Motherly Stories
Motherhood changes us. Celebrate the ups and downs with these honest, insightful essays about becoming—and being—a mom.
To my son: You won’t always need me like you do now
But today you do.
I’m going to let my teens trick or treat for as long as they want to
If my kids can hold onto the youthfulness of Halloween like I did, I’ll be promoting their involvement every step of the way.
15 reasons why it isn’t ‘selfish’ for me to not want a child right now
It’s important to know what you want and to not sacrifice your own wants and needs for the sake of peer pressure (or the sake of giving your parents grandkids!)
It’s OK to be ‘that’ mom
The mom that actually lets her kid decorate their pumpkin project for school with glitter and glue instead of “Pinterest-ing” a cute Disney character and doing it for them.
You don’t have to be the perfect parent—be the parent you want them to remember
We can’t make our children or our families be exactly what we want or imagined. But we can take a look at ourselves with kindness and ask if this is really who we want to be—for ourselves and for our family.
Putting myself out there to make mom friends was hard, but so worth it
I needed women who were going through the same experiences, joys and challenges that I was. I craved connection, validation and support.
We need to respect our kids’ bodily autonomy at the doctor’s office too
No doubt, there is a very real dilemma between receiving necessary health care and respecting a child’s physical independence.
What my son taught me about my anxiety
I can say with full certainty that I would not be on this road to healing if he had not shown me that it is possible.
I hope my kids have ‘forever friends’—like the ones I have
Forever friends have known us for decades—and they're still here.
Why I don’t make my kids apologize
With your help in a practice called co-regulation, children feel seen and safe and can then process the impact of their words and actions.
Having micropreemie twins taught me it’s OK to grieve for babies who are still alive
"Having so many people tell me that I was strong somehow made me convince myself that I was. Looking back now, I don’t know how I survived without a complete mental collapse—because I was not strong. I simply survived."
My family went on a month-long national park road trip—here’s how we did it
Here’s the inside scoop on how to spend a month on the road visiting several national parks.
Keeping my home clean and organized makes me a better mom—and it saves my sanity, too
My needs in my own home don’t reflect my judgment of how you care for your home. You do you and I’ll do me.
I want to limit screen time—but sometimes it’s the only break I get
As the realities of parenthood set in, tiny bits of screen time have become a saving grace in those desperate times of need.
I felt mom guilt and shame for having a picky eater
My toddler's diet had become a menu of all the things I said I’d never feed my child—until I had my child.
‘The village’ is great, but the ‘parenting safety net’ is better
This isn’t your Mom Squad, nor is it the proverbial "village" that everyone talks about. Though those things are very important too.
A letter to my firstborn before your sibling arrives
We’re stepping out of our old life into a new one. I’m excited to add another to our family, but I'm grieving, too.
First-time mamas reach milestones, too—right alongside their baby
We are growing up together by experiencing the same moments from two very different lenses.
‘My life is a freaking circus’
If we’re so distracted by the loud noises and flashing lights in our own minds, we won’t have enough headspace to even realize that we’re suffering or struggling.
My introverted child doesn’t need to be ‘fixed’
Why do we think children have to be social to be happy?