“The roses on the counter don’t mean a dang thing when your new baby has been inconsolably crying for three hours straight. When you haven’t left the house in a week, haven’t showered, and can’t remember the last time you brushed your teeth. Marry the man who hovers over your daughter at bath time every single night and prays over her sweet life.”
‘Marry the man who will take the screaming baby as soon as he gets home from a long day at work and tells you to go grab a latte.’: Woman urges ‘who you marry matters’
‘She’s been hard to live with. She’s been angry, quick to argue. I promise it’s not always you. It’s everything else.’: Woman pens letter to partners of stressed moms, ‘Her story needs a hero, and you’re the perfect part’
“What if you go home today and notice she’s still angry, frustrated, and (ridiculously) quick to argue. What if, instead of choosing to join her chaos, you choose to help settle it? Her story really, really needs a hero…and I think you’re perfect for the part.”
‘She comes from a broken home. Are you sure you want to marry her?’ My heart sank into my stomach.’: Woman urges ‘just because you come from a broken home doesn’t mean you’re broken’
“The words were written in a letter addressed to my soon-to-be husband. Was the author right? Did he deserve better? My emotion overflowed from my eyes and ran down my cheeks.”
‘Valentine’s Day is living out of a laundry basket. It’s no cuddly bears, late dinner, and wondering, ‘Who left the milk on the counter?’: Woman shares candid reality of Valentine’s Day as a mom and wife, ‘There’s no place I’d rather be’
“He’d get home late from work with jewelry and a stuffed teddy bear. We’d spend hours getting dressed at our parents’ homes and act like we just ‘threw something on.’ We’d eat at a nice restaurant. It was cute. Today, he’ll work 9 hours, I’ll work 12. It’s a series of crazy, chaotic moments. It’s not eating dinner until 7 p.m. No cuddly bears or shiny jewelry. It’s living out of a laundry basket for days, and figuring out who’s going to the birthday party.”
‘Stop settling for half ass men. You deserved to feel loved, momma.’: Mom urges parenthood is teamwork, ‘the right man will help out in all the ways you need’
“I see your posts, momma. ‘I never get to sleep in, but my man always does.’ ‘I’m so tired of never having help.’ ‘I wish I could be as carefree as my husband.’ The right man will step up and do whatever needs to be done to help out his family. You shouldn’t have to beg.”
‘Our marriage isn’t 50/50. We don’t keep scoreboards. We love as much as you can, whenever we can. The rest will fall into place.’: Woman reminds us relationships are all about ‘recognizing needs’
“Sure, some days look like 50/50. I’ll cook dinner as he sets the table. I’ll do the dishes as he sweeps the floor. But a relationship is one day showing up 80, while giving grace when your partner can only show up 20. And one day showing up 30, while giving thanks to your partner who is showing up 70. We have chosen to never keep score.”
‘Would you change things?’ I answer without hesitation, ‘No.’ We looked like a happy couple, but we both knew it was over.’: Super Dad is single father to 3 kids, ‘I’ve learned how to literally be 2 people at the same time.’
“It seems like I’m just a cool dad having fun while his wife is at work. But that’s not the case. We looked like a happy couple. You’d never know I was sleeping in my children’s playroom on a futon. I remember my mentor being honest with me, ‘You are an African American male in Texas, serving in the military. It’s highly unlikely you’ll get primary custody of your kids.’ I joined the 15 percent of single dads around the world that have primary custody of their kids. Now, I’m a full-time father of the 3 most resilient kids I know.”
‘Why didn’t you adopt your own kind?’ They’re African-American, I’m Italian, my husband is Filipino. My love for them is like no other.’: Couple adopt 5 children from foster care, ‘I wouldn’t have it any other way!’
“Something traumatic happened to one of the girls. The unwanted drama and heartache began. The social worker took us for a wild ride. She gave us an ultimatum. ‘If you don’t take the youngest sister back, I will take all 3 girls and place them in another home.’ I knew in my heart I couldn’t handle 6 children! One minute they needed to be adopted, and the next they were going home with their biological family.”
‘I looked at him and said, ‘Have we been loving each other wrong?’ After 10 years, my husband and I finally learned how to.’: Couple learn to appreciate each other’s needs
“My husband was distracted by his phone at dinner. I got a little upset. ‘How could he not know how important date nights are to me?’ When we got home, my husband got upset at the growing pile of dishes. ‘I’m sorry, but it’s not a big deal.’ Then, like I’d tried to explain about not having one-on-one attention, he tried to explain why the dishes made him feel not appreciated. For the past 10 years, we’ve been loving each other the wrong way. Loving someone the way you want to be loved doesn’t always work.”
‘I received a call at work. ‘I saw your boyfriend with another woman.’ She was someone I knew, married, with kids of her own.’: Woman marries dream man after infidelity, separation, ‘He is proof everything happens for a reason!’
“She was someone who had been at family events and had been around my child. I had just run into her earlier that week. My heart sank. I was forced to move out of my home and become a single mom. After I finally stopped fighting for a life that was never meant to be, I met Ryan. The moment I got in his truck, I knew. ‘If you want to date me, you have to date my daughter.’ I was tough. I shared the good, the bad, and the ugly, but he choose to stay. Through it all, without a question, he chose me. And he chose my daughter, too.”
