“He left in May for his third deployment. We walked him onto the ship. It was odd, our son Matthew did not want to leave him, and I just felt like we needed to keep saying goodbye. Days later, he called me from his phone and we said I love you. That was the last time I ever heard his voice.”
‘He stuttered, ‘I’m so sorry I didn’t call. I lost your number. You are so pretty.’ I had no idea this man would change my life, let alone have 7 years left on this earth.’: Woman shares emotional journey finding love after losing partner to brain aneurysm
‘Why was I the last to notice my baby was in distress?’ I needed constant reassurance everything was going to be okay.’: New mom thanks nurses during short but grueling NICU stay
“One night, while I was holding my fragile Heron, he turned completely grey. All I can remember is sounds exploding from seemingly everywhere and a sea of NICU staff rushed into the room. All we could do was stand back and watch.”
‘I was patient zero. All we wanted was our baby boy, but we knew we couldn’t be selfish.’: Woman with severe blood clot cyst shares abortion story in response to ‘horrifying’ Texas abortion ban
“I had an abortion on June 10th, 2021. This is not a story I ever intended to share, but given the circumstances in Texas, I feel it’s important. Today, as I continue grieving over my unborn son, I also grieve for the helpless women who won’t get the opportunity I had.”
‘You didn’t lose your baby, but there’s two in there.’ This was the moment I knew I was in for a wild ride.’: Twin mom thanks NICU nurses for helping premature daughters ‘come home’
“At 26 weeks, I went in for a routine ultrasound only to be told I was being admitted. I knew it was coming to be life or death for this baby. My sweet Baby B was at risk.”
5 Life-long Lessons Your Child Will Learn From The Wonder Of Crafting
“When you go beyond the play, creativity, and enjoyment of crafting, you’ll find valuable lessons hidden amongst the fun.”
‘As far as I’m concerned, they’re three angels.’: Brave teens rescue residents from burning retirement home building
“Instead of gawking at the disaster-in-progress, they pulled over and rushed to the retirement home to see if they could help.”
‘I immediately lost it. ‘I’m NEVER going to be able to have kids of my own’ was on repeat in my head.’: Woman shares emotional infertility journey
“‘Maybe I’m just a late bloomer.’ The doctor struggled to get the words out. Tears filled my eyes. Everyone I knew was beginning the family, and I longed for a baby of my own.”
‘I set the box of ashes on the couch. She gathered her blanket close, the first time she’d sit next to her Daddy without weeping.’: Widow shares heartfelt moment with daughter after losing husband
“I go to my bedroom and pick up the box. My heart immediately recognizes its weight. My hands know every edge and corner of this container that holds all that’s physically left of the man I thought I’d grow old with.”
‘Poor thing.’ It’s not something to avoid or pull your children away from at the playground. It’s pure, unfiltered joy.’: Special needs mom advocates for Down Syndrome acceptance
“It’s giving zero F–KS, wearing what makes you happy, and being proud of how you look. It’s loving people for exactly who they are and showing everyone kindness without expecting anything in return.”
‘The excitement of a normal poop, the pain seeing your child poked 1,000 times, the strength to continue walking inside.’: Hospital mom describes emotional journey during NICU Awareness Month
“The late night calls of a parent, the early morning calls of an emergency, pressing a button on an incubator before you can touch your child, the longing to rock your baby to sleep just one time.”
‘What if this knife lands on my baby? What if my toddler misplaces a step and breaks his neck? Horrible, graphic images held me prisoner in my mind.’: Mom candidly opens up about intrusive postpartum thoughts
“Perfectly ordinary and happy scenarios were quickly overrun by irrational thoughts. I so badly wanted to be that unruffled mom, but my mind was constantly painting ugly pictures around the beautiful pages of our lives. I was a prisoner in my own head.”
‘If I can do it, anyone can.’: Man who spent half his life in prison graduates with honors at 62
“His drug addiction began at the young age of 11.”
‘Love doesn’t have a color.’: Foster parents refuse to give up on traumatized boy, adopt him into forever home
“People would read his file and get scared away. But I knew he was a good child who had experienced a lot of trauma.”
‘I was unable to rest or sleep. I didn’t realize how sick I was until I could no longer take care of myself.’: Woman with acute mania, bipolar urges, ‘You are so much more than your diagnosis’
“If it wasn’t for my mental illness, I might still be in a loveless marriage, stuck working on the same old nursing unit, without any aspirations of becoming a best-selling author one day.”
‘We can’t see why you can’t have children.’ I felt like there was something wrong with me.’: Mom struggling with infertility shares emotional journey to adopt
“I could have fallen into a puddle on the floor, but that’s not what happened. In the midst of tragedy, these words kept pressing on my heart: ‘GOD ISN’T FINISHED.’”
‘I awoke to three strangers standing in our living room, grave concern on their faces. ‘Their mom hasn’t been here.’ I was driven away by police car, anxious and confused.’: Former foster youth urges ‘you aren’t your circumstances’
“We finally arrived at our destination. A modest green house with a chain link fence. Standing at the sidewalk was a petite elderly woman with a white t-shirt, floral skirt, and hair pulled in a high bun. She greeted me with a smile. ‘Hi Jamerika,’ she said, as if she knew me her whole life.”
‘Your average couple, we started trying to conceive. Here we are, three years later, with no children.’: Woman battling unexplained infertility thanks support group, ‘We aren’t meant to go through trials alone’
“All my friends getting pregnant, I started to feel the weight of bitterness set in. It was then I reached out to a support group. This is not a community women want to be a part of, but it is one that has each other’s back. It’s a sisterhood.”
6 Must-Know Red And Green Flags In A Relationship
“Your partner should be your biggest fan.”
‘She’s gonna have to get over it!’ Then I thought to myself, ‘What about when I’m upset?’: Mom to daughter with anxiety urges ‘stop asking kids to act more maturely than we do’
“Imagine you’re two. You have no idea how to regulate your emotions. You’re startled by something you don’t understand, and instead of being offered comfort, you’re told to ‘get over it.'”
‘The entire night he gleamed from ear to ear.’: Community rallies to include boy with autism, rare diseases in school marching band and make his dreams come true
“Disability does not define who a person is. It is simply a different way of learning. A different view of the world. And our entire community opened their arms and hearts to my special little boy.”
To The Girl Who Might Have To Wait, Know You Are Worthy Despite The Path You Find Yourself On
“I know you never pictured starting your family this way. You figured you’d have the surprise of those 2 pink lines and not the possibility of enduring so much for them.”
‘I never for one second in my life thought I’d meet someone worthwhile on a dating app.’: Woman shares tips for online dating success after meeting current fiancé
“I used to think dating apps were the bane of my existence. Fast forward 7 months later, I am engaged and my kids are the happiest they have ever been.”
‘The male gynecologist told me to ‘grin and bear it.’ I knew my symptoms were real, but no one believed me.’: Woman with severe perimenopause finds relief after 9 years of suffering
“I was embarrassed to go out in public. I felt like I was suffering in silence—were there other women going through this? Would I ever find relief? Would I ever feel like myself again? I could have just accepted my new normal. I could have stopped advocating for myself, especially as my parents’ health declined and my marriage ended. But I didn’t give up.”
‘I noticed your scar. How long has it been?’ I was surprised. Then she asked to hug me.’: Cancer survivor touched by stranger’s act of kindness
“Unless it happens to you or someone you know, you never notice. She inspired me to show gratitude for where I am now.”
‘I did everything and anything to get her to love me, and nothing worked. I wrote out who I needed her to be. Who I had dreamt of her being. And then I grieved them.’: Daughter to toxic mother urges ‘you are worthy of healthy love’
“My mother had been rejecting me from conception. She had tried to miscarry me her whole pregnancy. She hated me so much that when I was born, she struggled to even touch me or hold me. I realized I would never win, I would never have ‘That Mom,’ and I would never have the relationship with her I’d wanted all of these years.”