“If one more kid gets out of bed for so much as a SNIFF of water, I’m going to pull my freakin hair out. That child might end up on the front porch wearing a ‘for sale’ sign. I just can’t anymore. I needed space. I needed something to belong to ME.”
‘My car was stolen, along with my purse. Then I talked with my doctor about some scary reconstruction surgeries. Breast cancer isn’t quite done with me.’: Mom explains why she is ‘dog tired’ and giving herself ‘new beginnings’
‘After one romp of unprotected make-up sex, I knew I was pregnant with our 2nd child. I was having a September Boy.’: Mom holds son back in school after careful consideration
“A September Boy. I was having a September Boy. I was already thinking way far down the road, and clearly so was everyone else. ‘What are you going to do about school?’”
‘They used to line up to watch me leave. ‘Don’t forget to beep and wave!’ they’d yell, 5 little faces pressed up against the glass.’: Mom realizes she’s now alone as it’s her children who are leaving
“Even if I was just running to the store for 10 minutes… 5 little faces would be pressed up against the glass. And if God forbid we would forget to beep and wave… so many tears. But today, I stood at that window alone.”
‘You are GOOD FOR NOTHING!’ I sat in the bathroom, crying, asking, ‘Please, send me a new dad. Please!’: Young man creates his own adopted ‘family’ after surviving traumatic childhood, ‘We may not have the same bloodline, but they gave me life’
“My dad was the disciplinarian at home. DO NOT MAKE DAD ANGRY. I don’t remember hearing ‘I love you.’ From my dad. Ever. He was brought up in the traditional ‘macho’ way. He’d constantly tell me, ‘I had it MUCH worse than you growing up!’ But then something really weird began to happen at school – it made me feel warm and fuzzy. I was validated and encouraged by teachers. Wait, what? A hurricane of hormones was wreaking havoc on me. I was an angry teen who needed to fill the hole in my heart.”
‘My ears got hot, my blood was boiling. I took a screen shot of his soul-crushing report card. My mommy instinct was pissed.’: Mom appalled by son with Down syndrome’s report card, ‘Stay angry. Keep fighting for your child.’
“The envelope showed up in Judah’s backpack. I wasn’t expecting his report card, but I was eager to see how the goals we put in place manifested themselves. Imagine my surprise when that paper was littered with the lowest scores possible. My stomach lurched. My logical brain understood, but my mommy instinct was still pissed. Imagine how this little boy will feel when he understands what those 1’s will signify?!”
‘Those boys were being mean to my brother. So, I made sure that won’t happen again.’: Older sister fiercely protective of baby brother, realizes how difficult it was to grow up in her shadow
“My brother had such talent. ‘Do you have any idea how hard it was to grow up behind you, in your shadow? You made everything look easy, and it’s not. I have to do this by myself,’ he told me. My heart shattered.”
‘If you’d asked me back then if I was a bully, I would’ve given you an emphatic, ‘No Way! As if?’: Woman realizes she was a ‘background bully’ who ‘stirred the pot’
“I never, ever said explicitly mean things to anyone’s face. I only said it because I felt sorry for you! You know the kind – those Gretchen Weiner-type girls who feigned shock when one of their friends said something hurtful, but then giggled about it anyway.”
‘I missed my daughter’s honor roll assembly so I could go for a walk and burn off anxiety. It’s not selfish, it’s called self-love.’: Woman responds to mom shamers, ‘taking care of ourselves IS taking care of our kids’
“I was struggling deep with anxiety and had a long work day ahead of me. I needed a break. The next day, several moms at school asked me why I wasn’t there with my husband and my mom who was in town visiting. Women were judging me. So much so that they felt the need to privately message me to insult me.”
‘Kids can be so mean. Schools are breeding grounds for cliques. Teach them to be inclusive. Teach them not to judge, not to bully.’: Mom urges other parents to ‘teach your children to be nice’
“Our kids’ teachers have the math, reading, science, arts, and writing covered. And, Lord knows they make up for the parenting mistakes we are making at home. But, my goodness, what a ginormous favor we can do those educators, and the world, if we teach our children to be nice.”
‘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.’
“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.”
