‘I had custody of her son.’ I was the bad guy who worked with DHS to keep Henry. After all, I had the advantages. ‘Would you like me to visit?’: Woman visits son’s biological mother in jail, ‘I left LOVING this woman’

“There was this overwhelming sense I was the bad guy. She’s incarcerated and I’m not. I asked if she would like me to visit. I’m not going to lie, I did not expect to leave the way I did. I was sitting across from someone whose life choices, while pregnant, are the reason Henry will have a lot of challenges.”

LJ Herman -

‘The labor staff kept asking, ‘Is Daddy on the way?’ I was carrying a dead man’s baby. It hit me like a ton of bricks.’: Woman gives birth after husband’s passing, ‘Tomorrow isn’t promised’

“We found out we were expecting. Kyle was over the moon! ‘We got this,’ he reassured me. We were 6 weeks along. A few days later, I received one of the worst texts of my life: ‘Kyle is gone.’ I didn’t believe it. I was in major DENIAL. I pretended like nothing happened for a few hours until I decided to call the hospital for confirmation. I was carrying a dead man’s baby.”

Sophia San Filippo -

‘Every night before I go to bed, I replay the day and focus on my ‘bad mom’ moments. I tell myself to use that pain as motivation to be a better mom. It’s unhealthy’: Woman chooses to ‘focus on the good’ moments, ‘Let’s stop beating ourselves up’

“Moments where I was short with my kids, moments where I lost my patience, moments where I didn’t play with them when they asked because I was trying to finish the dishes or dinner. I replay them over and over, letting the guilt settle deep. It always leaves me feeling defeated.”

LJ Herman -

‘I’m going to be a daddy!’ That was the last time I saw him in person. I felt so alone. How on earth could I give my child to someone else?’: After partner’s death, woman pursues open adoption for son, ‘There is more love than I ever imagined’

“I heard the words, ‘Kaden passed away this morning.’ The horror of realizing your child will no longer have a father is one I would not wish upon anyone. I did not get out of bed for the next two months. ‘If this child needs to be with another family, you need to get me on board.’ The moment I saw them, I knew they were the family.”

Emily Richey -

‘Start the business. What’s the worst that could happen?’ He knows the beauty in risk. He makes me want to take 10,000 more risks before I die.’: Woman says partner ‘doesn’t know how unmatched he is to me’

“He knows how to hold his own. He knows how to survive. He knows how to ration a foot-long sub sandwich for days and weather the dark night. He knows how to root for the underdog and take care of people. But within all that beauty he holds, there are a few things he doesn’t quite know.”

LJ Herman -

‘If I was in England, I’d go out with you!’ He messaged me instantly. My heart was beating across an ocean.’: Widow celebrates 8-year anniversary of meeting late husband, ‘He showed me what real happiness was’

“I drove to the airport that day with my hands shaking. He was pushing his luggage cart towards me with the biggest smile I’ve ever seen. You know in the movies where everything goes slow motion and the music starts and the rest of the world falls away and the people seem like the only two on the planet? THAT. EXACTLY.”

LJ Herman -
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