Skip to main content

Posts

One More Sleep

 Right now, life is measured in strange little units. Days blur together, patience runs thin, and everything feels louder when the house is missing two voices that belong in it. Only one more sleep until Miller and Landon are home from visiting family in Arkansas. I hate them being gone. I know they’re safe. I know they’re having fun. But the house feels off without them, like a song missing a verse. Their rooms feel too quiet. Their messes feel oddly sentimental. Even the chaos feels incomplete. Being injured has forced me into a version of life I didn’t sign up for. Depending on other people for basic things chips away at me in ways I didn’t expect. I don’t like asking. I don’t like waiting. I don’t like feeling stuck while the world keeps moving just out of reach. Some days I feel like I’m slowly losing my mind one “Can you grab that for me?” at a time. My husband is trying. And honestly, he’s doing pretty good. He’s kept us all alive, which feels like the bare minimum but al...
Recent posts

Grinch Day, Wax Disasters, and My Quest for Everyone’s Best Recipes

 My life lately has felt like a holiday blender on high speed, and today was no exception. We survived back-to-back Christmas concerts the last 2 days, each one its own sparkling circus of kids, glitter, last-minute hair fixes, and buying of a christmas shirt for the youngest and me trying to navigate crowds like a slightly feral pirate on a knee scooter. And then came today . Grinch Day. The kids woke up in full character, which is hilarious considering they already live their lives with Grinch-level dramatics. Dressing them up just made the outside match the inside. I had their outfits ready thanks to the Walmart delivery order that swooped in like a grocery-store guardian angel. If Walmart were a person, I’d bake them cookies or name a star after them. That order saved us from showing up with random outfits and feral energy. At least we only had one of those. This morning, Nana walked in, the dog got excited, and boom… wax spilled everywhere. And not a polite little drip. No...

Currently Held Together by Coffee, Chaos, and Pure Spite

 Life lately feels like one of those carnival rides that keeps spinning even after you’ve screamed the safe word. Some days I wake up ready to conquer the world. Other days, I’m pretty sure the world has me in a headlock and is whispering “tap out.” Still, I keep going. Not always gracefully. Not always quietly. But always honestly. I’ve got kids learning how to boomerang every piece of laundry they touch right back onto the floor, a partner wrestling shadows from the past, and a foot that decided to snap like a breadstick at the exact wrong moment. Suddenly I’m the queen of “No, I can’t walk there,” the monarch of “Someone please hand me that,” and the unwilling holiday decoration propped on the couch while everyone else buzzes around like caffeinated elves. But here’s the twist: breaking down has a way of showing who actually stands beside you. Hard moments peel back the paint and reveal the real structure underneath. It’s not always pretty, but at least it’s the truth. And s...

Roger That Chronicles- In the words of our kids "OUR PARENTS ARE FAMOUS"

B eing a military spouse often comes with quiet struggles that no one can see. I had the privilege of sharing some of my story on   Roger That Chronicles – Mothers, Spouses, and Soldiers: The Untold Chronicles   (streamed live on September 30, 2025). Sitting down with my husband Josh, a combat Veteran, a mother of a veteran. This was an experience that brought all of those feelings to the surface, pride, anxiety, love, and vulnerability. The Nerves Before Going Live I won’t lie—before the live stream, I was nervous. What would people think? Could I articulate what it’s really like to be a spouse on the homefront? There’s always this fear that your story won’t capture the complexity of military life. But I reminded myself that honesty matters more than perfection. Sharing my experience as a spouse, the challenges, the laughter, the tears—felt important not just for me, but for other spouses and moms who might be going through the same things. Hearing Josh Speak Sitting there wi...

Laundry, PTSD, and ADHD Walk Into a Blog…

    Hi, I’m Stephanie! The voice behind  Tastefully Chaotic: The Homefront . I decided to finally carve out this space to share the real, raw, and sometimes ridiculous parts of my life as a mom, wife, daughter and chaos-juggler. I’m married to Josh, a combat veteran who’s brought his own strength, stories, and scars into our family’s journey. Being married to someone who’s served comes with its own set of challenges,  things you can’t always explain unless you’ve lived it , but it’s also given us resilience, perspective, and a whole lot of dark humor. We have three amazing kids: Landon (12)  — my thoughtful, quick-witted oldest who keeps me on my toes son. Miller (10)  — my sweet, sassy, full of energy and will definitely tell you like it is daughter. Benjamin (8)  — my youngest, the one who has both the sweet and mischievous sides mastered son. Oh, and let’s not forget our furry crew: three dogs and 2 cats who add to the beautiful mess of our home. Li...