Love What Matters

‘Hold on to that dress for me.’ At this point, I was not having any more births. But I just knew.’: Mom saves dress for daughter’s adoption day, ‘It was worth the wait’

“My mother-in-law started to show me a bunch of little dresses she found. One of them caught my eye. ‘One day, I’ll have a daughter and she’s going to wear it.’ Then I got the call. ‘We have a birth mom, and she’s chosen you.’”

‘I was 19 and diligently on birth control. My heart raced seeing those two lines. Shocked was an understatement.’: Young mom births 3 rainbow babies after multiple miscarriages, ‘Don’t give up, friend’

“At my first ultrasound, there was no little blinking heartbeat, no wiggling. I was told, ‘If you hadn’t taken the test so early, you wouldn’t have known.’ Like my baby wasn’t real. Sobbing, I told God I was done. My marriage was struggling. Then I heard the words, ‘Try again, and she will be perfect.'”

‘TELL ME WHAT THIS MEANS!’ I sent a screenshot to my nurse friend on the frontlines. ‘You have COVID, Maggie. It means your positive.’: Woman candidly recounts journey with COVID-19

“My son looked at me with heavy, sad eyes. ‘Mommy, can you PLEASE call the doctor and ask if I can go play yet?!’ My heart sank. Co-workers bombarded me with, ‘Oh, great. Just what I need. Now I’m supposed to get tested TOO?’ I felt I let everyone down for simply being exposed. I cried the whole way home.”

‘The phone rang. ‘Hello, Police Service. We’re on the side of the Broadway Bridge. I’m sorry. We answered because it said ‘Mom.’: Mom loses 15-year-old to suicide; ‘I choose to honor Ethan’

“He told me, ‘I started seeing the counselor when dad was being really mean to me about football.’ The more time Ethan spent with his father, the more my role became to be there to pick up the pieces. He confessed, ‘I thought about killing myself.’”

‘Go the F– to sleep! You ruined my life!’ I cried and clenched my fists. Nothing I did helped.’: Mom shares candid reality of Postpartum Depression, ‘You can come out a warrior’

“He would stay awake all day long and barely sleep at night. ‘You’re so annoying, I wish I never had you!’ When I realized what I’d just said to my sweet baby, I knew something was really wrong. I wasn’t myself.”

‘My dad unexpectedly left a note on the counter. He was leaving us for another woman, but as the pastor of our church he wouldn’t admit it.’: Daughter pens touching tribute to single mom

“My beautiful mother put down that handwritten letter, and picked up determination. She did what a mother does; she loved me every moment of every day. I will never fully know the sacrifices she made for me.”

‘She chose US for her baby!’ He had to stay in NICU indefinitely. We were dumped at a stranger’s doorstep.’: Single mom taken in by strangers after adopting baby with Down syndrome

“I was single, had no mom to help me, and was staying with complete strangers. We had 6 kids between us at the house, one husband, and a baby at the NICU. I needed a PLAN.”

‘Please just save my wife!’ I slumped over. They did an emergency c-section to save my baby. I wouldn’t stop bleeding.’: Mom survives Amniotic Fluid Embolism during birth, ‘I’m so grateful to be alive’

“‘Something is wrong with my heart.’ I lost consciousness. My husband started yelling in my face to get me to wake up and then he ran into the hallway shouting for a doctor. My nurse hit the code blue alarm. ‘It’s not OK, Kayleigh and the baby, we don’t know.’”

We Need To Love ALL Addicts The Same Way We Love Famous Ones

“Substance abuse isn’t just a celebrity problem.”

‘You must have paid a pretty penny for him.’ I was speechless. No one ever admitted race was a factor.’: Mom describes transracial adoption journey, ’Love mattered most’

“’He’s white,’ she said. ‘Do you guys think this will work?’ We didn’t care about race. Everyone involved saw what was happening, but no one said a word.”

People Think Having A Sibling With Special Needs Is Sad, But I Wouldn’t Want It Any Other Way

“Cate does not walk, talk, or do anything on her own without assistance, but she is my biggest inspiration.”

‘How do I make it stop?’ For weeks, I’d been dedicatedly pumping milk. Now, I was presented with an opportunity.’: Grieving mom donates 600 ounces of breastmilk in son’s honor

“In the hours after my son’s death, my breasts began to ache. Elias was gone, but my body didn’t know any different. I thought of all the bottles of milk I had stored in the freezer.”

‘I felt sharp, throbbing pains on my ovaries. I was told this was ‘common’ in women. My body completely changed. I was terrified.’: Woman with PCOS details mental health journey, ‘I knew I had to take this seriously’

“As I continued to take deep breaths in and out with my eyes closed, I could feel the needle jiggle. I was terrified. The ‘why me’ took a toll on me emotionally. I was raising my daughter all alone with no financial help. I knew I had to be strong.”

‘Come home. There’s been a plane crash, and they think it’s Mitch.’ He was moments away from landing. I felt my soul leave my body.’: Widow re-marries after loss, ‘Life handed me a second chance at love’

“I dated a few guys, but knew immediately in my gut none were for me. I was content with being a solo mom until both of my kids were grown, but the universe had different plans. On a warm April afternoon, there I was, looking at a man who didn’t seem to fear my past and wanted to apply for a spot in my future.”

‘So you’re just going to FALL ASLEEP on me?’ I knew something wasn’t right. Without someone waking me up, I didn’t.’: Woman shares 18-year journey to narcolepsy diagnosis, ‘This is more than just falling asleep’

“I was told by doctors, ‘This is just part of getting older.’ I was only 25. I started sneaking off to nap between classes and on lunch breaks at work. I was plowing through energy drinks and caffeine.”

‘He said, ‘Mommy sad.’ We wouldn’t see our son again. The truth was, he was never ours.’: Child abuse survivor advocates for foster son ‘no matter the cost’

“I sat on my knees in front of our worker, begging her to allow my kids to say goodbye. She finally said yes. I watched them walk him to the car and as soon as I closed the door, I fell to the floor.”

‘I finally found my tribe and all I have to say is, DO IT. Go find them.’: Woman urges ‘surround yourself with people who make your life better’

“I made two lines of people in my mind, the ‘Keepers’ and the ‘Move Alongs.’ I finally reached around myself, grabbed ahold of my backbone, and cut ties. It was the most liberating thing I have ever done.”

‘I am older than he was when he died, and there is nothing more unnatural than that.’: Widow powerfully reminisces on birthdays, ‘This is not the way it’s supposed to be’

“He was always supposed to be older than me, yet now he is suspended forever in time at 45. I don’t want to be older than him. It’s not the way it’s supposed to be.”

‘Lauren, are you with anyone right now?’ I looked at our GPS and he was still in the same spot. My legs went numb and I dropped.’: Widow finds strength in grief journey

“‘I have ‘extra’ appreciation for you today!’ He jokingly rolled his eyes towards me. I gave him a kiss, told him I loved him, and to be safe. Later, I texted Kev to see if he would be back at the house before me. He didn’t respond.”

‘I texted her, ‘My baby has died inside me. Would you still be willing to come?’: Mom to child born still thanks birth photographer for ‘most precious’ photos

“We found out at 38 weeks and 4 days that our baby had died inside of me. I knew immediately, more than ever, I wanted those photos.”

‘He leaned in for a hug. ‘Thank you. You saved me.’ He was refused rehab due to previous charges.’: Woman shares act of kindness for struggling addict, ‘There was no way I was giving up’

“One night, I noticed a young man who looked a little off standing outside on the patio. I approached him and introduced myself. I could tell something was wrong. After a while, he had spilled everything out to me. ‘I feel like I’m going to break down.’ He was refused rehab due to previous charges.”

‘She wants to meet you!’ I remember the call like it was yesterday. I squealed like a little kid!’: Woman with endometriosis adopts ‘sweet little angel’ after traumatic pregnancy

“I remember church where children would sing the sweetest songs. I’d think, ‘I can’t have that.’ I explained to my future husband I may not be able to conceive.. We wanted it so badly.”

‘I got the text, ‘Lex, we had an accident, but I don’t want to worry you.’ My son was the baby who literally fell onto his head accidentally.’: Mom to become NICU nurse after miracle baby survives traumatic brain injury

“I was told by a doctor, ‘You need to accept your sons’ fate. You are severely in denial.’ I was 20 years old and terrified. I was labeled as the Mom who ‘wasn’t emotionally responding appropriately.’ The media and local news blew it up into something it wasn’t.”

‘The doctor said, ‘How do you want to leave this hospital? With a poop bag or in a box?’ I denied consent 8 times.’: Woman with ulcerative colitis, ostomy bag says ‘you only get one body, love it!’

“I’d spent so long thinking no one would ever love me and then when I finally found the perfect, most precious man, I had to get a poo bag? I wanted to scream and cry and throw things. On my 26th birthday, I was looking death in the face.”