“‘I cannot understand you. Let’s speak English, no?’ she said, impatiently. ‘Uh, okay.’ I replied. ‘Umm…I would like some red lipstick, please.’ She took a moment to look me over and I couldn’t help but get the feeling I was somehow inadequate. ‘I think you’d be more com-for-ta-ble in this co-lor…’ she said as she grabbed a lipstick tube off the shelf.”
‘Honey, Red Lipstick must be earned,’ she stated. ‘Red Lipstick is a confidence that can only be achieved through time.’: Woman recounts her journey to ‘Red Lipstick Day at last’
‘That’s what maternity leave is. Take care of the baby. You don’t deserve a break.’ He threatened to kill me.’: Mom escapes abusive husband, mother-in-law to find love again, ‘Never give up on love, no matter how bad you’ve been burned’
“My mother-in-law made sure to start voicing her opinions. ‘You don’t need nice furniture in your apartment. I never had nice things. And why are you living together before you’re married?’ This was coming from the same woman who had a child at 15, unmarried. I grew accustomed to expecting to hear these kinds of things every time I saw her. All I wanted was some help taking care of the baby.”
‘It is so unlikely, you have better odds at winning the lotto.’ Before the tests came back, I knew something was wrong.’: Twins battle Leukemia together, ‘I‘d be a liar if I said it gets easier, you just get better at dealing with it’
“We woke to my son crying and covered in vomit. The next day, his brother was the same and couldn’t keep anything down. We thought it was a stomach bug, but it kept happening. ‘Both your boys have leukemia.’ It felt like being stuck in some kind of messed up Groundhog Day where all your nightmares are real. I felt helpless.”
Don’t Wait For Your Dreams A Second Longer—It’s Time To Pursue Them Now
“I have all these mental images of women, dressed for success and sitting desks with their laptops open and their not-even-necessary glasses to the side. The lighting is bright and there is a perfectly groomed plant in the corner by a floor to ceiling window. I felt like an imposter for being successful.”
‘One minute ago you were glued to my side, now there’s enough space between us to fill the Universe. Be patient with me as I learn to let you go.’: Mom pens touching letter to her tweenager, ‘I hope my love will always bring you back for more’
“I dreamed about you before you were even a possibility. I dreamed of you when the doctors and tests said no. I dreamed of you while I carried you in my heart and soul. And then, suddenly, you were there. Your tiny hand wrapped around my finger in an empty hospital room, looking up at me with big eyes, asking me to love you. Be patient with me as I learn to let you go.”
‘I was 14 and pregnant. ‘Can we meet?’ 9 years after she was born, my birth daughter’s family encouraged her to hug me. I didn’t want to let go.’: Woman shares perspective as an adopted child, birth mom, and adoptive mom
“I chose an amazing woman to be the mother of the child I birthed. And yet, I no longer knew how to approach her. Nine years after placing my daughter the adoption agency called me with news that would change the rest of my life. My birth daughter’s family had contacted them to see if I would be willing to meet.”
As A Mom, I Either Have It All Together Or I’m Falling Apart
“I’m tired or vibrant. I’m drinking water or in the drive-thru with a Coke. I wake up and get everything done or I’m coasting till bedtime. I often wake up wondering which side of the line I’ll fall on today.”
‘Another day he bows his head, in fear of being mocked. He’s not boy enough for the boys, but also not a girl.’: Mom shares plea to teach kindness to our kids, ‘All differences should be celebrated’
“He’s not your typical 9-year-old boy. He watches musicals, not football. He is sensitive and shy. Yet another day he is reduced to tears after no one wants to be his friend. Another day he bows his head, in fear he will be mocked.”
‘I growled, ‘Get in the house. NOW!’ I kicked my heels off. I looked up to see the neighbor across the street watching.’: Mom urges ‘don’t give up, mama – the things that overwhelm you are what make life worth living’
“I angled my body toward the door and pointed. My mom eyes were out in full force. My tiny human was lying in the grass of the front yard, kicking and screaming words I could not make out because he couldn’t fit a dinosaur into his frog backpack. I think I heard something about me being a bad mommy. So you know what I did? I completely lost it. LOST IT.”
‘If I could go back, I would never put you down. I’d enjoy the cuddles, even at 3 a.m. I’d study your little fingers and toes, and soak it all in.’: Mom urges ‘cherish every moment’ with your newborns, ‘You will never get the chance again’
“When I was pregnant, everyone said to me, ‘Enjoy every moment. It goes by so fast.’ I wish I could go back and re-do the first few weeks with my firstborn. I would cherish every moment. It feels like just yesterday you entered this world, but now, it’s a distant memory.”
‘I think your father hurt your baby brother.’: Woman adopts sisters from foster care after father jailed for killing 5-year-old brother
“Was it an accident? Would he be okay? I knew the worst was yet to come. The decision had to be made to remove him from life support at just 5 years old while state decided to pursue adoption for my sisters. I was asked, ‘Do YOU still want to foster them?’ And just like that, my plans changed.”
‘5 months after my daughter was diagnosed with leukemia, I felt a soft lump in one breast. ‘It’s not cancer,’ the doctor assured me. I believed her.’: Mom diagnosed with breast cancer 5 months after daughter’s leukemia
“All throughout her treatment, I asked, ‘Why her and not me?’ Well, someone was listening. It wasn’t until she finished treatment, I took some time for myself. I felt a soft lump in my breast. I knew it was cancer. ‘Whatever happens, please stay positive.’ My daughter with leukemia was ready to take the lead and help me.”
‘Isn’t he too big to be in a stroller? Shouldn’t he be walking?’ I couldn’t keep my little boy safe anymore.’: Family adopts service dog for autistic son, ‘That was the day my little boy’s life changed forever’
“She was the first thing he went to in the morning and the last thing he kissed at night. She was his protector. She was his safety blanket. She was his best friend. He rubs her fur, she licks his hands, and together they can take on the world.”
‘I’ve loved my ex for 5 years.’ I was in the toilet, vomiting. I watched the father of my 3 kids die right in front of me.’: 40-year-old woman finds happy ending after infidelity, ‘Love will find you in the hardest of times’
“My biological father was a serial philanderer. I used to tell my husband, ‘You ever cheat on me, it will be the last time.’ Little did I know, 18 years later, I’d be left with 3 kids while he was out joyriding in my car with the another woman. ‘Well, don’t you think it’s too soon?’ In the chaos of my marriage ending, I never thought I’d fall in love with my best friend’s brother. When I give my heart to someone, I give it.”
Pregnant Mom Gets Ticket, Judge Changes Her Punishment When She Says It’s A Rainbow Baby
Instead of issuing the pregnant woman a citation, the judge dismissed her case after learning she was three weeks away from delivering her rainbow baby.
‘It felt like my whole world was crumbling around me. The second the ultrasound wand hit my belly, four sacs appeared. ‘Surely, it’s just two.’: Woman struggling with infertility, miscarriage gets pregnant with quadruplets
“I knew a disappearing symptom wasn’t a good sign. The first doctor told me to wait three months to try again. I refused. The next doctor told me I had to wait until my next miscarriage before I could be seen by a specialist. The next doctor I saw at that practice said she refused to help me anymore.”
‘SHE’S 21 AND PREGNANT. DO NOT ASSOCIATE.’ We lost friends. We stopped getting invites.’: Young mother swears every sacrifice was worth it, ‘We gained so much more than we lost’
“Our apartment was located near bars. 8 days after moving in, we found out we were pregnant. Life did an immediate 180. We’d wake up, look at Snapchat, and watch all of the fun we were missing out on. When we heard our baby’s heartbeat flutter for the first time, we knew we’d do anything for that little person living inside me.”
‘You’re born with it. There’s no way I have it.’ It spread like wildfire, right on my face.’ Woman with vitiligo learns to feel beautiful regardless, ‘Love yourself through your struggles’
“They used to say, ‘’Wow, your skin is so beautiful! What’s your skincare routine? Are you wearing makeup?’ In August of 2019, my skin would take a drastic turn. My face continued to get worse. I was becoming more and more self-conscious. I would wear makeup to hide it. I had no clue I would have to change my entire life up until that moment.”
‘Someone told me, you must find a way to love the virus.’ I was close to telling him to f*ck off.’: HIV positive man focuses on his health and self-love, ‘I face the future with much more love than fear.’
“‘Everything happens for a reason.’ I would be single and alone forever. ‘Who will want me if I have HIV?’ A friend from the choir said, ‘I am HIV positive, too, I can help you out.’”
‘We cry in the car until we can’t breathe. We suck it up, smile. We hug our babies tight, because we could never imagine someone beating them repeatedly.’: Woman shares harsh reality of social work, ‘Next time you see a social worker, tell them thank you’
“‘All social workers are is baby snatchers.’ It’s dealing with the 5-month pregnant momma who just relapsed on meth. It’s talking to the girl molested from ages 3-15. It’s losing your client to suicide. Listening to the 17-year-old who was kicked out and has nowhere to live, or the widow who lost her husband of 50 years and doesn’t know how to live again. It’s crying when your client finally says, ‘I am beautiful, I am loved, I am enough.'”
‘He told me once when he was deployed, a woman noticed my picture on his laptop. He carries a heavy load.’: Military spouse says ‘the load is so much lighter when we carry it together’
“I turned bright red when he told me. When we lived overseas, there was a 7-hour time difference and a 23-hour flight separating us from the rest of our family. He’s the kind of man who holds you when you cry and ask for forgiveness.”
‘I was suddenly watching her monitor flat-line. Countless nurses rushed to save her. It happened 20 times that day.’: Mother shares traumatic process diagnosing daughter with Adrenal Insufficiency
“I never planned to be a medical expert, or to have to inject my daughter to save her life. Ten times I’ve swallowed back tears while holding my limp child in my arms; remembering each step to prepare the syringe; taking a deep breath as I jab it into her thigh; praying she will jolt awake, open her eyes, and come back to life.”
‘We need to talk, Kayleigh. The amount of water you’re drinking is drowning your body.’: Woman talks about fighting mental illness, ‘You don’t have to believe your thoughts.’
“I kept saying, ‘I don’t know, I don’t remember, I don’t think so.’ I felt so stupid. Like had I not been living in my own body? How come I didn’t know how much I have been sleeping, or using the washroom, or what day it was for that matter? Healing was for people who had time to sit around and think about their problems.”
‘It was a simple act of kindness she didn’t have to offer, as I’d never even met her in person. But she did.’: Act of kindness provides strength to let go and heal after loss of fiance
“I kept these wedding dresses hanging in my closet… a reminder of all the things in life I wouldn’t get. A reminder I was angry. And sad. And I had every right to be, because I was robbed of my happily ever after. If I couldn’t have it, I was going to hold on to every single piece I could.”
After Years Of Marriage And Multiple Kids, Valentine’s Day Looks Different
“Shiny jewelry, cuddly teddy bears, and Valentine’s cards are long gone. But there is nowhere else I’d rather be, and no one else I’d rather be doing this with.”