Home Meet Rachel Speaking What To Do With Baby Work WIth Me

HEY THERE,

I'M RACHEL!

I’m a stay-at-home mom to a baby and a toddler, married to my college sweetheart, living in Wisconsin — which honestly feels like an emotional state as much as a place.

I’m very much a morning person, extremely not a night person, and I get energy from spontaneous conversations with strangers (especially ones with nail polish I envy or kids landing unintentional jokes with complete confidence).

I do parenting strategy work through writing, speaking, podcasting, and training child welfare professionals — but mostly, I help parents connect more easily and authentically with their families, especially while in the trenches.

You’ll find real life here: music always playing, half-finished thoughts, crystal bracelets that somehow make me feel more like myself, and a deep, lifelong love of manatees.

HEY THERE,

I'M RACHEL!

I’m a stay-at-home mom to a baby and a toddler, married to my college sweetheart, living in Wisconsin — which honestly feels like an emotional state as much as a place. I’m very much a morning person, extremely not a night person, and I get energy from talking to people (especially strangers with good nail polish or openly hilarious kids).

I do parenting strategy work with an MSW through writing, speaking, podcasting, and training child welfare professionals — but mostly, I help parents make sense of moments that feel confusing or high-stakes.

You’ll find life-in-a-nutshell here: music always playing, half-finished thoughts, crystal bracelets that somehow make me feel more like myself, and a deep, lifelong love of manatees.

 

No matter where I worked, the same issue kept coming up—and no role actually let me resolve it.

 

 From early childhood, family systems, and child welfare — I moved between roles, collected experiences, and honestly worried for a while that I wasn’t staying anywhere long enough to become “an expert” in anything. I cared deeply, worked hard, and still felt like something wasn’t fully clicking.

Then I became a parent — while I was in grad school.

Suddenly, all of the lenses I’d been collecting collided with real life. I could see how much information parents were being handed… and how little help they were given in actually using it. Everything felt overwhelming, rigid, or academic. People were either being told exactly what to do, or left drowning in options with no way to decide.

What felt off wasn’t the lack of knowledge — it was the lack of sense-making.

The shift wasn’t a big leap or a viral moment. It was more of a slow-burn realization:

People don’t need more answers — they need better ways to think through what’s already in front of them, in the context of their own lives, values, and limits.

That’s the work I couldn’t stop coming back to.

Right now, my life is full in a way that feels true to me.

I’m home with my kids most days, working in pockets of quiet, early mornings, and headphone-on focus. The same 5 songs are always in rotation, toys strategically place in the kitchen cabinet handles, and a lot of talking things through — with my kids, my husband, and myself.

I’m doing work I care about while staying close to the people I care about, which means nothing is perfectly segmented and that’s okay.

What feels different now is that I’m not constantly starting over. I have ways to orient myself and snap back in quickly when things feel loud or tangled — at home and at work — and that makes this season feel more doable, even when it’s still a lot.

 

Here's the thing: 

Connection doesn’t come after things calm down.

It’s built in the middle — when moments are imperfect and emotions are high.

 

Most people aren’t struggling because they’re not trying hard enough.
They’re struggling because they don’t fully understand what’s in front of them.

 

When the moment makes sense, the next step usually does too.