Kendra White - My Story and Blessings

Hey Y’all my name is Kendra White. I am a true southern lady who is Kentucky raised and Jesus saved. I am a wife, mom, daughter, and friend. I adore my family, and I love to laugh. I love HGTV, and I still haven’t forgiven my husband for canceling cable. I am an avid Kentucky basketball fan and will plan my calendar around all games. I married an NFL football fan and now speak fluent Red Zone, and of course I love any sport my kids play. I believe that in Heaven next to the lands of milk and honey will be Diet Dr. Pepper flowing, it is how I stay hydrated! Most importantly I love Jesus, and have since the seasoned age of 9, and promise I could out sing you any day in a hymn sing off (Do those exist? They totally should!)

I graduated from Asbury University which is nestled outside of Lexington, Kentucky. The town is a total college town and has only 2 stop lights. It feels like a real-life Mayberry. I graduated with a degree in Christian Education and then went on to be a Children’s Pastor at one of the largest churches in Kentucky. Teaching others that the Bible is living and active is my greatest passion in life.

While in college I got a wild hair to leave the mother land of Kentucky and head to the wide-open spaces of Colorado (or maybe I just listened to too much Dixie Chicks), and I applied to the Focus on the Family Institute. That’s right, this was the school run by Dr. Dobson where you go to learn all you need to know about marriage, parenting, and tools for life. I was accepted there the summer between my Junior and Senior year, plus I was getting college credit for all the “learning” I was doing. 82 students were accepted that summer, 70 girls, 12 boys. Adventure awaited as I was about to leave horse country in exchange for the majestic mountain country of Colorado. What I didn’t know was that God had something in store that summer that would forever change my life.

There was the boy, he was (and is) oh so handsome. He took over the ice breaker games and his leadership skills had me all hot and bothered. During church, we had to hold hands to pray, after the “amen” I didn’t let go, I couldn’t. This boy he was from a faraway land one I had only ever heard not so nice things about, THE NORTH, well technically Minneapolis, MN, but that was a far cry from the mother land. But love, love can do funny things to a person. So, after 2 years of talking hours daily on the phone, numerous flights, one flat tire in Chicago, he gave up all he had ever known and moved to Kentucky. Six weeks later he got down on one knee on the playground where I played as a child and asked me to be his wife, and emphatically I said yes!

13.5 years later we have a marriage that is so far from perfect that we have to fight for it daily but we do it because we love God first and each other second. We have an amazing 10 year old son John Hunter who brings us so much joy in all he does. We have a 5 year old daughter Lynley who lights ups a room with her smile if she stops talking long enough to flash it. About 2 years ago we moved to that 2 stop light college town where I went to school in Wilmore, KY after living 8 years in Indianapolis. It was a bit of a culture shock but we have grown to love it. We can usually be found most weekends pulling the fold up wagon full of Gatorade and boxed candy from one sporting event to another as we watch our kids play. When we aren’t at the fields we love to travel or in our backyard at the pool hosting parties or opening our home as a resting place for families to get real with each other and find peace.

Most days I am just doing my best to survive this thing called life. I’m certain if you ever stopped by the house the laundry would be still be in the washer from a few days ago, my latest Pinterest project would be strung across my studio, guaranteed my sons baseball cup would be out in the open, my daughter will have her 1.3 million dolls or collection of something lined up somewhere and my husband, well he will either be working or playing video games, but we will all be glad you stopped by. We are by no means perfect, and we will never want you think we are, but we will always be honest, transparent and real (maybe too real), and will have some yummy eats for you! So please stop on by we’d love to have ya!

Latasha Bailey