Because I didn’t have enough to do… I’m a happily married wife and a mom to three incredible kids—two sports‑loving boys, Mac and Cal, who thrive on competition, teamwork, and muddy cleats, and my youngest, Ann Bailey, a daughter with spina bifida who shows me daily what strength, determination, and joy truly look like.
Starting a blog was never part of my plan. I was busy raising children, loving my husband, managing practices and appointments, and holding everything together the best I could, did I mention that I also work full-time. But life has a way of placing a calling on your heart—often without asking permission.
This blog was born out of real life. Out of love. Out of necessity.
How Parenting a Child with Spina Bifida Turned Me into a Disability Advocate
I didn’t set out to become a disability advocate. I became one because the world around us is often inaccessible and uninclusive—and my daughter deserves better. Every human being with a disability deserves better and so do their families, friends and loved ones.
I notice it in parking lots without available accessible spaces.
In playgrounds full of mulch, with timber blocks around the perimeter, built without ramps.
In school; activities, events, and emergency preparedness drills that required extra explanations just to participate.
Once you see these barriers, you can’t unsee them. You realize how much effort families of disabled children expend simply trying to exist in spaces that weren’t designed with them in mind.
Advocacy became unavoidable the moment I realized silence would cost my child opportunities—and speaking up could create change.
Navigating Insurance Denials and Becoming an Accidental Insurance Advocate
If you’ve ever navigated insurance for a medically complex child, you know how overwhelming it can be.
I’ve spent countless hours on phone calls, reading policy language, submitting documentation, and filing appeals—often for items our insurance policy clearly states are covered, like a wheelchair. I’ve opened countless denial letters after weeks of waiting, felt the sting of rejection, and questioned how a system could be so disconnected from the real needs of families.
After months of persistence, frustration, and emotional exhaustion, coverage finally came through.
But no family should have to fight this hard for medically necessary care.
Through this process, I unintentionally became an insurance advocate—learning how denials work, how appeals succeed, and how persistence can make the difference. I share this so other parents don’t feel lost, intimidated, or alone.
Why I Want Other Families to Know They Are Not Alone
This blog exists so families walking similar paths know they are seen.
You’re not alone in the appeals process.
You’re not alone in the waiting rooms.
You’re not alone in the exhaustion, grief, hope, and resilience it takes to keep going.
I write to share what I’ve learned, what worked, what didn’t, and how to keep advocating when the system feels overwhelming. I also write in hopes that these stories help drive policy change, improve accessibility, and humanize the lived experiences behind legislation and insurance decisions.
If one family feels less isolated because of these words, this blog is worth it.
Balancing Advocacy, Marriage, Raising Three Kids, and working full-time.
Advocacy doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It happens alongside homework, practices, family dinners, laughter, and love.
I’m still raising my children.
Still cheering on the sidelines.
Still protecting quality time.
Still loving my husband deeply.
I’m still working full-time, designing healthcare environments to expand services throughout communities.
This blog reflects the reality of holding both joy and hardship at the same time. Advocacy and joy can coexist. Faith and frustration can live side by side. Strength doesn’t mean you never fall apart, it means you keep going.
Letting Faith Guide Our Family Through Advocacy and Hard Seasons
At the center of everything I write is faith.
God meets us in hospital hallways, insurance phone calls, and moments of deep exhaustion. He gives purpose to pain and light to seasons that feel overwhelming. I don’t have all the answers, but I trust Him to work through the mess.
This blog is my way of letting His light shine through real life—through advocacy, motherhood, marriage, and moments of grace.
“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” — Matthew 5:16
