“Once we got to the hotel, the kids immediately wanted to go swimming. While they were playing, I took a picture of my baby watching them. I posted it with the caption, ‘watching the siblings swim!,’ as well as a location tag of Breckenridge, Colorado. Within 30 minutes, I received a comment that honestly blew me away.”
‘Your kids played hooky from school today? Wow. Mother of the year.’ What? I was laughing out loud in the hotel.’: Mom responds to ‘rude’ person who called her out for taking kids skiing, ‘School can teach a lot of things. But it can’t teach adventure.’
‘None of this was worth it!’ I was honestly holding back tears. I drove home crying, horrified.’: Mom incredibly ‘disappointed’ by 6-year-old son’s theater performance, then finally realizes what matters, ‘the kid was a star’
“My immediate first reaction was, ‘Crap. He’s totally freaked out. Maybe I was wrong in thinking he would love this!’ Then he began twirling – in the curtains. I cringed. ‘Oh my. He’s totally not listening!’ I started to get this fiery, internal rage inside of me. WHY wasn’t anyone there to direct him?! He’s 6! I was so shocked.”
‘Gianna would love to talk to you.’ I instantly regretted my decision. ‘Do I really want her at my house?’ We set a date.’: Mothers form unlikely bond through special needs daughters, ‘Everyone is struggling. Some of us just hide it better’
“She thought we should meet. Would it be awkward? Texting a stranger? I knew what I needed to do first. Look her up on Facebook. I immediately found her page and was instantly intimidated by her photo. Her profile picture was of her on their wedding day. She was beautiful, thin, gorgeous. There were no photos of her daughter’s face. Everything was vague. Did she think she was Blue Ivy? What’s the deal with that? I am a chronic over-sharer. Surely we wouldn’t have anything in common. Oh how wrong I was.”
‘Sarah never even remembers a snack for her kid.’ I couldn’t believe all the crap they were talking about their ‘friend.’: Mom overhears rude comments on playground, insists ‘mom guilt’ is already intense, no need to amplify ‘shame’
“Today at the playground, I heard a group of moms who must have been the ambassadors of the Mom Shame Committee. I could not believe all the crap they were talking about their ‘friend.’ I need you to know that your children are not perfect. The quicker you can get that in your head, the better.”
‘My daughter has a sister, it’s complicated. I was almost ‘Mama’ to that sweet girl.’: Adoptive mom ‘heartbroken’ after daughter’s biological sister not placed with their family
“Seven months ago, my husband and I were in the back seat of a friend’s car on the way to dinner when the phone rang. It was a social worker. She told us that a baby had been born into foster care– our daughter had a biological sister. We could take a couple of days to decide, but we needed to let her know ASAP if we were interested. I had a full-blown panic attack.”
‘MA’AM!!! Ma’am stop! Please stop! You forgot your baby in the car!’ I didn’t even realize she was talking me.’: Mom caught off guard when stranger ‘causes a scene’ in grocery store parking lot
“She thought I left my baby in the car. This woman was YELLING. She caused a scene, people turned to look at the commotion. To be completely honest, I didn’t even realize she was talking to me. As I was pushing the cart into the cart return, I turned to look at her. Oh. She was talking to ME. She was waving her hands and started running towards me! I felt horrified.”
‘He opened his beautiful, dark grey eyes, wise beyond his years. We made him comfortable, and waited.’: Mom vows ‘as long as I live, Daniel’s memory will too’ after losing son to congenital heart defect
“At the end of this long, exhausting appointment, Charity says, ‘Oh, and congratulations on your baby.’ Congratulations on our baby? You mean the one you told me is going to die? I ran out of that room so fast. Despite it all, his broken heart kept beating. I recall a single tear escaping my eye and falling on his face.”
‘How can I smile when Justin is dead? How can I ever smile again?’: Mom feels immense ‘guilt’ for enjoying newborn son after husband’s sudden death by ‘stray bullet’
“I remember the exact moment I first smiled again after Justin died. I’d cried so much, I was caught off guard when it happened. I was a new mom. Instead of celebrating a life, I was mourning one. Days after our son was born, he was killed by a stray bullet. My friend was next to me, ‘Honey, it’s okay to smile at your baby.’ I protested. But then I realized, ‘OH MY GOD, I’M MISSING OUT ON MY BABY!’”
‘I used to bring my daughter to the office before we had childcare. She was only 8 WEEKS OLD!’: Mom ‘privileged’ to have employer who ‘allowed, encouraged’ her to bring newborn into work after maternity leave
“I second guessed returning to work after my maternity leave ended. Would it be worth it? But I had to go back. I finally expressed my anxiety to my manager. Her first response? ‘Just bring her with you when you come back! We can have an office baby!’ It was unbelievable. She can’t be serious! But she and everyone else in the office were so excited and supportive and ready for Baby P to join the team!”
‘I’ve been on maternity leave for exactly 6 weeks. I couldn’t imagine heading back to work today.’: Mom insists it’s just ‘not enough time’ to ‘connect with our babies’
“In 6 weeks that I’ve been home, I haven’t slept more than 4 hours at a time. My days revolve around changing diapers, nursing and pumping, and trying to figure out why my baby is crying. And while my motherly instincts are loud and clear, we are nowhere near a daily routine yet. I couldn’t imagine going back to work right now.”
