Well the day I have dreaded, prepared for, and looked forward to is finally here.  As of this morning, Brady and I are officially EMPTY NESTERS!

Cue the tears and the celebration.  I’m feeling all the emotions today!

I became a mama in January of 1996 when our first daughter Taylor was born.  We were blessed with our second daughter Lauren two years later.  Our family was complete when Katelynn arrived 3 years later. For the past 23 years, I have put the majority of my focus on raising our sweet girls and preparing them for life after high school.

My husband Brady and I tried to be very purposeful in our parenting.  We knew the importance of quality and quantity time with our girls.

We knew we had 18 years of them being at home with us and we didn’t want to miss a chance to pour into them.  Here are the lessons we wanted to be sure we taught them before they left us to start their adult lives.

1. Love Jesus.  We wanted to instill a strong faith tradition in them.  Life is challenging and it is especially hard when you don’t have the HOPE that comes with a relationship with Jesus.   As they head out into the world, I hope they never forget WHOSE they are!
2. Always be challenging yourself to be a better version of yourself. We don’t expect them to be exactly like us or even exactly like each other.  We just want them to be the BEST version of themselves and to always be learning new things.
3. Being healthy is a choice. I might not have always known what I know now about nutrition.  I did make family dinners a priority even with the busy schedules of three girls involved in numerous activities.  They learned to cook meals for themselves and enjoy home cooked meals over restaurants.

Exercise has always been a part of their everyday life both in their extracurriculars and as a way to feel strong and relieve stress.  I know they will continue to incorporate exercise into their schedule because it’s a lifelong habit.

4. Always be kind. You will never regret it!  In a world where the majority is looking out for #1, we wanted our girls to be looking out for the people on the fringe.  They each have a servant’s heart and seek to help others.

We couldn’t have predicted where we would be in the Fall of 2019 when our last daughter Katelynn headed to college.  We’ve been so excited that they all decided to attend our alma matter Texas A&M. (Yes, we are one of those crazy families that bleeds MAROON!)

We did our best to show up and teach our girls our values.  I knew I would be sad when they all left home, because we have so much fun together as a family.  I really don’t think that time is over.   It will just look different.

We worked hard to prepare them each for this time in their lives.  We weren’t perfect, but we did our best.  We showered them with love and hope they know we are always here for them.

Taylor, Lauren, and Katelynn- we are so proud of the amazing young women you have become!  Continue to be the light for others and striving toward your big dreams!

As this time was approaching, I began to think about how Brady and I should prepare ourselves for empty nest.  A few years ago, I knew we were not in a good place with our health.  I didn’t have enough energy, and I was feeling older and overweight.  Brady was struggling with 3 autoimmune diseases and the awful side effects of the medicines used to treat them.

We have been on a journey to reclaim our health and through the struggles our marriage is even stronger.  We are excited to have more time for each other and to take on the adventures of Empty Nest life together!

I had to have a plan in place to fill the void of having kids at home.  We are headed to Hawaii tomorrow for our Empty Nest trip.  It has been the perfect distraction.  I have been able to focus on the excitement for the girls in this next stage of life and the excitement for us as well.

We plan to travel together for business more this fall and of course down to College Station for football games!

For so many years, I was known mainly as Taylor, Lauren, and Katelynn’s mom.  I’m looking forward to being Jenny again.  I’m still figuring out who I want to be when I grow up!

Through our health journey, I found my passion for helping others reclaim their health to live the Amazing life they deserve.  I enjoy using my gifts to help others do what we have done.  I look forward to serving more people as my business grows.

We are looking forward to finding our new groove.  We are both in great health and are ready to try new things! We had our kids young, so that we have plenty of time to enjoy life after they left.  Now is our time!  I hope to find new hobbies we can enjoy together.

I will allow myself time to be sad that this stage of life is complete.  I will miss the hustle and bustle of our family life.  I will miss our family dinners and watching them do the things they love.

I’m not crying because it’s over.  I’m just feeling super grateful for the time we had!

I know we made the most of it and I have few regrets.  I look forward to watching them do great things in the world!

Whatever stage of life you are in, I want you to know it’s not too late for you.  You deserve to be living life to its fullest!  Being healthy and feeling good is the key to that.  You might need to eat differently and get moving but the results are worth it!  We eat differently than most so we can feel differently than most.

If you’d like to get started, I have a 10-day Health Reset that can guide you to start working on cleansing your body, mind and spirit for better health and energy.  Click HERE for more details!