“I have witnessed this tragedy unfolding right in front of my eyes. Our children are in a devastating emotional state! No, ‘they all are just born like this’ is not the answer. No, ‘it is all the school system’s fault’ is not the answer. As painful as it can be to admit, in many cases, WE, parents, are the answer to many of our kids’ struggles! We must make changes before this entire generation of children will be medicated.”
‘There is a silent tragedy right now, in our homes, and it concerns our most precious jewels – our children.’: Occupational therapist addresses child mental illness epidemic, ‘We have to wake up!’
‘Sometimes, you just end up with the kid that doesn’t sleep. Can we stop telling parents to FIX this?: Mom encourages us to ‘praise’ parents, ‘we are doing the best darn job we can’
“I was that mom, too. With the busy fingers. Googling all the things wrong with my child because he would. not. sleep. Everyone and their mom told me something was WRONG with him. So, I OBSESSED. Don’t co-sleep. Co-sleep. Don’t sleep train. Sleep train. No night feed. Night feed. Oh holy night, guys. ENOUGH. We don’t need a dependent little munchkin that will roll into med school with a binkie and a lovey. Some. Babies. Don’t. Sleep.”
‘I wasn’t thankful last night. I can be a real witch at bedtime. It saddens so much to admit that.’: Mom ‘upset, frustrated’ kids climb in bed with her at night, ‘I threw in the towel’
“We’ll call bedtime ‘rest,’ because it sure as hell isn’t a good night’s sleep. So, when one of my kids can’t fall asleep, it freakin’ frustrates the heck out of me. Then I feel guilty because my poor child is frustrated she can’t sleep, and here I am, making it worse by getting upset with her. I wasn’t thankful last night. Nope. But then she puts her head on my chest.”
‘I went back to work. We needed an income. I’m just going to say it, I don’t feel guilty. I love it.’: Mom enters workforce after 5-year break raising babies, ‘I still wanted my identity’
“Love makes a home, but it doesn’t keep one, and we needed an income. Is there guilt? Well, I listened to the PTA president of my kid’s school talk about how good it is for mothers to be involved. Thanks Betty! Perfect timing. Then there’s missing the baby because he’s asleep when you left, and asleep when you get home. But I’m just going to say it, I don’t feel guilty. I love it.”
‘Can you play baby shark?’ Repeat for 68 hours. Ask someone to cough in your eyeball. Poo with the door open.’: Mom hilariously points out how to ‘prepare for children,’ warning you’re not ready
“Try to unwrap a lollipop in 3 seconds flat. Set a loud timer that screams at you if you fail. Buckle up an octopus in a car seat. Get 3 monkeys and drive around with them. Give them popcorn and honey. Make a snack every 7 minutes. Go to bed Get up again.”
‘Can I sleep with you tonight mommy?’ I still get chills thinking about it. I cried my eyes out.’: Mom swears her child is ‘the reason I am alive,’ after traumatic relationship leaves her contemplating suicide
“I met this guy who was a little older than me. He had a daughter the same age as mine, it was too good to be true. ‘This is it, this is the guy who’s going to fix what was broken.’ But I learned very quickly how someone could live two totally separate lives. It was a nightmare. In that moment, I swear I heard it loud and clear. ‘I gave you the person who needed you the most.’ My daughter walked into my bedroom.”
‘Don’t sleep with your child. You’ll give them attachment issues.’ I’ll lay with you as long as you need.’: Toddler mom encourages co-sleeping despite criticism, ‘it is what feels right’
“When you were first born, I was told by many people to just let you ‘learn to self-settle.’ I was told not to rock you to sleep in my arms. They were sharing what they read in a parenting books. But for us, that is not our truth. You are a toddler now. And each night, I will gladly lay with you, enjoying our cuddles until you quietly drift off to sleep, until you need me no more.”
‘We get a hotel, and we lay down a lot. After putting on comfy clothes and taking bras off of course.’: Mom urges other women to ‘take the girls’ trip to enjoy the ‘simple things’ like ‘naps in the middle of the day
“Take the girls trip. Vacationing with other moms is the best. We fall asleep at 8:30 p.m. and wake up at 7 a.m. because our kids messed us up that way. We don’t judge if someone had to FaceTime their kids loudly and we laugh hilariously when those kids get in a fight we get to hang. Up. The. Phone. And let our husbands deal with it.”
‘I’m ok babe, I overslept.’ My phone lit up with her beautiful face. We went to my hotel room rather than dinner.’: Boyfriend discovers his ‘baby’ overdosed in bed next to him, despite being ‘happiest in a long time’
“She didn’t want me to stay at her apartment because of her obsessed ex that was still showing up uninvited, and unannounced. She was the most beautiful person I’d laid eyes on. She had 3 little girls she loved dearly. All our demons had disappeared. Or so I thought. My sweet Elena told me she was going to the bathroom to take some medicine. Then we sat and talked. ‘I love you so much, just don’t hurt me.’ How silly I thought. She went to sleep soon afterwards.”
‘Would you like help with his meth addiction?’ the doctor said. I was floored. Once everything was out in the open, our home became a pressure cooker.’: Mom escapes domestic abuse in wake of husband’s addiction, urges us to ‘trust our instincts’
“We ended up leaving 5 days before Christmas. The tree was decorated. Stockings hung. I tried to drag my babies out of their good time. I absolutely panicked. I wasn’t rational. But, panic, absolute real panic, is not rational. If I hadn’t left when I did, myself, my children, or all of us would’ve been dead.”
