“We paraded excitedly into the courtroom. The twins, in all of their manic glory, ran about, spun in the judge’s chair, making tons of noise. A shoe was thrown across the room. The oldest sat back and watched in amusement. When the judge asked each kid if he wanted Tom to be his legal father, all 3 responded ‘YES!’ He then turned to Tom and said with a wink, ‘No backsies.’”
‘I’ll show up as the pizza man.’ He was committed from the get-go. ‘MY DAD IS ABDUCTING ME TODAY!’: Widow recalls ‘pizza man turned perfect father’ as new husband steps into dad-role for her adopted sons
‘I was accused of murder. Twice.’: Mother of 6 recalls murder accusations brought against her after gaining custody of half-brother in wake of parent’s deaths
“My father signed over custody to me. The judge granted it one day before he died. We were settling into our new lives when I heard a knock at my door. A USPS worker handed me a certified envelope. I read the horrific accusations. Homicide. Someone is saying I murdered my father. Murdered. That I killed him. Me. His daughter. I hit my knees, sobbing, wanting to die. ‘This is it. I’m going to be arrested.’ I was petrified. What if someone actually believes this?”
‘I love you, Daddy.’ She held his picture tight, wore his cowboy hat. He was gone, it brought her to tears.’: 4-year-old’s father dies in car crash, ‘now her world is upside down’
“At midnight, we were all asleep. My mother-in-law called, crying. ‘Aaron got into an accident. He is dead.’ I hung up the phone without saying a word. I was so scared to tell my husband. I stared at him for a moment. ‘It’s Aaron.’ I’ll never forget seeing him in so much pain. We had to tell his daughter. ‘You know your daddy loves you a bunch?’ She looked so confused.”
‘Can you believe her?,’ I exclaimed. I was so appalled. I’m not ready to say goodbye.’: Widow urges you to ‘be prepared for the unexpected’ after mom catches her off guard preparing for her death
“When I woke up, I noticed I had an email from my mom. Usually, those entail some kind of funny joke or forwarded message, but this time, she needed information. Specifically, my kids’ social security numbers so she can set up accounts for them to be ‘transferable upon (her) death.’ Wait, what?”
‘Mom, we found the note you left. It hurt. Only because I wanted nothing more than the same.’: Daughter’s emotional goodbye to her addict mother, says she ‘never doubted your love for me’
“Growing up, we watched our mom struggle with her drug addiction. We were many times abandoned, left to fend for ourselves. But as a child, I didn’t see that. I saw a mom that made 4 different meals for dinner, a mom that rubbed our back and sang us ‘Delta Dawn’ when we couldn’t fall asleep. A mom that had no money, but dumpster-dived to find us the exact present we wanted for Christmas. She never was perfect, but she was my mom and I loved her.”
‘Promise me, whatever happens, take care of Momma.’ The intercom blared. Mom wailed. He was alive, barely.’: Daughter fulfills promise to her beloved daddy after his death ‘no matter what’
“‘I’m sending you to the ICU right now,’ the doctor told my parents. ‘I want a second opinion,’ my father replied. ‘Frank, you don’t have time for a second opinion…’ It was like any typical Thursday in my world. I found it odd no one was there when I arrived, but hoped Mom had taken Daddy to the doctor for the headaches he’d been having. The phone rang. I could hear my aunt saying, ‘calm down, you’ve got to be strong for him.’ He had an aneurysm at the base of his brain. It could rupture at any time.”
‘A meek, ‘it’s me’ came from the kitchen. It wasn’t my kid. A teenager appeared at my bedroom door.’: Mom has ‘open door policy’ for daughter’s friends after husband’s death, says they’re ‘family’
“I heard the microwave. I called my daughter’s name. Not once, not twice but 5 times with no answer. It wasn’t her. I didn’t know where she came from. It appears my ‘open door policy’ has been taken literally, and to be honest, I’m ok with that. After my husband died, our family of six 6 dwindled down to just me and my daughter. Her friends ARE her family.”
‘This is crazy! We don’t have any pink hats left. This has NEVER happened before.’: Mom realizes signs from her dad in heaven were ‘loud’ throughout pregnancy with son
“Each patient gets a blue and a pink hat. She pulled out a blue one to hand to me. ‘It’s strange. There weren’t any pink ones in there. I don’t know if you believe in signs, but there’s no way the baby you’re carrying is a girl. Absolutely no way!’ I’ve only carried 4 girls. To me, there was no way this baby could be a boy. I wanted nothing more than to give my little brother we adopted a brother.”
‘Mama, please!,’ my daughter cried. She got in the tub, held me in silence, patting my back, giving me kisses.’: Daughter’s intuition picks up on mommy’s ‘debilitating anxiety’
“My husband swiftly removed her multiple times, as I said, ‘Mommy will be done in a minute baby, I am right here.’ I need someone to look me in the eyes and say, ‘I know you’re not okay.’ My daughter did just this for me. I try to hold it together for my child, but she knows. We sat like this for an hour. It was one of the most beautiful gifts anyone could give me.”
‘Yes, my mom died. No, I haven’t gotten over it.’: Grieving daughter frustrated by ‘how quickly people disappear’ after mother’s sudden death to stage 4 cancer
“My mom died. The food came rolling in. The cards. The visitors. The calls and texts. People bombard you. Too much even. Everyone wants to ‘be there for you.’ But the frustrating part? Everyone wants to be there, all at once, at the beginning, and then they all leave.”
