“They looked up her nose. Something was there. I had a knot in my stomach before he even spoke. My mind flashed back to a Google search I had done that fit her symptoms. Cancer.”
‘There’s a mass behind her nose.’ Her runny nose became blood-tinged. She could barely hold her head up. I knew it was bad.’: Mom details daughter’s cancer journey, ‘Never give up hope’
‘OMG! It’s not working. Give him one more dose. ANOTHER.’ Everything went downhill, and FAST.’: Woman recounts heartbreaking and unexpected loss of father, ‘I wouldn’t wish this pain on anyone’
“All day I kept having a weird feeling—like maybe I should call and ask him, ‘How are you?’ I just put it off as something else. The hospital assured us he was fine. I just shut down. I can’t explain it, but this switch in me just turned off. I don’t remember much after.”
‘I can’t raise a child. I can’t even take care of myself!’ I had nothing left to live for. Or so I thought.’: Woman recovers from addiction for daughter, ‘All it took was a tiny shimmer of hope’
“Self-medication was the only thing keeping me alive. I sat outside, chain-smoking and chugging a bottle of wine. ’My boyfriend is an addict and I can’t get sober.’ I was never supposed to get pregnant.”
‘The detective said, ‘I need to speak with you immediately. This is the strangest thing to ever happen at the New Jersey DEA. Come to the precinct at once.’: Mom hilariously recalls Christmas gift gone wrong, ‘The things we do for our kids’
“I tried to get the best Christmas gift for my daughter on Etsy and accidentally became embroiled in an international drug-smuggling ring. The things we do for our kids.”
‘The photographer asked, ‘Would you like to retake the photo without the tooth sticking out?’ She replied, ‘Nope, I’m good!’ She doesn’t conform to societal standards.’: Mom admires ‘strong-willed’ daughter after hilarious school photos
“This is the look of a strong-willed girl who knows exactly what she’s doing. Look how proud she is!”
‘Try not to cry, you won’t be able to wipe your tears.’ I thought I’d faint from shock. Tears rolled down his face. ‘We’re here now, Pops.’: Woman loses father to COVID-19, ‘We’re never alone’
“We looked like something out of a space movie. Shoe covers, face mask, visor, and two pairs of gloves. ‘There’s nothing more we can do.’ No more miracles. He was gone.”
‘I sat behind moms at my daughter’s game. They commented on everything she did wrong, how with ‘that height’ she should be doing a.b.c. ‘Why would the coach leave her in?’: Mom urges ‘choose kindness’ after adult bullying incident
“I sat there fuming and almost ready to say something or cry.”
‘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.”
‘If I make her breakfast at 3 a.m. and wash her hair, maybe I can save her!’ I won’t tell her yet.’: Daughter takes care of mom before she passes, ‘I never gave up on you’
“‘Why me?’ she’d ask. But I was 22 and very much alive, how could I know? ‘We aren’t done fighting.’”
‘Mismatched socks. In a world filled with chaos, mismatched socks add joy to my day.’: Mom urges ‘there are bigger battles’
“Keeping track of those stubborn mates for four girls is near impossible. Actually, it IS an impossible task, and I’m not willing or ready to even begin to tackle it.”
