“The social worker slowly sauntered into my room. She spoke with a soft, low tone as if she was attending a funeral. ’How are you feeling about his diagnosis?’ I was furious.”
‘Aren’t you going to tell me congratulations?’ She wanted me to cry, but she wasn’t going to break me.’: Mom becomes Down syndrome advocate, ‘This is HIS journey’
‘He pulled out a baggy from his sock. ‘I think you might like this.’ I’d do anything for him.’: Woman recovers from drug and alcohol addiction, ‘I needed to change for ME’
“I drank every day, starting at 5. I’d pour vodka into mini shampoo bottles. When I moved in with my husband, I hid vodka in the closet. It was like my secret, a game.”
‘Of course you’re OK!’ He’s 36, the prime of his life! ‘We don’t need sirens.’ Halfway there, the sirens turned on.’: Widow shares grief journey, ‘This won’t define our family’
‘I heard a guttural scream and wondered where it was coming from. It was coming from me.”
‘This one won’t last.’ I was scared to get pregnant again. Anxiety can fool you, make you believe a lie.’: Mom opens up about anxiety after loss, ‘There’s no rulebook’
“We felt robbed. ‘I must have done something wrong.’ I shouldn’t have had that cup of coffee. I was angry at my body. The past comes to haunt your present.”
‘His mom is a crackhead, isn’t she?’ The woman in line was relentless. She just didn’t get it.’: Mom reflects on complexities of foster care, ‘We are merely called to love’
“This woman, who I’d never met before, inserted herself where she didn’t belong, asking questions about the 2-week-old baby in the car seat. I stared into her judging eyes. She couldn’t possibly begin to understand.”
‘We’ll never ask a child to leave our home.’ The most terrified child was dropped off. She was haunted.’: Cancer survivor bonds with adopted daughter, ‘We stepped into her grief with her’
“I came up with ALL the excuses, all of them rooted in fear. ’I could never love a child and give them back.’ Grief isn’t something to fear. Love like that is worth it.”
‘Remember why you’re getting sober.’ I took the onesie with me to rehab. I had to get better.’: Woman sobriety journey leads to twins, ‘We made this possible’
“I’d been happily drinking since I turned 21. I’d been UNhappily drinking for years. ‘It’s okay, I switched to wine.’ I couldn’t imagine my life without alcohol. I was so selfish.”
‘You need to place our child for adoption.’ How could he ask me to do that? I was totally alone.’: Birth mom becomes part of son’s adoptive family, ‘The moments we share are priceless’
“I was 24, barely able to make ends meet. As he woke up for the day, I was peeing on a stick. We’d turn into those vindictive co-parents. It was a reason to save our child from parents like us.”
‘We got our first call, a baby girl. ‘It’s just until we find her family.’ I wanted to say yes, but I was terrified.’: Couple adopts daughter from foster care, ‘She’s always been part of our family’
“During our first week, we found out we were pregnant with our miracle baby. ‘Can you come pick her up?’ I turned to my husband. His face said it all.”
‘I’ll never forget sitting in a hospital room watching you fight for your life, wishing I could fast forward to today. Today wasn’t supposed to happen.’: Mom pens emotional open letter to son on his first day of Kindergarten
“You’ll ask me when you’re older I’m sure. Why not high school or college graduation for a dream? Because ALL dreams begin with a stepping stone and this is yours. Some dream of puddles but you; the ocean. God knows you’ve swam through several already. It’s independence, it’s normalcy, it’s ‘just being a kid.'”