“The original doctor who discharged us asked what we were doing back. I wanted to slap him. You’re supposed to shield your child from awful things, not be a participant.”
‘He looked up at us and then dropped to the ground seizing. This time was different. I thought our nightmare was over, but the universe had other plans.’
‘One mom wrote me after relapsing, again. She was feeling such shame, afraid I would think differently of her.’
“I have been Mama to 12 over the last 4 years. Our family is twisty and tangled. A story of commitment, choice and tragedy.”
‘I was ejected and thrown 50 feet from my car. I died that day. I knew I couldn’t feel my legs, but I didn’t know why. I was told I would never walk again.’
“I think every girl dreams of walking down the aisle to her husband. I had pictured it in my head since I was a little girl. I didn’t want that picture to play out differently just because of my accident. So I chased my dream.”
‘I vividly remember the crazy looks I got with my huge pregnant belly and a newborn baby draped across my chest. I would stare too. It’s an odd sight, and honestly something I never imagined for myself.’
“But, there I was, about to have 2 babies 3 months apart.”
‘It was love at first sight. 3 days later, we were engaged. His symptoms of PTSD began to show. I would wear makeup to cover the bruises on my cheek.’
“His grandmother grabbed me and said, ‘You marry that boy. You don’t worry about anything anyone else has to say. They will get over it. Make him happy.’”
‘I had never seen my dad cry before. He had already seen my dress, that wasn’t it. It is almost unexplainable.’
“This was one of the most nerve wrecking moments in my life. He kept slowly telling me to ‘breathe.’ I knew this was actually a reminder for himself.”
‘I hadn’t realized this Christmas was the last one we’d spend as a whole family. After dinner, my phone rang. Concerned, I answered, and my world was rocked once more.’
“I was crocheting, like how we spent most nights. It was my mom, who never called me this time of evening as she worked night shift and would normally still be sleeping.”
‘We surprised mom and dad with someone they love. She wasn’t looking at him, but she was smiling. She was giggling. And then it happened – she started humming.’
“We were beside ourselves with the happiness he was bringing her and how she was letting him, and all of us know, she knew he was there. She knew who he was. We soaked it in, knowing it all may be fleeting.”
‘I gave birth to my first daughter when I was 21. I was in college and barely knew this baby’s father before I got pregnant. Here we are, about to be parents to 6.’
“My father’s wife passed away. They had a 2-year-old son. Biologically, he is my brother. My dad had to make the heart wrenching decision on who would be best fit to raise him.”
‘He was a volunteer firefighter. He received a call after I left about an accident about a mile from his house. He decided to go – that’s just the person he is.’
“He was hit by another alleged drunk driver, who was also a volunteer firefighter arriving to the scene.”
