“Isaac made our day, just by taking his time with us. We’ve never met Isaac before, but as he watched Lilly approaching the bagging area, she started to get the first bag ready. I’ll never forget, he asked if she would like to help him.”
‘She bagged all our groceries and told Isaac, ‘I love you.’ I don’t know how he knew how meaningful this would be to her, but somehow, he did.’
‘The nurse said, ‘She’s going.’ She looked me right in the eyes as I brushed her hair. ‘It’s okay, Grandma. Go see Grandpa and the girls.’
“My dad got the phone call. ‘Get back here….NOW!’ She hugged me and said, ‘I love you, Tootsiebell.’”
‘He is a good son. We love you Jeff.’ I couldn’t stop sobbing. He went on, as if they both were standing next to his bed. His eyes were closed, but he had the most peaceful smile.’
“He was sleeping, when I heard him say something. I leaned in. As clear as can be, he started having a conversation with Mom and Jeff. Jeff is his son, who died 2 years ago. They were whole, healthy, and together once again. I was overwhelmed by what had just taken place.”
‘It’s not my job to make you happy. Sorry, buckaroo. You’re going to have to figure that one out on your own. I’ll make sure I am happy.’
“’You’ve screwed up again.’ You’ll be out of this house. And when that happens, there won’t be much we can do to make you happy anymore.”
‘Come on, Jenn, you can do this!’ We were going to be parents of not only one little baby, but twins. He was admitted to the hospital just three months before my due date.’
“Justin went to urgent care because his chest was hurting. I could tell by the look on his face that he had bad news to share with me. I remember being in my two-bedroom apartment sobbing uncontrollably and screaming at the top of my lungs.”
‘You’re 12 weeks along, but it looks like the baby hasn’t grown since the 8-week mark.’ I blurted out, ‘Oh, well that’s a bummer.’ I felt like monster.’
“It was hard for my husband to look at me. We had to call our family and tell them the news. They took it much harder than I did. All my mom wanted to do was hug me. It was very smothering.”
‘We found out we were pregnant at 17. We were scared. Soon after, we were having a second. I am so grateful for my ex. I never thought I would say those words. But here I am. So grateful for my ex.’
“We had the ‘million dollar’ family. A boy, a girl, and two high school sweethearts who got married and made it through teen pregnancy. But then, we started to lose the ‘spark.'”
‘This is not my year to run a marathon, drink 2 gallons of water a day, or make healthy, home-cooked meals. It is my year to survive.’
“This year, I’m laying it all down. I can’t. The truth is, I’m in the weeds. Some years aren’t meant to be record-breaking. Some years are meant to survive.”
‘I mentioned how different my hair felt. Her eyes widened as she touched my head. My thick blonde locks were noticeably thinner.’
“That day at the hair salon was pivotal. As I sat with foils covering my head, I knew I had to make some changes. For so many years I had put others before me, it was time to take control of my life.”
‘It’s the mom who won’t look at you because she’s afraid she will say something stupid. It’s the girl who sends 50 text messages in 1 hour because her thoughts tell her you don’t like her.’
“The photo on the right was a week after I got out of psych ward that I posted to social media with a hashtag #happy.”
