“Evan was whisked away immediately after birth. My stepmother grabbed my mother and left the room. Both were visibly shaken. I overheard them in the hall: ‘You’ve got to get it together. They need us now more than ever!’ The doctor entered. ‘Ms. Sanchez, there is a problem. Your son’s spine is severely twisted and growing out of the side of his back. If this continues, it will pull his ribcage into his heart and kill him.’ I was devastated.”
“We became an official family, but he was my son the moment he walked through my door.”
“The roses on the counter don’t mean a dang thing when your new baby has been inconsolably crying for three hours straight. When you haven’t left the house in a week, haven’t showered, and can’t remember the last time you brushed your teeth. Marry the man who hovers over your daughter at bath time every single night and prays over her sweet life.”
“I was born with no ears, no cheekbones, and a receding jaw. Food and bottles were thrown at me. It got to the point where they would trip me and pin me up against walls. I used to come home from school every day crying, but still the school did nothing. Instead, they moved me to another class. ‘Why should I be moved and not them?’ The bullies took over my life.”
“Before you go to your friend’s house for a play date, text her this: ‘I fully expect baskets of laundry, toys on the floor, and children in pjs. I anticipate all the kids will fight, be loud, and ask for snacks (constantly). I can handle that. Let’s warm up nuggets, put on a Disney movie, and do those dishes together. I’m so thankful for a friend like you.'”
“’I feel I’m destined to be without a partner. I’ve heard about women deciding to have children on their own, it’s something I may try.’ It broke my heart when I heard about conversations they had behind my back. ‘In order to grow up well rounded, a child needs a mother AND a father in their life.’ I struggled with those words for three years.”
“’I feel I’m destined to be without a partner. I’ve heard about women deciding to have children on their own, it’s something I may try.’ It broke my heart when I heard about conversations they had behind my back. ‘In order to grow up well rounded, a child needs a mother AND a father in their life.’ I struggled with those words for three years.”
“The look in his eyes when he sees me. The way he snuggles into position to fall asleep. The sound of his favorite word on repeat: ‘Ma-ma.’ Being his cushion, his happy place. I wouldn’t trade this for anything. I don’t ever want to forget how it feels to be his person.”
“She would make comments about finding a new family for her son if we didn’t give her the extra money, dangling her baby boy in front of us like a carrot. I truly lost my faith in humanity. She pretended to be a lot of things, but a decent human being was, by far, her greatest act. She was sentenced to 20 years in prison.”
“I threw heavy flower pots through the glass front door and begged the police officer to shoot me. Sadly, the beast that is addiction took over. As terrifying as it was to unearth such a deep truth about myself, suddenly everything began to click. I began to recognize why I couldn’t stay sober for even an hour. I was not the woman I was raised to be.”
“Around 6 a.m., I heard her crying by my bed. ‘Mommy, my head hurts, my throat hurts, and my chest hurts really bad.’ This child never cried. She was breathing weird and for a bit, I thought she was being dramatic. Then in her weak, sweet, little voice, she asked, ‘Mommy, am I going to die?’ Something wasn’t sitting right. Every few seconds, she would say, ‘Mommy’ or ‘Hello,’ just so I knew she was doing okay.”
