josiah+co. Blog — Motherhood
Pause and breathe.
Melissa Sulley Deconstruction Divorce Grief Loss Miscarriage Motherhood Parenting after loss Pregnancy + Infant Loss
I’m not quite sure when I started holding my breath. It was far before I heard the words “there’s no longer a heart beat.” And long before the church taught me my body didn’t belong to me.
Motherhood + Grief
Melissa Sulley Divorce Grief Miscarriage Awareness Mother's Day Motherhood Parenting after loss Pregnancy + Infant Loss Pregnancy and loss awareness
Mother's Day can be filled with a mixed bag of emotions, especially for those of us stuck in the pits of grief. Some of us have lost children and itty bitty babies, some have lost mothers, many are struggling to become parents at all, and some of us simply cringe at the thought of being ‘celebrated’ when the world around us is falling apart. This day brings up a lot for me. There is a bittersweet dichotomy in parenting living children while holding space for the ones who wait for me in the stars. Add on the layers of...
Settling Into a New Year: Growth, Healing, and Intentions
Melissa Sulley Deconstruction Divorce Grief Loss Motherhood Parenting after loss
This New Years felt different for me. There was no rushing to craft resolutions or setting lofty goals. Instead, it felt like a significant moment—a deep ‘settling in.’ Settling into myself, my journey, and all the ways my life has shifted in the past few years. A Journey of Transformation The past five years have brought immense change, profound loss, and bittersweet growth. As a single co-parent to three earth-side kiddos, I’ve navigated life’s complexities with as much grace as I could muster. There’s been recurrent miscarriage, the shift from a partnered life to a solo one, and the unraveling...
One decade
Melissa Sulley faith Grief Loss Miscarriage Awareness Motherhood Parenting after loss
This past decade has been extremely painful and beautiful; full of grief and joy. I graduated university. Left my church. Moved cities. Had my heart broken. Lost friends. I fell in love with Hamilton. Found a new church. Made new friends. I discovered the Holy Spirit. Lost my faith. Discovered new expressions of faith. Left the church again. I became a wife and a mother. I birthed both life and death. I broke up with myself as I learned how to parent, and learned how to parent after loss, again and again and again....
The Middle - Aly's Story
Melissa Sulley faith Grief Guest Post Loss Miscarriage Miscarriage Awareness Motherhood Parenting after loss Pregnancy and loss awareness Resources Support
Often, we hear stories about pregnancy loss after there’s a happy ending, redemption…a rainbow baby that eases the pain after the storm. There is a definite need for people to hear these stories. They have a place, and they give a sense of hope to families who have lost their unborn babies. These are the types of stories that got me through my first miscarriage. Knowing that this is fairly common (1 in 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage), and that there was light at the end of the tunnel was promising.