Being a young mother can be hard. Being a young mother with two children under age 4 with another one on the way can seem impossible. This is how Cali felt before getting involved with Children's Home Society of Florida's (CHS) Healthy Families Program. At 20 years old, Cali and her husband, Kenny, were raising Tammy, their 3-year-old daughter from Kenny's previous relationship, and Ryan, their 4-month-old baby boy, when Cali found out she was pregnant again.

Although they were excited about their new baby, Cali and Kenny weren’t sure how they could care for another child. Kenny owns his own cleaning business but the family was struggling financially at the time and the prospect of having three young children to care for seemed daunting to both parents. With no immediate family in the area, Cali felt overwhelmed by the stresses of a growing family and worried about losing her patience while raising several small children.

Cali first learned about Healthy Families from the Pregnancy Care Center in Leesburg. Though Cali was initially unsure how she would feel having a Family Support Worker come into her home, she knew she could use the help, especially during such a stressful time in her life. "I am pretty guarded about having people come into my home, but, once I got started, I began to look forward to the visits," Cali explains. "My Family Support Workers were so respectful and relaxed; I really enjoyed having them come."

With the help of her Family Support Workers, Cali learned strategies for positive discipline that helped her feel more confident as a parent while also reducing her stress. Cali also learned about setting goals to strengthen her relationships with her children and husband.

Their Family Support Workers also assisted Kenny and Cali in taking out a home equity loan on their home to finance an additional business. Kenny, talented musician, dreamed of being in the music business. Because of Healthy Families’ help, he now has a recording studio as a second business.

Since joining CHS’ Healthy Families program, Cali has adopted Tammy, now 7, and the family has also welcomed a fourth child, Adrian, now 23 months old. The family has also been able to pay off their home equity loan and their family vehicle. Kenny and Cali really stepped up and embraced the Healthy Families program to help their family. The program has helped them on so many levels, but, most importantly, it’shelped them through personal struggles to become a stronger family. 
 
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