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Category: Our stories

  • I Am Your Forgotten Friend

    I am your forgotten friend.

    We may have known each other for years. I’m in your circle of Friends, the group, the squad, but I’m nobody’s favourite.

    I get invited and I always show up and we have a good time, but would anyone miss me if I wasn’t there?

    When it comes down to sitting around the table nobody says oh I’ll sit with you. When it comes to getting in cars, I’ll be in the front next to the driver, nobody wants me in the back with them.

    They’ve got their favourites, everyone’s got a favourite in their group of friends, except I’m nobody’s favourite.

    I’ll have a smile on my face people say they have had a good time, but would it make a difference if I wasn’t there? Nobody knows how it feels, not in my group of friends, I don’t think anyone would ever choose me.

    I dread the group chat, I want to put my opinion across, I really do, but it feels like nobody hears me or sees me.  I’d love to send a message and talk about how my day is going or what I’ve been doing, but no one would reply, it seems like they never do, not when it’s me.

    Even when it comes to the little things like selfies, I’m the pictures, I’m in the group shots! But the single pictures just you and me, that never happens. There will be a selfie of those two girls or those three girls, but there’s no me and someone. It’s always everyone and I’ll be in the back.

    Don’t get me wrong I’m grateful for my friends, I’m grateful that I have friends I just wish they were grateful that they had me.

  • When is the Best Time to Start CHRISTMAS Shopping?

    Time to talk about the dreaded c word no not those c words! I’m talking about Christmas.

    We asked the parents in our Mums Advice Private Chat group when they think is the best time to start Christmas shopping and here are the results.

    It looks like September, right now, is when most mum’s have started their Christmas shop.

    October and November followed respectively and then surprisingly December came next! I know I personally couldn’t wait until December to start Christmas shopping. (But I am a Christmas person!)

    The thing that stuck out most upon this list is that most mums, dads, nans and grandpas just buy things when they see them!

    They don’t make a plan that “today I’m going to go and buy all my Christmas presents” they just pick things up as they see them!
    “that’s a good deal I’ll buy that, that’s a great offer I’ll buy that and put it away for Christmas!”

    Maybe that’s the best way to do things, it certainly means the cost of Christmas gifts will be spread out throughout the year and that can’t be a bad thing!

    So tell us in the comments, when do you start Christmas shopping?

    What hints and tips do you have that could help a fellow parent?

  • I Suck At Being A Friend Right Now

    It’s early in the morning. My husband has left for work and the kids are still sleeping. I sit down with a cup of coffee in front of my computer in my quiet, still kitchen to try and steal a moment to myself.

    I scan my inbox, quickly deleting junk mail and silently reminding myself to pay bills later.


    Then I see it. An old friend has emailed me a funny picture of us from when we were much younger.


    “How are you?? Remember this day? So much fun!” She says.


    I stare at the smiling faces looking back at me. We’re laughing about something – relaxed and happy. We were connected then. An unbreakable bond of friendship.


    Now, we only talk every few months, mainly because emails like this often get forgotten by me. I feel guilt wash over me as I look at the date on the email. Sent two weeks ago. Like many emails I get, I read them while I’m on the go – thinking to myself “I’ll respond as soon as I get home”. And then life takes over.


    As parents of young kids, it feels like there’s a constant conveyor belt of things that have to get done. If we’re not getting children changed, dressed or fed, we’re getting ourselves ready for work, running errands, taking kids to appointments, activities, birthday parties. Even in the summer, when we try to keep things as unscheduled as possible, there are always things that I have (and want) to do. Quality family time, making dinner, bathing children, reading stories, asking about their day.


    Then there’s the exhaustion at the end of the day. The baby is teething, so we’re not sleeping. Or there’s another ear infection. There’s the non-stop juggling of time. Time with the kids. With our partners. With our extended families. All of this on top of the task of shaping young lives. Raising little girls to be women and boys to be men – a full-time job on its own.


    Before long, it’s not just unanswered emails I’m bad at. When I do manage to carve out time to see friends, it has to be on my schedule. “Can you come to my place after the kids are asleep?” “Can we go somewhere close to me so I can still help get the kids to bed?”


    And when we do get together, it’s not long before I find myself yawning at 10 at night – yearning for my bed, even though we used to be able to stay up until the wee hours of the morning, chatting and laughing over several glasses of wine.


    I’ve changed. And I want to acknowledge it.


    I know I suck at being a good friend right now. But I promise it’s not forever. I’m in the weeds. I’m knee-deep in parenting little kids who need me for pretty much everything right now. But this stage in life – it doesn’t last forever.


    They quickly grow up and need us less. They learn to tie shoes one day. They make their own breakfasts. They finally wipe their own bums.


    And as unglamorous as it sounds, I want to hold onto it. Because the good stuff will go quickly too. I want to remember their little voices. The shape of their adorable toddler bellies. I want to soak up this time when they think I’m the best, most fun and hilarious human that ever graced the earth.


    When they start to grow, I will have time on my hands. I’ll eventually learn how to balance it better. I’ll eventually be sleeping long, long stretches at night. And then, I promise, I will be the good friend I want to be. The good friend I still am.


    Because I’m still here. I’m still me. And I still value our friendship – so I’m going to respond to that email.


    If you can hang on, I promise I’ll see you soon.

  • Man Gets Head Stuck In A Vagina

    COUPLE HOSPITALIZED AFTER MAN GETS HIS HEAD STUCK IN HIS WIFE’S VAGINA
    A couple was transported to the hospital in a very awkward position last night after a man somehow got his head stuck in his wife’s vagina during a strange sexual game.

    Tom and Janis Morrison, a young couple from the small town of Greensboro in Alabama, called 911 around 10:00 pm last night to ask for an ambulance.
    Samantha Irving, the operator who took the call, says she thought it as a joke when he explained the situation.
    “The woman told me that her husband had fallen and that his head was now stuck in her vaginal cavity. I really thought that it was a group of teenagers making a prank call.”
    Despite Ms. Irving’s doubts, she sent an ambulance on the site and the paramedics rapidly realized that the situation was in fact very serious.
    Bill Austin, one of the paramedics who transported the couple, claims they were lying naked on their bed and partially covered in blood.
    “The woman kept screaming out in pain whenever the guy moved, but he had half of his face buried in there and he looked like he was going through Hell!”
    The couple was transported to the nearby Hale County Hospital, where doctors were able to separate the couple.
    Ms. Morrison suffered from severe internal bleeding but is now stable, while her husband has suffered only a few scratches and bruises.
    According to doctors, both could also suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome.

    Dr. Frank Olson, who treated the couple upon their arrival at the hospital, says that such extreme sexual practice are extremely dangerous and recommends to completely avoid them.

    Dr. Frank Olson, who treated the couple upon their arrival at the hospital, says that such extreme sexual practices are extremely dangerous and recommends to completely avoid them.

    Incidents like this one are, indeed, quite unusual, but hundreds of couples are admitted to the hospital every year in the U.S. after getting stuck together during sexual intercourse.
    According to data collected by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 3,213 couples were hospitalized for such problems across the country in 2015 and 3,789 in 2016.
    According to the same data, the Morrisons are the first couple to be hospitalized for a head stuck inside a vaginal cavity since October 2007.

  • Gastrochisis, we were so scared we would lose our baby

    This is a touchy subject, not many people have heard of or know what Gastrochisis is. I thought I would raise awareness by sharing my story with all you amazing women.

    I fell pregnant at 16 years old and was so scared as I didn’t know what to do. I told my boyfriend and then told family who weren’t happy to start with but were so supportive.


    We went for our 1st scan in March 2016 and were so excited to see our wee gem.


    We never noticed in the scan picture that anything was wrong but the radiographer did so they sent us out the room and made us wait for answers.


    When they came back they told us we needed to go and see a specialist doctor to see what the problem was. We went ahead to the appointment, we found out our baby boy had a condition called gastrochisis. 


    We had no clue what it was or how it happens. We were so scared that we would lose our baby.


    Gastrochisis is when your baby is growing inside you, their wee body’s are forming and coming together but if the baby forms and doesn’t come together properly it can result in your baby having Gastrochisis. For my baby it meant that was his bowel that would be on the outside of his body when he was born. This would mean that when he was brought into this world he had to get an operation to fix it, this was a lot to take in. We went home and looked it up and read all the horror stories.


    We were brave and I was induced on the 28th August 2016 (21 days before I was due). We had our little boy on the 31st August 2016. This is when it got hard for us all. Our baby was rushed away from us the second he was born and we were not allowed to hold him until he had his operation. 3 nights later we were allowed our first cuddle and seeing our boy fighting for his wee life broke our hearts. Everyday was a struggle, infection after infection, being sick constantly. We finally got to try him with some milk, just 1ml. 1ml of milk! And he couldn’t keep it down. After 8 weeks of trying the doctors changed his milk. Now he was on this new milk and he slowly improved! 3 months later and our little boy was happy, healthy and smiling. On the 25th November 2016 we were told we can come home. He fought his battle, proper little trouper! If anybody has ever been through the same thing I’d like to hear your stories!


    Thankyou for reading much appreciated x

  • Beware Of Henna Tattoos

    What was meant as a fun souvenir of a trip to Egypt has become a painful nightmare for this 7 year-old British girl.

    Madison Gulliver was on vacation with her family in Egypt when her dad allowed her to get a henna tattoo ar the spa in their 4-star hotel.

    The tattoo started itching

    The design was beautiful and she was happy with it until she went home and it started to itch. The family didn’t know why, but the little girl was having a serious allergic reaction to the black henna the salon in the hotel used.

    Her father said, “We noticed there was a small patch on the top of the tattoo that was raised but we couldn’t see any redness … The next morning the whole tattoo was starting to get itchy, so we washed it off which revealed a rash in the outline of the tattoo.”


    She had to be hospitalized

    It eventually got worse, and Madison went to the hospital where she was treated for chemical burns. Now, they’re warning others about the dangers of black henna.


    Madison’s parents were extremely upset about the whole ordeal, and they had no idea the damage the henna could do to their daughter’s skin. Her dad told Good Morning Britain, “It was just advertised as a henna tattoo, and it was a treat for her while we were on holiday … it wasn’t cheap and it was done in the hotel’s own salon.”

    Beware of black henna

    According to Refinery29, Black henna isn’t actually natural henna, and it’s illegal in the UK and in the US. It contains a chemical used in hair dye, called PPD. Lisa Butterworth, a henna artist, says that “people often get black henna done at tourist-heavy vacation spots.”

    Butterworth also gave tips on how to know whether or not your artist is using natural henna. First, ask if it’s real. If they say it is and you’re still suspicious, there are some ways you can tell.


    First, natural henna takes about 6 hours to really set in and stain the skin, so if your artist says you can wash it off in an hour, it’s probably the chemical stuff. Natural henna also stains brown, not black.


    But, Butterworth says the easiest way to tell if the henna is natural is by the way it smells. She says, “Black henna smells chemically … Natural henna smells of essential oils. It smells nice.”

    It will affect her forever

    They’re hoping Madison’s scar goes away in a couple of years, but now that she’s had an allergic reaction to the PPD, she’s more prone to reactions to other things. PPD is found in hair dye, some sunscreens and many other things, so now Madison has to be extra careful with what she puts in her body and on her skin. Her parents shared that she has already had an allergic reaction to Penicillin when she never had before, even though it doesn’t contain PPD.


    Her mum posted on Facebook about the ordeal, and is warning others about the dangers of black henna. She said, “It’s too late for Maddie now however, by sharing this post and spreading the word a little more, we might stop more adults/children going through painful burns and a life time of [allergies] to PPD.”


  • Mother stabs boyfriend six times after she finds him naked on top of her 12-year-old daughter

    A mother who found her boyfriend lying naked on top of her 12-year-old daughter stabbed him six times before calling the police.

    The woman, who has not been publicly identified, pulled out her pocket knife at her home in Cleveland and stabbed her boyfriend, 31, five times in the chest and once in the head.

    When the mother called the police to the scene, she said she had found her boyfriend trying to touch her daughter and stabbed him, Cleveland.com report.

    In an interview with police, the mother, who along with the boyfriend cannot be named, said she was heading to bed early on Tuesday morning when she saw her boyfriend naked on top of her daughter.

    She said that in a fit of rage, she grabbed her pocket knife and lunged at him. The couple then wrestled over the knife with the mother being grabbed by the throat and thrown against the wall.

    Both mother and daughter sustained cuts to their hands in the incident.

    The 12-year-old girl told police that her mother’s boyfriend fondled her under her clothes, took off her pants and stripped off his own clothes.

    He then told her, ‘This is what it is like in the real world when you have a boyfriend’, before sexually assaulting her, according to police reports.

    The boyfriend told police that the mother attacked him because she was jealous that her daughter had developed feelings for him.

    The man survived the attack and was taken to hospital for treatment.

    The case is still under investigation and as yet no charges have been made.

  • A Day In Mainstream School For My Autistic Daughter

    A Day In Mainstream School For My Autistic Daughter


    I am so grateful that my daughter can talk and that she shares freely with me her worries and stresses of school. This day in the life has been written with her full consent and approval to help others see how challenging mainstream can be for some children with autism and how they can perhaps ‘hold it together’ all day but explode at home. 

    I wake up and come downstairs and try not to think about school too much. I get my iPad or toys and set them up just how I like it. I know I need to get dressed and eat but until things are ‘right’ I can’t think about those things. I need to do one thing at a time so please leave me alone. Let me do it my way. Constantly asking me questions is so stressful as is nagging me about time. By the time we need to leave I am already stressed and anxious.

    In the playground

    I am scanning. This is so hard to see who I need to see when everyone is dressed the same and moving around. The noise, the unpredictable movements, the bags on the ground…that’s a lot to take in for me. I only want to find my best friend and the longer it takes to find her the more I get worried. What if she is off sick? What if she has an appointment today?

    Bells panic me. They mean I have to move somewhere quickly and I sometimes get stressed. Bells mean pressure and children running and they might push me over. I stand in my line and face forwards making sure I don’t look at anyone. The teachers shout about not talking and standing straight but I am doing those already and not sure what I should be doing differently. I turn to see if everyone else is doing what I am doing and now my class is pulled up for me facing the wrong way! I feel to blame. I feel so anxious. I feel different. 

    Getting to class

    I have to remember to put my bag one place, my packed lunch somewhere else and then hang my coat on the right peg. It can be confusing to remember all that while others are talking and moving all around me and the lights are so bright inside. Sometimes I wait until most of the others are in the class but then I worry I will get shouted at for taking too long! Sometimes I forget I have my school bag as it is on my back and I can’t see it! How can everyone else do this so quickly and easily and I can’t?

    Class

    I listen so much. In fact I listen so hard to everything that sometimes I can’t do my work because I need to stop and listen to everything the teacher says in case she is talking to me. I want to write neat because I don’t want a row but then they say I need to work faster and I can’t do fast and neat. It is hard to concentrate with others so close to me. They move about and talk and turn pages and it is so distracting sometimes. The walls have so much stuff on them, I can hear the tap dripping and I can hear people walking about.

    I am scared to talk in case I get in trouble.

    Sometimes I just can’t do the work. Yesterday they wanted us to do a senses poem about fireworks. They told me to imagine being at a bonfire with fireworks but how can you do that if you have never been to a bonfire before? I haven’t. They told me to write about what I would touch but you are not allowed to touch fireworks so I can’t write anything. They told me to write what I can smell but all I can smell right now is disgusting school dinners and I can’t even spell that. I just leave that one too.

    Then the teacher gets me in trouble for not doing the task. I want to cry. The tears won’t come out.

    Playtime

    I don’t understand this bit. You play with toys so why call it playtime when there are no toys? Just call it ‘talk time’ or ‘stand in the playground time’ instead. I take my own toys out. Then it rains and we have to come inside and I can’t play with my toys and it is so confusing for me. I don’t like changing things. I get cold at playtime because it is hard to fasten my coat and if I take my time the people tell me to hurry up and go outside so I just can’t fasten it up now. I have one area I like to stand and play with my one friend. We play the same game every day. We like it that way. I want to play with others but I can’t because I don’t understand what they are playing. They don’t have toys. I can’t work out made up games like that.

    Lunchtime

    Lunchtime is horrible. We have a short time for everyone in the whole school to eat and they want us all to line up and take turns and sit at huge tables with other children I don’t know. I just want to sit down and get time to eat and not have to hear chatter chatter and smell what everyone else has that I don’t like. It is far too noisy and busy and yet no-one will open my yoghurt or peel my banana. I feel lost and confused and just want out of there. 

    P.E

    I hate PE so much. I never know what we are going to do. Sometimes we do balls and sometimes running and sometimes sports. I hate it all. I know I can’t do it and people laugh. How can I catch a ball when there is so much else going on in the same hall at the same time? I can’t focus. I am so cold. My legs don’t like not having trousers on. My arms miss my cardigan so much. I once fell and hurt myself in PE so I don’t run now because running is dangerous plus they said at assembly to not run in school so I don’t run. Then they tell me to run and I want to ask ‘but you said not to run in school’ but my voice won’t work. I want to cry. The tears won’t come.

    I do like school. I like learning and I like doing work. I like having a desk and I really want to be star of the week. I like the other children though I don’t know if they like me. I want to tell you about things that have bothered me like being told to work quicker or not eating. I am tired from it all and now I feel safe. I want to cry. This time the tears will come so please let them. 

    I am ok. I just need to let the day at school wash away so I can rest.


    School can be hard but then everyday can sometimes be hard when you have autism like me. 


    Credit: https://faithmummy.wordpress.com/2017/09/13/a-day-in-mainstream-school-for-my-autistic-daughter/

  • Mums Response To Childs Tantrum Ends Up In A Police Visit

    I’m a mum aged 23 and I have a three year old daughter named Lacey.I’d like to warn other mums to watch what they say to their children when In public.

    Back in January I was shopping with Lacey, it was just before midday and she was getting hungry and tired.

    One more shop to go in and then we would head to the cafe for lunch.

    Queuing in Savers, Lacey starts the stomping of her feet and whining, I said to her 
    “Pack it in or I’ll put you on eBay”.

    Soon we were served and on our way to the cafe. I thought nothing more of her micro tantrum in Savers or my jokey reply.


    That night whilst settling Lacey for bed there was a load thump thump thump on the door the police where here.


    My head was a whirl I was thinking the worst that my partner had been injured on his way home from work.


    The police informed me there had been a flagged warning that I may tempt to sell my child… I mean really they thought I would sell my own flesh and blood.


    The police said that a neighbour had been in the shop at the time of my daughters tantrum and heard what I had said and called them.


    Luckily after the police checked on my daughter and seeing that she was loved and well looked after no charges or further action was taken.


    I hate to think that a neighbour thinks I could possibly even consider selling Lacey, please be wary of what you say, you never know what busy body maybe listening.

  • Mums Mouse Horror Gone Viral

    A mum to took to a Facebook parenting group to explain her trouble with a pesky mouse, the post has now gone viral for obvious reasons.


    Laura said in her post:

    Okay so I’ve been debating whether to post this because I’m convinced people will think I’m an incapable human being at life and adulthood but I’ve figured they’re right and I may as well.


    Today I saw a mouse in my sons room.

    A mouse.

    Stewart Little has decided to come in my house and set up camp near my sons drawers. (Not his pants American people, his clothes drawer thing)

    I saw it and I froze

    And it was the kinda freeze that you feel like you shouldn’t even breathe. Where your air escapes your lungs.

    I’m trying to find my pulse again when my daughter decided to strut into the room with her toddler swag and I screamed no! And it wasn’t just any no. It was the loudest noooooooooooooooooooooo I’ve ever made in my life.

    So I shut the door and I leave little Jerry (Tom’s mate) to his own devices.


    I decided to call my husband because there’s a mouse in the house, and when there is a mouse in the house other than blow torching the house down there isn’t much in the way of rational thinking. 

    He answers the phone and I say “mouse” I stutter because I’m fucking terrified. This is no Mickey Mouse okay. This is ratatouille but smaller and he isn’t making some delicious soup, he’s gonna spray out pebble poo and make babies everywhere and in my sons ears and they’ll crawl in my mouth… mouse in my mouth!!!

    “Huh?” He says 

    “Mouse in house” I say still shaken 

    “Cat in hat” he replies.

    “No babe, there’s a mouse in Luca’s room! You need to come home NOW and take it outside!”

    “Oh Bub you just take it outside, or just kill it”

    “Kill it???”

    Obviously this guy hasn’t seen the movie ‘Witches’ where the witch turns into a mouse after eating soup and gets stomped on by the chef and green pus sprays out. 


    “There are children in the house, your children. You need to come here. I can’t save them” 


    He laughs. He thinks I’m joking.


    This face isn’t joking. This face is scared that this mouse is going to radio the rescuers and call his other mice friends to come and have a pebble poo party orgy. NOT ON MY WATCH MOUSE. Not on my watch. 


    But of course he can’t see my face because he’s on the phone.


    “Okay I’m being serious there’s a mouse in the house and I’m FREAKING THE F OUT” I actually did swear but I’ll try and be cool in the post. Pretty sure I called the mouse the C word.


    “Where is it?” He asks

    “In Luca’s room”

    “Where?”

    “I dunno I’ll open the door”


    I open the door so slowly…inch by inch in snail speed, so slow that I can hear my husband asking if I’m still there. Lol 


    And it’s there. In the same spot.


    “It’s dead!!!!!” I shut the door. 

    Oh my lord the mouse is dead. I have a DEAD mouse in my house. I start to cry a little bit 

    “It’s dead… it never had a chance to live its life”

    “Babe just go scoop it up with a piece of paper and put it in the bin. I have to go to a meeting”


    So I hung up on him. Because obviously I’m alone in this. I’m alone and I need to be the brave one… so I take a couple of swigs of whiskey and say “okay Laura, today is the day you will fight your biggest fear in life and remove a dead mouse from your house”

    I said this about 10 times in the mirror before and slapped myself a few times before I bolted down the door and went charging in like a knight in shining armour with a piece of paper screaming like the warrior woman I am and charge up onto this dead mouse in my house and I realise …


    I realise it’s not a mouse. 


    No, not a mouse at all…


    It’s a tiny leopard…


    A tiny toy leopard. 


    I nod to myself and say “we shall never tell a soul about this”


    My husband got home 4 hours later and asked me how I went….”I said mate, I handled that shit” 


    Well now the mouse is outta the bag… 


    Pic of the bastard