Being a mom is one of the toughest and most rewarding jobs in the world. But sometimes, when you’ve got a screaming baby on one arm, a whining toddler on the other, and a cart full of groceries, it can become all too overwhelming. Every mom finds herself in this kind of situation once in a while, and who could be more understanding of it than another mom? Here are 10 heartwarming stories about moms who came to the rescue when another mom was at her wit’s end.
1. The Boscov’s Blowout
My husband wasn’t feeling well on Saturday, so I told him he could stay home and rest while I took the kids (5 months and 3 years) with me to run a quick errand at Boscov’s (I had some returns to make). We weren’t in the store for more than 5 minutes when I started to smell something awful. My 6 month-old had a full-on blowout of her diaper, which covered her whole dress and half of mine.
I ran to the bathroom with my 3-year-old son in tow and tried to get her clean in the sink with one hand while keeping my son from running out the door with the other. I was about 2 seconds from crying when a woman came out of a stall. She saw the scene and understood immeidately what was going on.
She snapped into action and started entertaining my son while I cleaned up the baby and changed her into a new outfit (I almost didn’t pack one since I thought nothing could go wrong on a quick 20-minute errand). After I got the baby cleaned up (and most of myself) she left my son with me and ran to go purchase bath towels and a new t-shirt for me. I didn’t even have the words to thank her. She told me she had 4 kids (all out of the house now) and she’d been in this exact situation more than once. I believe she was an angel sent from heaven, I really do.
2. A Warm Hug
I was out with my 3 kids at the grocery store after a full day of being at the playground because we needed to pick up ingredients for dinner. I must have looked really tired because an older woman came up to me and asked me if I was feeling alright. I told her I was fine, just a little tired.
She looked at me and said “you know, mom’s work harder than anyone on this earth. And I can see you are doing an excellent job with your children.” Then she gave me a hug and walked away. I don’t know why, but that little moment really gave me the strength to push through the rest of the day with a genuine smile on my face.
3. ER All-Nighter
My 5-year-old daughter, Ella, got some really bad food poisoning one night and would not stop vomiting. I eventually had to take her to the ER around 2 in the morning, and there was a really long wait. They gave her something to calm her stomach but wanted to run some tests and insisted on having us wait for an available doctor. Sitting on those hard plastic hospital waiting room chairs at 2 am with a sick kid would have been a total nightmare if it weren’t for a woman who was there with us.
She sat with my daughter and asked her all about school and her friends and her dogs. She entertained and distracted her for almost 4 hours until we were called in. I was able to rest for a bit as well, which was really nice. When they called us back I thanked the woman, but she told me not to thank her and that she was honored to be able to talk with someone as smart and wonderful as my daughter. Ella was beaming and somehow feeling a lot better too.
4. The Supermarket Savior
I was at the supermarket with my 3 girls. Everyone was exhausted, no one was listening, and my oldest (6) started kicking and screaming when I said no to buying her a full chocolate cake. Pretty soon, all of them were having a deafening tantrum. Everyone in the store was glaring at us, and I was so uncomfortable that I was about to just abandon my cart and get out of there as quickly as possible.
Unlike the rest of the customers who all looked like they wanted to murder us all, a kind older woman came up to me with a sympathetic look and a smile. She said not to worry about a thing. She said “every single one of these people with kids has had this same thing happen to them. And if they haven’t yet, they will eventually.” It was really nice to have that one ally amidst all the chaos.
5. An Airport Angel
This didn’t happen to me, it happened to my mom when my siblings and I were all very young and we were flying to see my grandparents in Florida. My mom told me that the flight wasn’t too bad, but when we had to get off the plane and get our luggage, things became difficult. My 3 younger brothers were not making it easy, and she had to keep us all together, with our carry-on bags, and then grab our suitcases as well.
She told me that there was a woman sitting in the row across from her with her teenage son, who noticed my mom struggling to keep us all together. She introduced herself and then stayed with all of us as we got off the plane, helped us get our luggage, and didn’t leave us until we were met by my grandpa. I only vaguely remember this, but my mom says she will never EVER forget her.
