About Serving Faithfully
Welcome to Serving Faithfully, an online village of military spouses who want to live spiritually-minded lives amidst the chaos of the military lifestyle. In this community, we’re all committed to keeping an eternal perspective on life, marriage, family, and the military. We share tips, we share triumphs, we share tragedies, and we share the hope that there can always be a silver lining when we rely on our faith and our families.
If you love your soldier (or airman, or marine, or sailor), your family, your country, and your God, then this village will feel like home to you. When you’re here, you’ll get much needed validation of the struggles, anxieties, and overwhelm associated with supporting a service member. You’ll receive inspiration on how to develop a deep and lasting bond within your marriage, despite long distances and little quality time. You’ll find information on raising well-adjusted, flexible kids who can handle the roller coaster lifestyle of the military by being centered on family and faith. And you’ll be encouraged to take care of you through healthy physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual habits.
The reality is that military life, mom life, and just…life is crazy stupid hard sometimes. And you are crazy stupid tough to take that challenge head on. But tough doesn’t always mean composed, or calm, or sane—or even happy. My mom would characterize those traits as being “unflappable.” But how does one become unflappable? I’ll be the first to admit that, for me, it’s a continuous struggle in the face of the Army’s particular brand of insanity.
Hi! I’m Katelyn, and I am an Army wife on a mission to find the joy in our family’s military journey while helping other spouses do the same.
I grew up in an Army family. My dad received his commission as an officer shortly before I was born, a position in which he served faithfully until April of 2018. Michael, my incredible husband, enlisted in the Army almost seven years ago. Together we have three adorable kids: Psalm (age 6), Oliver (age 4), and Eden (age 2). We also have a cat named Periwinkle (named after the cat from Blue’s Clues) who I view as a part of the family and my husband sees as a nuisance. Our family belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and my faith has always been central to my identity. I have an obsession with watermelon and all things red, white, and blue. Hot chocolate is my coffee, and Sam’s Club is my Target. When I have those—extremely rare—precious moments of “me time,” I enjoy reading, watching cooking/design shows, and crafting or refinishing furniture to beautify our home. Like most Army wives, my first and most important job is holding down the fort at home: supporting my husband in his work as a soldier and a father, and raising our three babies.
When my husband joined the Army, I thought I was walking in with my eyes wide open. I thought I knew exactly what military life was going to be like—after all, I’d grown up immersed in it. But I quickly learned that being the kid of an Army officer and being the wife of an enlisted soldier were two entirely different experiences. On top of that, I was also a first time semi-single mom raising a newborn baby alone for nine months. I had post-partum depression in addition to my already significant anxiety, and even with the support of my parents, I was pretty overwhelmed.
As I looked around at other spouses in my position, I realized that most military wives have stumbled into this life a little bit blindly. Whether their husband has joined after years of debating the decision, or they’re marrying someone who was already in the military when they met, the shock of diving into Army life is similar to jumping into frigid lake water. I strongly believe that every spouse needs a village to help her tackle that stressful transition, and thrive in the months, years, and even decades beyond.
That is when Serving Faithfully was born. The village I longed for wasn’t going to magically appear out of thin air, I needed to build it myself. I had something to say about military life, and I wanted to be the honest, helpful, and hopeful voice that empowered other spouses in their struggles. And as I delved deeper into the idea of blogging, I realized there were so many topics I was passionate about and wanted to share–motherhood, mental health, education, and more. So I started this blog to document the things I learn about how to thrive in my marriage, family, friendships, self-image, and spirituality. This process of learning and discovery is ongoing for me, and I hope that the things I share here can help you in your personal journey–military or otherwise.
I’m so glad you’re here, and genuinely appreciate you being a part of this community. To make sure you never miss a new post, subscribe to get Serving Faithfully updates. Just enter your email below to sign up!
And welcome, once again, to our village.
❤ Katelyn
P.S. I want to take a second to shout out to all the military husbands, moms, dads, girlfriends, boyfriends, and best friends out there! While this blog is targeted at Army wives (because that’s the only personal experience I have to draw from), every military spouse, family member, and friend is welcome and valued here. You provide a diverse and important piece to the puzzle of military life and your support is so, so crucial to the success of your service member. And honestly, you need a village, too! If you feel like Serving Faithfully can offer you insight and assistance in your life, then please come be a part of our community!
