“No family history? Phew, he doesn’t have it. Ears set low? He must have it. ‘I can’t see his face!’ I hoped the sweet, blonde tech knew this was code for, ‘Does my baby have Down Syndrome?’ There was stumbling, stuttering. ‘How old are you?’ Wait WHAT? Sirens were spinning in my head. This is it, I thought. He has IT.”
“With tears running down my cheeks, I turned to my husband and told him the news. We were devastated. There were no red flags no warning signs. The next morning, we were called to the hospital. She was in labor – our baby girl was coming.”
“I don’t want to catch a glimpse of her beautiful face in my mind. It hurts too much. She is so perfect. How can she still utter the words, ‘It’s okay mom, I love you’? I don’t deserve her love or her forgiveness.”
“They were starting to get silly. Running and jumping over the dishwasher door and throwing toys. Instead of saying ‘go play outside,’ I said, ‘boys, can you show me your new train set?’ They both stopped dead in their tracks.”
“Her skin hardened within seconds. It began to split. My husband’s silence scared me.”
“When I met my husband, I thought I’d found love so raw, so deep, and so genuine I would never fall in love again. I was wrong. I fall in love with him every day.”
“ANOTHER ROUND OF IVF? I didn’t know if I could put my body (and marriage!) through it again. But I knew it would greatly improve my chances of becoming a mom.”
“We were standing in the security line, on the verge of tears. When I said thank you to both of them, they said, ‘Don’t you worry, we’re going to make sure you get on that flight.’”
“Our days are filled with appointments, meltdowns, and diapers. TEN KIDS. DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY DIAPERS THAT IS?! Most days, we collapse into bed, exhausted. I often wonder what the heck I’m doing. My marriage has been tested. Friends have disappeared. But I wouldn’t change our journey for the world.”
“People told me it’s so your baby can find your nipples. Well let me tell you, with mine, every baby on the planet could find them. They were a satellite dish on their own. Also, People will ask, ‘Are you STILL breastfeeding?’ Yes, I’m STILL breastfeeding Cheryl, my baby is 2 hours old… shut up.'”
