10 Moms Who Changed the Meaning of Motherhood in 2015

The year 2015 has been an exhilarating one to be a mom. Reflecting everything from the country's transitioning attitude toward breastfeeding in public to the fact that parents are using public forums to discipline their children, moms are connecting with each other and sharing their stories on social media like never before. And even though this new connectivity can have you feeling like you're seeing hundreds of tragic parenting stories going viral daily, it's also helped to spread the word about those parents who have changed the meaning of motherhood over the past 12 months. Although none of their stories are the same, these 10 mamas have each taken a nontraditional route to do what's best for their children and each has made us stop and think during this bittersweet year.

01
The Mother Who Saved Her Son's Life Just by Snapping a Cellphone Photo
ABC News

The Mother Who Saved Her Son's Life Just by Snapping a Cellphone Photo

This mother listened to her gut — and ended up saving her child's life.

Julie Fitzgerald first noticed spots on her 2-year-old son's eye but didn't think much of it until she came across a viral story on Facebook that struck a chord. The post described how a white glow that appeared in someone's eye in photos could mean cancer. She immediately snapped a photo of her son with her phone and discovered the white glow. Because of her discovery, doctors were able to diagnose Avery with retinoblastoma just in time and found cancerous tumors covering 75 percent of his eye. She said:

"I just had this gut feeling in my stomach that something was wrong with his eye."

02
The Mom Who Let Her Dying Daughter Pick Heaven Over the Hospital
Shutterstock

The Mom Who Let Her Dying Daughter Pick Heaven Over the Hospital

This mother went where few have gone to truly put her daughter's desires first.

Julianna Snow's mother, Michelle Moon, is a neurologist and was instrumental in finding her daughter's diagnosis of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. The 5-year-old little girl has spent much of her young life in the hospital, battling the incurable neurodegenerative illness where even the common cold can be deadly. Michelle decided to ask her daughter what she would like to have happen if she were to get sick again and shared Julianna's emotional response.

Michelle: "Julianna, if you get sick again, do you want to go to the hospital again or stay home?"

Julianna: "Not the hospital."
Michelle: "Even if that means that you will go to heaven if you stay home?"


Julianna: "Yes."

Michelle: "And you know that mommy and daddy won't come with you right away? You'll go by yourself first."

Julianna: "Don't worry. God will take care of me."


03
The Mom Who Thanked a Stranger Who Reprimanded Her Daughters
Facebook | Jefferson County Sheriff's Office

The Mom Who Thanked a Stranger Who Reprimanded Her Daughters

This mom went above and beyond to teach her girls a lesson — even masterfully taking her parenting to social media to do the right thing without publicly shaming her children.

When Kyesha Smith Wood picked her kids up from the movie theater, she learned from her son that her daughter and stepdaughter were not only rude during the film, but that their disruptive behavior also ended with a scolding from a stranger. Instead of getting defensive that another mother reprimanded her children, Kyesha took to Facebook to make a public effort to find the woman so her daughters could formally apologize. Her post went viral for her parenting skills when many would've brushed the encounter aside. She wrote:

I can assure you that these girls are being strongly dealt with and appropriately punished. This rude, disrespctful, and awful behavior is unacceptable, and they owe you an apology. My husband and I are having them write your apology letter tonight, and we would like to pay for your next movie and snacks out of their allowance . . . I apologize profusely for their disrespect.

04
The Mom Who Is Changing the Way Kids Deal With Disabilities
My Lugs

The Mom Who Is Changing the Way Kids Deal With Disabilities

This mom created a company to destigmatize hearing aids for children.

Sarah Ivermee, the mother of a child who is deaf in one ear and has hearing loss in the other, could relate when her friend complained that her daughter wouldn't wear her hearing device because of the teasing she'd endure. The creative mother decided to do something to try and eradicate the stigma that these kids face and created hearing aid decals, which featured sports insignias and superheroes as well as flowers, for the kids. Her clever company Lugs now sells these playful additions to hearing aids across the world.

05
The Mother Who Photographed These Military Servicewomen Breastfeeding
Tara Ruby Photography

The Mother Who Photographed These Military Servicewomen Breastfeeding

This former military mom captured a viral image of breastfeeding moms to normalize breastfeeding in all environments — even the most masculine one.

Tara Ruby, a former Air Force servicewoman, captured a group of active-duty, breastfeeding military moms nursing their babies after the first-ever nursing room opened at Fort Bliss in El Paso, TX. The groundbreaking photo quickly went viral and brought attention to breastfeeding in public and the shaming that nursing moms endure. In describing her photo, Tara wrote:

I was active duty a long time ago when support for breastfeeding moms wasn't even an option or a consideration. We have come so far. Breastfeeding their babies doesn't make them less of a soldier — I believe it makes them a better one.

06
The Woman Who Adopted Her Best Friend's 4 Daughters After Their Mom Died of Cancer
CBS News

The Woman Who Adopted Her Best Friend's 4 Daughters After Their Mom Died of Cancer

This mom proved that love has no limits and strong families can form from the worst of tragedies.

Considering that Laura Ruffino and Elizabeth Diamond had been best friends since the fifth grade, Laura instantly agreed when her childhood pal made her promise to care for her four daughters if anything were to happen to her. When Elizabeth tragically died from brain cancer at the age of 40, Laura and her husband immediately took in Elizabeth's four children and doubled the size of their family.

07
The Mother Who Nurtured Her Unborn Son For 2 Months While on Life Support
Flickr user Methodist Health System

The Mother Who Nurtured Her Unborn Son For 2 Months While on Life Support

This mom is proof that it's possible to still protect your child even when you're no longer living.

Karla Perez nurtured and cared for her unborn son for eight weeks while brain-dead. When Karla was 22 weeks pregnant, she suffered a stroke and doctors kept her alive for eight weeks in order to deliver baby Angel with a team of more than 100 doctors. Angel, who weighed just two pounds and 16 ounces at birth, was the first to go through a miracle delivery of its kind in the US since 1999.


08
The Mother Who Wasn't Afraid to Get Candid About Down Syndrome
Facebook | Caroline Boudet

The Mother Who Wasn't Afraid to Get Candid About Down Syndrome

This mom boldly got real about Down syndrome for all to hopefully learn something with a powerful Facebook message.

Carolina Boudet, the mother of a baby girl born with Down syndrome, shared a thought-provoking status after she noticed how people reacted to her and her daughter. In an effort to address what is and isn't appropriate to ask parents of children with Down syndrome, Carolina made the status public, making it clear that Down syndrome isn't what Louise IS — it's what she HAS. She wrote:

I know that if one does not experience it, one does not think about it, but words do matter. They can comfort and they can hurt. So just give it a thought . . . Keep in your mind that mothers have a tendency to feel guilty about each and every thing, so a surprising extra chromosome . . . I let you guess.

09
The Mother Who Offered to Carry a Child For Her Twin Sister
: Allison Rose Photography

The Mother Who Offered to Carry a Child For Her Twin Sister

This mom gave her twin sister the most selfless gift while expanding her family.

Dawn changed the definition of motherhood when she offered to carry a child for her twin sister who was left unable to have children after defeating breast cancer. After the birth of her new son, Allison took to Facebook to thank her sister writing:

We cannot thank you enough for the gift you have given us. Although biologically this child will be made up of the two of us, we certainly hope that the strength, selflessness, and power you have shown are traits that he takes from you during his life. Not many people have the ability to make someone else's dream come true. But you have done so and with extraordinary thoughtfulness, openness, and sensitivity.

10
The Late Mom Who Refused Lifesaving Cancer Treatments to Protect Her Unborn Child
Shutterstock

The Late Mom Who Refused Lifesaving Cancer Treatments to Protect Her Unborn Child

This mom bravely demonstrated that some of your most selfless parenting decisions can be made before your child is even born.

Ashley Bridges was diagnosed with extremely aggressive bone cancer after she mysteriously lost the ability to walk. Doctors urged Ashley to begin chemotherapy, but her cancer diagnosis came just weeks after she learned that she was pregnant with her second child. Instead of opting to terminate the pregnancy in order to begin the lifesaving treatment while also caring for her 5-year-old son, Bridges delayed any medical intervention that could affect her unborn baby. She said:

"I'm not going to kill a healthy baby because I'm sick. There's nothing wrong with her. Her life is just as important as mine if not more important. I mean as a mother my job is to protect my kids."