FAMILY IS EVERYTHING

FAMILY IS EVERYTHING

We spent Labor Day weekend at my sister-in-law’s house in Kentucky.

She and her husband were in a horrible accident back in June, and he was left with no feeling from his waist down and is wheelchair bound, for now. We're praying and believing for God to heal him and for him to walk again.

Before they could come back home, their house had to be made wheelchair accessible. Let me tell you—there is a lot that goes into making a home accessible for someone in a wheelchair.

Their entire master suite had to be gutted and revamped, all the way into the master bathroom and shower. Doorways had to be widened. Two new doors had to be added at entry points with another entry door stilling needing to be replaced. They had to have two entry and exit ramps installed, a ramp in their great room had to be installed, with one more still needing to be added at another entry. It’s not just about making things convenient. It’s about making sure he has a way to get in and out of the house safely, especially in an emergency.

Everything from their master suite had to be removed and put into storage bins and bags, which were scattered throughout the house wherever there was room.

Their formal dining room had become a disaster. There was just enough room to squeeze a wheelchair through, with things piled everywhere.

So, that’s what we spent our weekend doing—working through the mess left behind by all the construction and workers and putting things back where they belonged.

Below, I’m sharing the after pictures of the two spaces that were probably the worst.

Imagine the dining room being so crowded that you could barely squeeze a wheelchair through it, with stuff piled everywhere. Now look at it.

A vast improvement from what we saw when we arrived.

The other space I’m showing you is their hangout space—the place where everyone gathers. The pool table was covered with stuff, and buckets and bags were piled all around it, filled with things that needed to be sorted through. Even the pinball machine had things piled on top of it.

Now look at it.

A much more organized and usable space.

And honestly, that was our goal.

We wanted my sister-in-law to be able to walk—or, in this season, live and breathe—in her own spaces without feeling overwhelmed by everything around her.

We wanted her and her husband to feel comfortable in their home again.

That was why we went to Kentucky this weekend.

And honestly, there was no place we would rather have been than right there, helping our family.

Because Family Is Everything!

Family is there when life gets hard. Family steps in when there is work to be done. Family doesn't always wait to be asked.

We do for one another because we love one another.

There is nothing we wouldn’t do for our family, and we know there is nothing they wouldn’t do for us either.

That’s love on display at its deepest level.

That’s walking love out the way God intended.

We can all talk a good game. We can say we love people. We can say we’re there for them.

But are we actually walking the walk?

Because walking the walk means being there when it counts. It means showing up in ways that only you can show up.

You are unique.

And what you bring to your family is unique, too.

So don’t ever take your place in your family for granted. Don’t convince yourself that what you have to offer isn’t needed.

You are needed.

God placed you in your family for a reason.

And while you have the opportunity, love your family. Show up for them. Do for them. Make the memories. Say the words. Be there when they need you.

Because the truth is, we aren’t promised tomorrow. One day, there may be things you wish you had said or done, but the opportunity will be gone.

So love them while you can. Serve them while you can. Help them while you can. Don’t wait for tomorrow to show someone you love them when you have today.

Sometimes love looks like a hug.

Sometimes it looks like a prayer.

And sometimes it looks like spending your Labor Day weekend cleaning out rooms so someone you love can finally breathe again in their own home.

That’s family.
That’s love.
That’s walking the walk.

Less Stuff. More Life!

It’s amazing just how much stuff we accumulate over the years.

My husband and I got married in our late 30s. By that time, we had already lived a lot of life and collected a lot of our own stuff. Then we brought those two lives—and all that stuff—together under one roof.

Recently, after losing both of Scot’s parents, we’ve realized just how much stuff can clutter your life and, ultimately, leave behind a huge mess for your loved ones to deal with.

It’s been over a year since Nan passed, and we’re still working on getting things done at his parents’ home so we can put it up for sale and settle the estate. Of course, we have our own lives to live, so we’re trying to deal with everything there whenever we can find the time.

But going through their home has really made me take a closer look at our own.

How much stuff do we actually have?

How much of it do we really need?

And more importantly, what are we leaving behind for our son to deal with someday?

That last question really hit home for us.

We don’t want to leave Tim with a house full of things that he has to spend months—or even years—sorting through, deciding what to throw away, what to sell, and what to donate. We don’t want our stuff to become his burden.

So, we’ve started sifting through our own home and getting rid of things.

Some things get thrown away. Some things get donated. Some things get sold. And sometimes we simply stand there holding something and ask ourselves, “Do we really need to keep this?”

More often than not, the answer is no.

I’ve heard it said that a cluttered home can lead to a cluttered mind, and I can definitely relate to that. Personally, I have a hard time concentrating and feeling settled when my surroundings are cluttered. And honestly, I have so many other things I’d rather be doing with my time (like blogging for instance), than constantly moving, organizing, and decluttering the same stuff over and over again.

That’s why we’re embracing a new mentality:

Less Stuff. More Life.

We want less stress.

We want to reclaim space in our home.

We want to be able to enjoy the spaces we live in instead of constantly feeling like we need to organize them.

And most importantly, we want to make more room for what matters most—our family, our friends, and the life God has given us.

Life has certainly never been boring for us. Raising a very active son kept us incredibly busy for many years, and there were plenty of things that simply got pushed to the side because life was happening.

Now that Tim is grown, we find ourselves in a different season of life. We have the opportunity to focus on some of those things we let go by the wayside—including our stuff.

So, little by little, we’re going through our home.

We organize.

We sell.

We donate.

We throw away.

And then we do it again.

Because the funny thing about decluttering is that once you start, you begin to see even more things you don't need.

Our goal isn't to have an empty house or to get rid of everything we own. We simply want to be more intentional about what we choose to keep.

We want a home that feels peaceful instead of overwhelming.

A home that has room to breathe.

A home where the things we own serve a purpose instead of taking up space just because we’ve always had them.

And eventually, I believe we’ll get there.

We’ll have our home the way we want it—less cluttered, more organized, and filled with the things that truly matter.

Because in the end, it’s not really about having less stuff. It’s about making room for more life.

And I, for one, am really looking forward to a home that is less in stuff but more in life❤️.