I bought school supplies today, because I wanted to feel normal. Because I still have hope.’: Mom holds out hope for the day school returns to normal
‘We drove past a homeless man. ‘If you aren’t going to give him money, mom, we have to make eye contact.’: Mom urges ‘in a world without human contact, smile with your whole damn face’
“I usually give money. But today, I didn’t. I didn’t know where my purse was. Cars were cutting in and out of traffic. I was stressed and quickly snapped at my kids to be quiet so I could focus on driving. My daughter’s response surprised me.”
‘I decided to homeschool. And I sort of want to throw up, honestly.’: Mom of 6 urges ‘this is a great challenge, but I’m going to make the best of it’
“This decision truly ripped my heart out. I love our school district and our teachers so much. Taking five kids out of their funding directly affects them. But it’s really the only option we can do right now.”
‘It’s all there. The pencils, the masks, the notebooks. She’s chosen to send them back into the world.’: Mom weighs in on school reopening crisis, ‘She hopes it will be enough’
“It’s a calculated risk, and not one she is taking lightly. Every cough will be monitored. Every runny nose will be analyzed. There will be temperature checks every morning, and daily reminders of hand washing and hand sanitizing. She hopes it will be enough, and she struggles because she feels like she isn’t.”
‘OF COURSE the doctor knows more than me.’ An alarm went off in my head. We didn’t want to hand her over.’: Mom advocates for baby with Down syndrome, ‘She taught me to use my voice’
“Our baby’s heels were full of cuts from blood draws. We were battling low blood sugar, jaundice, and feeding issues. We spent that week walking around like zombies. She had no idea what was coming, but we did.”
I Surprised My Son With His Biological Mom, Now We’re Part Of A Blissful Open Adoption
“‘I just want you to know we are the family who adopted your son.’ She hadn’t gone a single day without thinking about him. I asked her if she could be here in 2 weeks.”
‘You don’t fit in. Old friends move on without you. They go to theme parks. You go to hospital rooms.’: Special needs mom pens ode to ‘the parents who feel like they don’t belong’
“When the people you used to be close with stop checking in. When it all starts to feel too heavy for you to carry. When you feel like you don’t belong. Take a step back and look at your life. You’re exactly where you need to be. No one could do it better or love them harder than you.”
‘The last time you saw me, you left me on the side of a bridge. Did you cry?’: Adoptee pens powerful letter to birth mom, ‘Thank you for giving me a better life’
“I often wonder what that day in February was like, the last day you saw me. Did you leave in the dead of night so you wouldn’t be caught? Did you wait until a stranger found me, or did you rush to leave, eager to forget? Because of you, I begged my parents to quit Chinese dance. Because of you, I laughed at Chinese jokes to show I wasn’t one of THEM. I was an outcast in the only world I knew and exiled from the world where I belonged.”
‘I got a call from my babysitter saying, ‘Your son fell and hit his head.’ I believed it.’: Mom shares powerful PSA after losing son to abusive babysitter, ‘Know who is watching your kids’
“Less than 30 minutes later, I got a second call about my other son, Ivan. When he got to the hospital, he had a big handprint on the side of his face and a 118-degree fever. He was fighting so hard, but we both knew it was time to let go. I was a single mom of 4 and I needed a babysitter. I trusted him with my kids.”
‘What if I can’t do this?’ I would wake up in the night, wracked with sobs. I leaped into the unknown.’: Mom says daughter with Down syndrome is ‘my greatest, most compassionate teacher’
“Her voice was full of pity. ‘One in nine.’ The electricity of paralyzing grief that overcame my body on that day is something I still have difficulty putting into words. But as I cradled her tiny body close for the first time, I felt a wave of peace.”