Tuesday, December 24, 2013

New Beginnings

I just couldn't stay away...despite having moved all my old blogs to the official Walking With Orphans website I still felt the need for something else. Something more personal. I need to blog about life, not just how many boxes of donations we sent off in the last month or the latest update on our sponsor children. Those are all great things but I need an outlet for me. A place where I say stupid stuff and get really raw and ugly cry from time to time. But also a place where I say stupid stuff because I'm deliriously happy and where I can talk too much about my cat and knitting.

So, that's why I'm here. For those of you just joining me in this wild and crazy journey here's some background:

I'm 30 years old.
I live with my parents.
I moved in with them in 2012 so I could finish my master's degree in psychology.
I like living here and it's cheap so don't judge.
I got my undergraduate degree in 2005 from the University of Georgia in music education.
I taught middle school band for 3 years.
Then I taught 1st grade general education for 3 years.
Then I got my masters from Capella University in 2012 in clinical and counseling psychology.
Now I work at a community based child and adolescent mental health counseling center.
I do initial assessments, treatment planning, and therapy.
I deal with insurance companies A LOT.
My research interests are in attachment and adoption issues, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, PTSD and early childhood trauma, and family systems.
I do not have any biological children.
I have several "adopted" children in Romania.
Since Romania is closed to international adoption and my kids can't come to me, I go to them.
Hence the name "Missionary Mama."
My grandmother gave me that title.
I have been visiting Romania every 6 months for the last 3 years.
I started a nonprofit in 2010 to provide holistic relief aid to orphans and vulnerable children in Eastern Europe and Russia.
I have been blogging since Xanga but you can find my most recent blog experience here and my "educational and informative" blog here.

Welcome! It's good to be back.

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