This is a place for sharing. This is a place for families. This is a place inspired by a mother's love.
Here I sit at the end of another year. Another year of putting myself out there and sharing pieces of my story in the hopes of helping someone else cope with the pieces of their own. Another year of sitting in front of a keyboard trying to find words to capture the thoughts and feelings…
Continue reading ➞ Read An Unexpected Family Outing’s 10 Most-Read Pieces of 2019
If your child of any age has died, there is no question that Christmas is a difficult holiday. There are so many reasons why you might not want to participate in the festivities this holiday season. An individual's reason for choosing whether to celebrate changes from seasons to season and even from moment to moment.…
Continue reading ➞ 19 Ways A Grieving Parent Can Remember Their Child This Christmas
"Hey bubs, guess who's coming over this weekend." It was a simple question for my toddler, asked in an effort to make conversation and prolong our 110th listening of the Little Mermaid soundtrack. "Oh, I know," she responded, her eyes smiling. "Who's coming over?" I repeated. "It's my sister, Dorothy. She will come play." Gripping…
It's been almost four years since my daughter was stillborn. It's been almost four years since I went home without my baby. A day I wish I could forget. And somehow, I remember that day like it was yesterday. On that day, I changed out of my hospital gown and packed up my belongings. I…
After our daughter, Dorothy, was stillborn we wasted no time in finding a therapist. To be completely honest, it was fear that drove me to make the initial call. I was terrified of what would happen to myself, my husband, and our marriage if we did not seek help. I knew we did not have…
Continue reading ➞ After The Death Of Our Baby, Attending Couples Therapy Helped Our Marriage Thrive
I always imagined myself the mother of multiple children. It seemed like a simple enough task. If I wanted two or more children in my family, then all I needed to do was get pregnant, have a baby and repeat the process as desired. As it turns out, getting pregnant has very little to do…
Continue reading ➞ Please Don’t Make Me Choose Between My Child Who Died And My Child Who Lives
Every year, for the past 3 years, I find myself in the greeting card aisle. I stand there wanting to buy a birthday card for my daughter who was stillborn. Nervously scanning the rows of cards and looking for a label that says something like "Birthday For Child From Grieving Parent." Every time I walk…
Continue reading ➞ I Wish Hallmark Made A Birthday Card For My Child Who Died
Losing my daughter has changed the way I think. I don’t just mean my perspective on life has changed, I mean the actual cognitive process of thinking. I have grief brain. Grief brain is what happens to your exhausted mind after the loss of a loved one. I’m not sure how much scientific evidence there…