“’I’ll just take him to the living room,’ I said to my sister who was in mid-conversation, talking about what it’s like being a new mom. That was when my grandmother spoke. In one line she had evaluated my situation—single, 36, unmarried—and concluded my childless fate. What was my life? I thought I’d done everything right.”
‘I’m so sad you’ll never have a baby,’ my grandma said. I wanted to run. There was certitude in her tone, finality.’: Woman has realization after grandmother’s comment, gets pregnant on her own, ‘It was something I needed to do’
‘The tech printed the ultrasound photos. I IMMEDIATELY saw a second form. A little guardian angel was over our rainbow baby, giving him a kiss!’: Couple in tears after ‘guardian angel’ shows up on ultrasound in wake of miscarriage
“After the positive pregnancy test, we were both overjoyed, but the worrying really started. What if I miscarried? It took Troy a long time to discuss the loss of his previous baby with anyone. He went into a depression for months. We agreed to wait to announce the news. The next morning, I followed up for the ultrasound. Everything looked great. Then, I saw it. I texted my boyfriend the photos. We smiled through tears.”
‘We will love you no matter what, even if you decide not to stick around.’ I was scared of losing her. I finally reached my breaking point.’: Gay mom suffers postpartum anxiety after struggling with infertility, ‘I desperately wanted to be understood’
“I finally reached my breaking point. My wife was getting ready to leave town for work. I had a panic attack and Brittany had to cancel her trip. It was hard for her. She didn’t know how to help me. It hurt her to see me struggling, I could see it in her eyes. I was embarrassed. I wanted someone to say, ‘You’re not alone, it happened to me too.’”
‘Yes, Meg. The baby is healthy, stop worrying.’ Coward. She knew. I saw it and felt sick. I didn’t want to hold her.’: Mom unknowingly births baby with Down syndrome, ‘I want to shout her worth to the world!’
“I grabbed a nurse’s arm as she walked by. ‘What’s wrong, is she okay?’ Stumbling over her words, she responded with, ‘Congratulations, she’s beautiful!’ Coward. She handed her to me before quickly walking out of the room, like she was some kind of damaged goods. Her tongue could barely fit in her mouth. I didn’t want to hold her, feed her, or even look at her. I was furious. All I could hear was that damn whispering.”
‘We couldn’t possibly have known. There was so much more ahead of us.’: Woman reminisces on being a clueless new mother, ‘You’ll all be OK because you already know the secret, how to love this baby’
“I just found this picture behind another photo in a frame and I’ve unearthed a memory. I see young me, about 3 weeks into my mom journey. I couldn’t possibly have known. And I’m glad I didn’t.”
‘I see you peeking!’ He slowly opened his eyes, blinking up at us. His tiny hand closed around my husband’s finger. Our hearts were forever changed.’: Couple adopts after surprise pregnancy, ‘I welcome every ounce of chaos and noise’
“‘Let’s not get our hopes up,’ I told my husband after the shock of the positive pregnancy settled in. He nodded in agreement. But then I received a very unexpected phone call. ‘Jeanette, do you want to be a mother?’ I realized what was about to happen and halted the conversation. ‘Wait!’ I shouted. ‘Can I three-way Zach onto this call?’ I quickly dialed him. Zach was in shock. I had not prepped him. The same week we miscarried our first child, our future son was conceived.”
‘6 weeks pregnant with our surprise third baby, my husband of 7 years packed his bags and left me.’: Woman empowered to embrace single parenting after husband leaves her during pregnancy, ‘You are worthy. I finally believed it.’
“My face was red and my eyes were swollen from sobbing. When we were good, we were great. When we were bad, we were absolutely volatile. She dropped the inevitable bombshell. ‘Where do you think this is coming from?’ ‘What he put me through,’ I replied. ‘Deeper, Amber.’ It hit me. There was no miracle. Our marriage was over.”
‘I can feel her head!’ You were pregnant, living under a bridge. Those precious cries are something I’ll never forget.’: 911 dispatcher shares act of kindness for homeless woman birthing twins, ‘sometimes all you need is a little love and support’
“It was 4 a.m. and 39 degrees outside. You had no pregnancy symptoms and found out barely a month ago you were expecting! The contractions hit. You thought you had time to get to the hospital. When they increased in intensity, you realized that was not the case. You quickly dialed 911 and they transferred you to me. This call was a rough one for me. You were in so much pain, cold, and all alone. As a mom too, I can’t imagine how you felt. I could tell you wanted to do better.”
‘Help me!’ The color drained from my face. I awoke to cramping and blood dripping on the bathroom floor.’: LGBT couple navigate homophobia, reciprocal IVF journey, ‘our girls will be filled with lots of love’
“Our babies! Were they gone? We drove the 3 hours to the IVF clinic. The doctor informed us, ‘One baby is still there, and next to the baby is a blood clot 4 times its size.’ I remember my eyes filling with tears. I began crying on my wife’s shoulder. ‘What you two are doing isn’t right.’ No one ever tells you how hard it will be to have kids when you’re gay.”
‘That is a mean mug.’ I saw my little girl for the first time. She was NOT impressed.’: Parents surprised by daughter’s hilariously angry face after birth
“The next day, after a well deserved rest, the family appeared to meet our baby girl. With them taking photos and taking turns holding ‘the potato,’ we really starting to notice her face. She was NOT happy with being evicted. I told my husband as he was holding Luna, ‘check out that face.’ She had his stupid mean mug face, but unlike him, she made it look good.”
