I interviewed many people for this article and unfortunately they didn’t all make it into the final draft. I asked one man who runs an organization collecting items for newborns in need why he’s so passionate about this cause and he said, “Because I love babies. Who doesn’t love babies?” Amen!

• I had an article in the March issue of Town. It was about a golf ball plant here in the Upstate that makes some of the fanciest, high tech golf balls on the market.
• The March and April issues of Belle were both full of fun stories. One of my favorite assignments was interviewing Billy Graham’s granddaughter Cissie Graham Lynch. She is a beautiful, inspiring young Christian woman.
• I began a multi-part series on education in South Carolina for Business Black Box magazine. The first article will be in the upcoming issue.
• I completed an assignment for the June issue of REDBOOK which should be appearing on newsstands in mid-May.

Personally, my husband and I are welcoming our first baby in just a few months. Baby Samuel is due September 7 and we can’t wait!

I figured the best way I could help was to bring it to my editor’s attention who graciously allowed me to write about child slavery and trafficking for the March issue of REDBOOK. The piece highlights seven simple ways you can stop this rampant injustice. I could have easily filled 20 pages on this subject, but I’m thankful for the opportunity to have learned more about child slavery and share some of that knowledge with our readers.

Please take some time to read the article and commit to doing just one thing on the list– whether it’s giving up your coffee once a week for Mercy 29′s Lattes for Legacies campaign, buying jewelry made by trafficking survivors or taking the 11-question survey at SlaveryFootprint.org to find out how many slaves work for you. I hope that you’re like me– now that you know that millions of children are forced into slavery you’ll do what you can to put an end to it. If we all do our small part then we can all be a part of the solution.

She still acts. In fact you can watch her on the Showtime hit “Dexter.” In addition to acting, she feels called to use her past struggle through an abusive relationship to help other women in similar circumstances. Last fall she organized a charity walk through her New York City neighborhood. And she’s also working on a documentary featuring women in all walks of life who have been abused.

If you want to learn more about April I suggest following her on Twitter or Facebook! And be sure to check out Hope for Women!

The issue also features Sheri Cameron who lost more than 100 pounds on Weight Watchers. She has an inspiring story that was featured TWICE in recent issues of People Magazine. I also wrote an article on avoiding wedding day disasters and we featured several local and extremely romantic engagement stories. My talented sister Stephanie even contributed an article on bachelorette parties. And she’s sponsoring the February giveaway, which is a fun prize pack from The House of Bachelorette! You can enter on Belle’s Facebook page by commenting in the February Giveaway photo album. Enter quick though because we’re drawing a winner tomorrow!

David Sitton interview excerpt from Crystal Cathedral Ministries on Vimeo.

I also interviewed one of the writers for Grey’s Anatomy about her book The Game On Diet. I am now completing my first week on this diet and it’s tough! But it helped the author and lots of other people lose some serious weight so I have no doubt that it works. Me and some of the other Belle girls are competing in The Game On Diet. The winning team gets a facial from Greenville Natural Health (I want it bad!) and two tickets to Memphis at the Peace Center. One lucky winner will also receive a facial as well as $25 to spend on products at Greenville Natural Health Center. Just head to Belle’s Facebook page to enter!