“As soon as the ultrasound probe was inserted, I knew something didn’t look right on the screen. Sadly, I said, ‘Here we go again.’ Then the obstetrician said, ‘No wonder your levels were so high… there’s two!'”
I Battled Infertility For 7 Years, Then I Gave Birth To TWINS
‘You’re OK now. You’re safe.’ WRONG. They assumed I wanted drugs. ‘We need to start treatment ASAP.’: Woman recovers from addiction, battles Lupus, ‘I CHOOSE not to let life get me down’
“’I can tell by your tears no one has ever believed you, have they?’ I said no. ‘Well, I do.’ I was right, and now there was evidence.”
‘We got THE CALL. Without a second thought, I said, ‘Yes! A thousand times yes!’ I knew she was meant to be ours.’: Mom of 5 adopts baby with rare case of dwarfism, ‘She has no limits’
“Her legs seemed so weak. ‘They don’t make walkers her size.’ She pulled herself up. Within days, she was taking steps. She’s shown me to not put any limits on her.”
I Got Pregnant With An IUD At 18 While In Cancer Remission
“My chances of getting pregnant after chemo were next to zero. Next thing I know, I’m in the doctor’s office with a positive pregnancy test and a little 10-weeks fetus flickering on the screen. In my heart, I knew this was something special.”
‘If my only option is AA, I guess I’ll drink forever.’ I was just doing what I saw other moms do. I was stuck in a vicious cycle.’: Mom celebrates 3 years sober, ‘You are not alone’
“Alcohol was everywhere in motherhood. The baby showers I attended had mimosa bars, the playdates had wine. I attended a mommy-and-me class with ‘juice boxes’ for the moms. I should have seen the signs.”
‘Oh, you’re gonna need this.’ My friends left gifts for me, all alcohol-related. With those 8 bottles, they unwittingly initiated me into a club.’: Sober mom shares recovery journey
“I received invites for yoga class with mimosas. The moms had Bailey’s in their coffee during our 8 a.m. stroll. Slowly, every connection was associated with alcohol.”
A Letter To The Adults Who Bullied My Daughter From The Volleyball Stands
“I sat there fuming and almost ready to say something or cry.”
‘You’re stuck with me now!’ The dads and I got closer than I thought possible. ‘Soon, this will be your reality.’: Surrogate births baby for same-sex couple, ‘I’m so blessed to provide joy for families’
“I sent the dads an update of what size fruit or vegetable baby was each week. ‘You’re so much stronger than most people.’ I felt those words so deeply.”
I Thought My Partner Would Leave After I Was Declared Infertile—Instead, He Proposed
“I thought for sure that was the end of my relationship with this man. However, as I tried to tell him it was okay if we needed to part ways, he decided to make sure I knew the two of us would be, and are, a family.”
‘There’s no way.’ I dug out my stash of pregnancy tests. 3 minutes later, I screamed.’: Mom surprised by pregnancy after infertility, ‘It’s more beautiful than I dreamed’
“Adoption wrecked me in ways I wasn’t prepared for. IVF destroyed my desire to be pregnant. We had two children and yet I didn’t feel like our family was complete.”
‘His teacher handed me a whiteboard covered in symbols. ‘He’s writing in Japanese.’ We were mind-blown.’: Mom describes son’s autism journey, ‘He’s different, not less’
“Our 2-year-old, who was unable to communicate his needs, began to read anything we wrote. Words, names, sentences. It was truly amazing!”
‘I put my Christmas tree up early this year. F─k it. Let’s face it, this year has been hard. Like, really hard.’: Woman urges ‘do what makes YOU feel good
“I want nothing more than the glow of Christmas lights, the sweet smell of pine, the peace of holiday instrumentals backed by a fiery Yule log, the burn of a too-hot hot chocolate. I deserve this.”
‘You will know heartache, the kind that takes your breath away. You’ll fail by spectacular measures. And your tribe? You’ll find it, and they will be far from what you expected.’: Mom shares words of wisdom for daughters
“Dear Girl, I wish I could tell you all of the answers. Every question mark you have in your heart, every silent vulnerability that you harbor and every fear quieted. But this is what I would tell you if you would only ask.”
‘You knew who he was when you married him.’ I just have to be a good housewife. I have no other option.’: Woman escapes abusive marriage, ‘My son can finally be a normal kid’
“This was it. THIS was the time he’d change. ‘You have to forgive him if you want to be happy.’”
‘This little boy needs a forever home.’ I stared at the picture and felt the Lord say, ‘This is your son. Let’s fight for him.’: Couple adopts from foster care, ‘Our forever has just begun’
“A friend texted me a photo. ‘Have you guys ever thought about adopting?’ All the tears, all the prayers, suddenly made sense. It was all because this little boy needed us, and we needed him.”
‘Are you sure you don’t have Munchausen’s?’ My body continued to struggle. Was it all in my head?’: Woman with chronic illness says, ‘I’m blessed to wake up every day’
“I spent my days off at doctor appointments. I’d pull over to quickly vomit on the side of the road. I was relieved to get answers but worried I’d continue to fall apart.”
‘Maybe this isn’t going to happen for us.’ We prepared for bad news. Then the doctor yelled, ‘There’s two!’: Couple welcomes rainbow twins after infertility journey, ‘I’m still in awe’
“We went through one more round, knowing this would be it. The doctor came out to the waiting room and our hearts dropped. Instead, she said, ‘I hope you’re ready for twins.’”
‘Stay home for the ultrasound.’ After 2 miscarriages, I wanted to protect my husband. ‘Well, here is Baby 1…and here is Baby 2!’ I blacked out.’: Bereaved mom births miracle preemie twin, ‘His brother’s last moments were filled with love’
“We weren’t able to see our twins. Instead, the nurse took my husband’s phone to take photos. When she handed it back she said, ‘You have two boys, but I should warn you, these pictures may seem very graphic.’ I soon learned my baby’s brain had completely split into two.”
‘He has a growth.’ No one came to help. We had to watch a YouTube video on how to feed our newborn.’: Mom shares son’s journey with cleft palate, ‘We do it for our babies’
“The nurse dropped the bottle on the counter and left. It gave him a massive blister on the little bit of palate he had. He lost over a pounds in 3 days. He was starving!”
‘A car veers out of control and crashes into my babies. I black out and hurt my child. Sounds horrible, doesn’t it?’: Mom shares ‘debilitating’ anxiety, ‘You’re NOT alone’
“My son is standing by his school gate and suddenly he is grabbed by a stranger. I’m holding my baby and I accidentally drop him down the stairs. I thought I was a failure for thinking and feeling this way. But I wasn’t.”
‘I’m calling about 2 brothers.’ They were dumped off with a trash bag. We weren’t prepared for more than one.’: Couple foster siblings, ‘We don’t want them to be statistics’
“We became parents immediately. I realized I should have listened a little harder during the ‘Parenting Through Trauma’ section.”
‘Your children regress because they’re seeking a connection with you. They want to feel loved, seen, and valued.’: Mom shares children’s ‘bids’ for attention, ‘Respond with kindness’
“The 7-year-old who suddenly ‘can’t’ put their own shoes on? The 10-year-old who asks you to get them a drink? The 4-year-old who whines they can’t put their own jacket on (but they totally can)? They may just be craving more of your eyes and thoughts on them.”
‘Home please. Home PLEASE!’ He looked like a living skeleton. Fear made time stop.’: Young boy beats liver cancer, ‘We have a new outlook on life’
“‘You can’t eat baby, it’ll hurt you.’ We agreed he could hold them. He took a cookie out and breathed in. ‘Mmmmmm.’ Then he put the cookie back in its bag. It broke my heart.”
Dear Daughters—Don’t Let The High School Lunchroom Label Follow You
“Because nice girl, mean girl, sleep-around girl? You just don’t have time for it. You are going to shake the world, and bring it to its knees.”
‘You CAN’T do it all. You aren’t a robot. Screw what anyone else says.’: Mom urges other parents to ‘ask for help’
“I love my children, but this is me. I need antidepressants to be a better mother. My house will sometimes look like a bomb site. That’s how I survive.”