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2 weeks ago | 
businessinsider.com | Kris Ann Valdez
Facebook Email X LinkedIn Copy link My son is being bullied at school and it's hard for me to watch. I report the harassment to his teachers but the hurtful comments keep coming. Recently, my son kicked and punched a peer who'd been bullying him. My eldest is in sixth grade — the in-between, awkward years. He's 12 and a deep thinker and feeler, prone to introspection. He prefers drawing and writing graphic novels over sports.
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2 weeks ago | 
businessinsider.com | Kris Ann Valdez
Facebook Email X LinkedIn Copy link I'm more bothered than my children that they haven't won Student of the Month yet. I want them to win because it would validate that I'm raising exemplary students. Their best attributes aren't the ones on display in public but in the safety of our home.
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2 weeks ago | 
yahoo.com | Kris Ann Valdez
I'm more bothered than my children that they haven't won Student of the Month yet. I want them to win because it would validate that I'm raising exemplary students. Their best attributes aren't the ones on display in public but in the safety of our home. I sat in the back of the school assembly, watching an old acquaintance slip into the center aisle, camera-ready as her son's name was called for the Student of the Month award. I was happy for her — I really was.
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4 weeks ago | 
businessinsider.com | Kris Ann Valdez
The author's daughter (not pictured) spent time in the NICU. Image taken by Mayte Torres/Getty Images 2025-04-01T22:45:02Z Facebook Email X LinkedIn Copy link Save Saved Read in app This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? . My newborn daughter had a traumatic ICU experience. The immediate outpouring of support from family and friends got us through.
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1 month ago | 
citylifestyle.com | Kris Ann Valdez
An oil painting that once graced a great-grandparent’s wall, an antiquated diamond ring passed down from a great aunt, a rare coin from a father’s private collection—these heirlooms and treasures are often symbols of a family’s stories, traditions and values. But, as generations pass, the sentimental significance of these objects often becomes lost or forgotten.
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1 month ago | 
businessinsider.com | Kris Ann Valdez
The author forgot about her daughter's ballet recital. Jonathan Kirn/Getty Images 2025-03-24T23:28:01Z Facebook Email X LinkedIn Copy link Save Saved Read in app This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? . I felt deeply guilty after forgetting my daughter's ballet viewing, and she was inconsolable. I called my own mom for perspective and solace.
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1 month ago | 
yahoo.com | Kris Ann Valdez
I felt deeply guilty after forgetting my daughter's ballet viewing, and she was inconsolable. I called my own mom for perspective and solace. She helped us reframe this mistake as a lesson in empathy and resilience. I dropped my 7-year-old off at ballet class, preoccupied with trying to squeeze in a stop at a nearby consignment shop for its half-price winter clothes sale. Usually, I'd wait outside my daughter's ballet class, just in case.
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1 month ago | 
businessinsider.com | Kris Ann Valdez
Health The author (not pictured) and her family made friends with their neighbor. Getty Images This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? . We didn't really know our neighbor of 11 years until my husband asked to borrow his truck. He not only said yes, but accompanied him on his errand. Afterward, he came over for dinner.
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1 month ago | 
businessinsider.com | Kris Ann Valdez
Parenting The author's in-laws were thrilled to become grandparents. Courtesy of Kris Ann Valdez This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? . My husband and I got married in our early 20s, and we loved being DINKs.Then, my father-in-law told us he wanted grandkids. We decided to have children. Having our son changed our lives in so many ways, but I regret nothing.
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1 month ago | 
yahoo.com | Kris Ann Valdez
My husband and I got married in our early 20s, and we loved being DINKs.Then, my father-in-law told us he wanted grandkids. We decided to have children. Having our son changed our lives in so many ways, but I regret nothing. My husband and I married at the tender ages of 21 and 24. I loved our child-free life — biking to nearby bars and restaurants, staying up late and sleeping in, and road-tripping with friends. We were young, in love, and the world felt wide open.
