About
Our Story
Leah's Story-
We were just a normal family, living a normal life, in the Midwest. Though, we weren't the typical "two kid family", we had 6 kids, 5 grandchildren, and 2 "very much part of the family" standard poodles.
We worked during the day, had "kid" stuff going on at night, bought groceries weekly, (sometimes daily if we didn't have what we were "hungry for"), if we needed clothes or shoes, we bought them. Scratch that, the last sentence should say -if we wanted clothes or shoes, we bought them. A weekend getaway or a winter vacation, we scheduled it.
Ok, so by now, I'm sure you get it. We were living the "American Dream", working hard, raising our family, and comfortably living.
And then, I went to Kenya.
And my "comfortable living" wasn't comfortable anymore. The world looked different.
An excerpt from our TIMELINE page-
... as I was walking through the London Airport waiting on my connecting flight home... all I wanted to do was stand with a microphone and tell the people walking by, shopping at the high end fashion mall in the airport, seemingly without a care in the world.... there are kids in Kenya that need our help. There are men, women, children...full villages that have minimal food, and women have to walk for miles for water, and there definitely isn't any medical care in remote villages. And based on that, how in the world can life go on "as normal" for us, when people are starving?
This conflict raging inside me....wanting to be home with my family but struggling with returning to "normal" life and feeling as though I was turning away from one of my main personal drivers of... Love One Another John 13:34.
When I was home, I talked about Kenya, the experiences, the people, the needs. I already knew the others that went with me felt this way but to tell the stories, show the pictures, feel the moments, and share that with others and specifically my daughter Caiti, she was feeling that tug to "do something"... but what?
and here it comes....Caiti & our Ah-Huh Moment-
Fast forward a year later.... and there it was... A solution, both for my earrings and for the pull on our heart strings.
You see, I like to wear my stud earrings in my first ear piercings holes. (For some reason it didn't work for me to just leave the studs in the second piercing holes, I liked them in the first set.) Hang with me, I'm getting there.... My daughter, Caiti, wears all kinds of fun, dangly, adorable earrings. I was complaining to her about how much work it is to take out my stud earrings (they have a screw on back) to put the fun earrings in the first piercing place. And she looked me and said "Mom, put them in your second piercing. They don't have to be in the first one." ...Huh? It was an ah-huh moment. I know it sounds silly. BUT....it worked and I fell in love with long dangly, adorable earrings. And earrings cost money, and I had a lot of catching up to do....and on a budgeted pocket book, after all it's Covid time, and who knows what tomorrow will look like in the business world. So, to save money, Caiti said she can make them for us. Then we looked at each other, thinking making earrings, and that tug, yes, God 's solution, right there, simple, and like it was waiting for us.... so perfectly. And.... our earring shop was born! Just earrings? Nope, it grew as the vision grew. Earrings, bracelets, dream catchers, some home-made, some globally-made.... and the best part? The profit will go to supporting other women, lifting them up, loving on them, and pouring into them!
and with that, Jaber Soul was born!
Caiti
I am the 4th and youngest girl in our family.
Words to describes me: A ginger.... a wildflower, full of sugar, sweetness, and a little bit of fire (Okay maybe a lot of fire).
I am a farm wife and work for our family business.
I have 3 precious boys.
And am so excited for this new adventure that mom and I are starting! Funny how when I was growing up I didn't want to spend time with my mom, and now.... I can't get enough of her. :)
Momma Leah
Saved by grace, & in love with Jesus.
Sharing my "mess" in hope to encourage others.
Momma of 6, Grandma of 5, and caretaker of a small zoo -2 standard poodles & a rabbit.
Shhh.... Sometimes the "zoo" is the kids & grandkids. The animals are the angels. :)
And our hearts were changed, forever.