Tabitha asked Jesus into her heart when she was twelve years old, and pretty much figured she would spend her life on the mission field telling others about Him, perhaps someplace warm and exotic like a jungle somewhere, or perhaps a village of adobe huts.

Instead, at age 30, she finds that her mission field is in the rugged beauty of Alaska, her unreached people group mostly consisting of her six children within the four walls of their home. It is not, perhaps, as glamorous as she thought it would be as a teenager. After all, there are many mundane moments like bouncing a fussy baby, breaking up a wrestling match that got a little too serious, and cleaning up the mess when the toddler discovered that markers color on more than just paper. (Thank the Lord that they were washable markers! 😅)

Amid the daily schedule of homeschool, animal chores, and household tasks, I find that there is so much beauty in the ordinary. The more I notice and appreciate those little pockets of joy and love within my role as a mother, the more I enjoy my life and am able to embrace the difficulties that are a part of my world as well.

Tabitha loves to write, and finds it a helpful creative outlet. She began writing for ladies magazines, but soon realized that in her stage of motherhood, deadlines were too stressful, so she began sharing her family’s life in Alaska on an Instagram account. You may find her sharing her perspective on motherhood, homeschooling, and homesteading life on the last frontier, or she may have her nose in a book and not share at all that day. Along with her Instagram account, she has a business doing affiliate marketing for some of her favorite things. You can follow her Instagram here.

Andy, her husband of almost ten years, is very good at building things - a good thing, since they are working on building a shop and house debt free over the next few years as time and money allow. He is also quick to notice the beauty around them, and often pulls Tabitha out of the house to look at the bright moonlight or the sun rising orange and pink behind the mountains.

One of our favorite things to do together as a family is to listen to Andy read aloud during the long winter evenings. In the summertime, we often head to the beach only a mile away to walk along the shoreline and watch the sun set across the Inlet.

 

Tabitha’s favorite Mama Java coffee blend is Toddler Proof, and she loves enjoying a decaf vanilla latte during afternoon quiet time while her little ones are asleep and the older children listen to an audiobook.

Due to her mom’s cancer diagnosis, Tabitha and her family are traveling back to Ohio for a few weeks or months to spend some time making memories with the extended family. It has been a difficult journey in many ways as they try to tie up loose ends in Alaska, delegate responsibilities, and journey into the unknown, but God has been faithful to provide lodging there for their family of 8, a vehicle to drive, even food and clothes shared by the body of Christ in that area. The next few months still look scary, but seeing how God has made a way so far giving Tabitha a lot of peace going forward. To rest in God’s goodness and provision is the best place to be, no matter which state they live in.