Give Back.

I have butterflies writing this I'm so excited about it! I recently posted saying I'm going to start rambling more on here (and cross post on the Instagram), so here goes. Many of you know, some do not, I have spent over 11 years in the field of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse. I started as a crisis volunteer in 2005 during college, interned, then was asked to be interim director of a sexual violence center. After that, I spent five years working at a non-profit for victims and survivors of sexual and domestic violence and child abuse. When Myra was born, I couldn't keep that up logistically for a few different reasons, though I remained a volunteer for the same place. When Myra was 10 months old, the stars aligned and the perfect part time opportunity came up, so I pounced on it. I had an incredible chance to help people who were fleeing abusive situations get into safe housing and back on their feet. When we moved an hour away, it got tricky, and I made it work as long as I could (11 months). Trevor often gets asked, "how do you do it? dental school...the Guard...AND a family?" I'll tell you all the same secret he tells them...me. I'm going to go right ahead and toot my own horn here. Trevor works his ass off at school and sacrifices a lot. But I do everything else. Like, every thing. Bills, cooking (including food for trevor at school), cleaning (LOLOLOLOL), all errands and shopping, snow removal/lawn, sending birthday cards, you name it. This whole dental school thing is definitely a team effort. I really am happy to do it as it will get us all to a place we want to be as a family. BUT, there just isn't room for me to be working right now, beyond the awesome kiddos I babysit. I am so grateful I get to be with my kids so much, but there's definitely a part of me that misses advocacy work. It's important and I'm good at it. ANYWAY...here we are, my whole point. I'm constantly telling people there is always a way to help. Time, talent, treasury, there *is* a way to give back, make your community a better place. So, here I am, doing just that. Last week I met with some super fantastic women at the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center and I'm going to be volunteering with them on their crisis phone line. I'm incredibly passionate about their mission to end all forms of child maltreatment and advocating for and serving children, survivors, and communities. Volunteering in this way is perfect right now-I can use my background, knowledge, and skills in a flexible way from my home. When life settles a little, I have high hopes to do more. If you've been looking for a way to make a difference and haven't figured out how just yet, I'd love to help! Big and small, it all adds up.