“A September Boy. I was having a September Boy. I was already thinking way far down the road, and clearly so was everyone else. ‘What are you going to do about school?’”
‘After one romp of unprotected make-up sex, I knew I was pregnant with our 2nd child. I was having a September Boy.’: Mom holds son back in school after careful consideration
‘You are GOOD FOR NOTHING!’ I sat in the bathroom, crying, asking, ‘Please, send me a new dad. Please!’: Young man creates his own adopted ‘family’ after surviving traumatic childhood, ‘We may not have the same bloodline, but they gave me life’
“My dad was the disciplinarian at home. DO NOT MAKE DAD ANGRY. I don’t remember hearing ‘I love you.’ From my dad. Ever. He was brought up in the traditional ‘macho’ way. He’d constantly tell me, ‘I had it MUCH worse than you growing up!’ But then something really weird began to happen at school – it made me feel warm and fuzzy. I was validated and encouraged by teachers. Wait, what? A hurricane of hormones was wreaking havoc on me. I was an angry teen who needed to fill the hole in my heart.”
‘My ears got hot, my blood was boiling. I took a screen shot of his soul-crushing report card. My mommy instinct was pissed.’: Mom appalled by son with Down syndrome’s report card, ‘Stay angry. Keep fighting for your child.’
“The envelope showed up in Judah’s backpack. I wasn’t expecting his report card, but I was eager to see how the goals we put in place manifested themselves. Imagine my surprise when that paper was littered with the lowest scores possible. My stomach lurched. My logical brain understood, but my mommy instinct was still pissed. Imagine how this little boy will feel when he understands what those 1’s will signify?!”
‘Mommy, what is this?’ ‘That’s a condom.’ My kids know about masturbation. They know sex isn’t for children, but can be pleasurable for adults.’: Mom raises kids in ‘sex-positive family’
“‘How are babies made?’ ‘An adult male will put his penis inside an adult female’s vagina and they have sex.’ I was horrified to find out many grown women didn’t know the names for their own anatomy! As ADULTS, they’d never learned. My children are 5, 7, and 8. They know all about consent, menstruation, sex, pedophiles and puberty. I’d rather they learn from me than the playground or internet.”
‘You are on the highest dose I can legally prescribe.’ I sat in the doctor’s office, ashamed of who I’d turned into.’: Young woman with OCD/anxiety gets off medication, finally finds she ‘has the tools to power through any obstacles’
“I walked out of the office and something just clicked. I didn’t want to rely on medication anymore to be happy. I didn’t want to live my life this way any longer. I knew in my heart there had to be some other option.”
‘I’m beautiful, Mama!,’ she whispered, beaming. I found myself in tears as I watched my baby girl twirl.’: Mom learns lesson from her little girl’s winter coat, ‘She didn’t need affirmation’
“We fluffed up the coat and zipped it up snugly on her petite frame. She twirled, danced and giggled inside the purple puffs. Then she stopped to look up at me, so sweet, so pure. It struck me that she couldn’t actually see herself. She wasn’t looking in a mirror. I felt the tears pooling behind my eyes.”
‘My son got suspended 5 days for beating up his bully. As a parent, I’m supposed to be upset with him. Not even a little.’: Mom shares plea for change after son is continuously bullied
“When this kid constantly threatened to beat Drew up, the school did nothing. When this kid followed Drew down the hall making fun of him on video, the school did nothing. When other kids told teachers and administrators he was harassing Drew, the school did nothing. Drew decided he would quit relying on the adults to protect him. He decided HE would do something.”
‘People HAVE to stop coddling and enabling their kids. Any passion I had for this work has been wrung out of me.’: Woman addresses ‘teacher abuse’ before quitting profession, ‘no one wins’
“For as long as I can remember, it’s been a dream of mine to have a classroom of my own, and now my heart is broken. I’ve never heard of a profession where people put so much of their heart and soul into their job and get treated so disrespectfully from all sides. I’ve made the decision to leave teaching at the end of this year. THIS HAS TO STOP.”
‘A man said something to me about not knowing what to do when he sees breastfeeding in public in this age of #MeToo. Yes, he was serious.’: Woman schools man on his ignorant comment, ‘Keep your mouth shut’
“He went on to explain he can’t help but ‘notice’ breastfeeding, and since he’s a guy, he can’t help looking at breasts when they’re ‘just out there.’ Yes, I educated him.”
‘Do you know what sex is?’ I pointed to the diagram. ‘I’m SIX, mom!’ He squirmed and furrowed his brows.’: Mom says we shouldn’t ‘have the sex talk,’ ‘we should have many’
“So, the ‘big talk’ was finished, right? Not even close. A year later, my son asked, ‘Mom, what is sex?’ after he heard a kid at school mention the word. I’d been patting myself on the back thinking my son was well-informed up to this point. I remember thinking, ‘Dear god, what if I’m too late?’ My instinct was to stall for time.”
