“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.”
‘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’
‘Don’t show your butt like that. You’re a mother.’ I WANT my kids to see a body positive mom.’: Woman mom-shamed after ‘rocking’ a bikini, ‘every woman deserves to feel comfortable in her own skin’
“The other day, I posted a photo of myself in a bikini and was told to cover up…because I’m a mom. Since when are we no longer allowed to feel sexy? There’s no rule that states you can’t rock a bikini because you pushed a baby out of your vagina at some point in life.”
‘Private conversations are not to be confused with public gossip. A good friend is hard to come by.’: Mom’s candid advice on adult friendships, ‘If you have one, hang on tight. Life is easier when you find your people.’
“Mean Girls is so 2004. It is not funny to exclude people on purpose. It is not cute to be nice to someone’s face and tear them apart the minute they leave the room. If you do it to others, it’s only a matter of time before you turn on me. Nice people are my kind of people.”
‘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.”
‘Your son is deaf.’ We were praying it was a huge mistake. They wheeled him out. I lost it.’: Mom shocked by newborn’s severe hearing loss, ‘we had no family history’
“Beckett hadn’t heard for the first 13 months of his life and BAM. He was suddenly hearing. I cried on the way home, if I’m being honest. I received nasty, angry messages. I was ‘playing God’ by wanting to give him the gift of sound. Wanting our son to be able to hear us tell him ‘I love you’ was NOT a selfish thing.”
‘Stop telling moms they ‘have no excuse’ to not be skinny. Being in shape doesn’t mean I’m a better person.’: Mom claims we shouldn’t ‘feel pressured to punish our bodies’
“Oh, you lost all your baby weight and started exercising 2 weeks after giving birth? Great, but I just gave birth and my vagina in still swollen and bleeding. You have 3 kids and wake up at 4 a.m. to exercise? Impressive, but sometimes depression means I’m just trying to get through the day without giving up on life.”
‘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.”
‘Does he sleep in his own bed?’ The question makes me cringe a little. I lie about it, but I shouldn’t have to.’: Mom urges us to ‘trust our intuition’ with meeting milestones and ‘answer shamelessly’
“‘How long did he breastfeed?’ ‘Have you started potty training?’ Confession time. I’ve lied about all of this before. But I’m done feeling ashamed for the choices I make. My kids may not seem ‘independent’ enough for some, and that’s okay because these kids? They’re mine to bring up.”
‘They grow up fast. You’ll miss this someday.’ REALLY? I’m going to miss being tortured by my 2 kids wrestling like bear cubs in a grocery store?’: Mom says it’s okay to ‘not love every part of motherhood,’ admits her kids can be ‘brutally annoying’
“I was at the grocery store today with my kids when I said a little too loudly, NOT in my mom voice, ‘I love you, but you’re REALLY annoying me.’ A young couple walked by, with no kids. ‘Well, that was brutally honest.’ I was judgingly told I’d miss this part of motherhood. I promise, I won’t. And it’s totally OK to tell your kids they’re being annoying when you’ve broken up 19 fights before you even got to the store.”
‘5 out of 6 of my sisters have been sexually assaulted. We’re all under 30. I’ve had ENOUGH.’: Woman pens open letter, claims we ‘can’t change the ugly,’ but we can ‘support each other through it’
“I’m tired of carrying pepper spray. I’m tired of clinging to my cup at parties like some wild animal out of fear of getting roofied, again. I’m tired of school dress codes. No, my shoulders are not sexy or distracting. I’m tired of women covering their bruises with makeup before work. Y’all, I am TIRED.”
