I’m mom to five children (including a set of twins) and grandmother to 21 (including a set of quadruplets!). My husband, John, and I have been married 52 years. We live in Falls Church, Virginia, a Washington D.C. suburb where John served as the Senior Pastor of The Falls Church Anglican for 40 years before retirement.
I’ve written 16 books and speak on the subjects of marriage, parenting, faith issues, and women’s issues. My books include And Then I Had Kids: Encouragement for Mothers of Young Children; Raising Kids with Values That Last (with my husband John); and Barbara and Susan’s Guide to the Empty Nest (with my friend Barbara Rainey). My latest books are Cousin Camp, Risky Faith, Becoming Brave Enough to Trust the God who is Bigger Than Your World and the One (Devotional) Book.
I blog once a week on the theme of “Wisdom for Every Season”. I also write for Club31Women. For 11 years, I was the Parent Child Columnist for “Today’s Christian Women” magazine. I have also written for other publications including, “Thriving Family,” a magazine published by Focus on the Family.
I’m a North Carolina Tarheel. I love Monday night football, ACC basketball, shooting hoops with my grandsons, hiking and riding horseback with my husband, running and talking with girlfriends. You are not likely to find me at the mall; I’d rather be at the farm. You won’t find me in the kitchen by choice; I’d rather be outdoors with my golden retriever. My favorite time of the year is June when all my kids and grandkids are together for a week of “cousin and family camp” in the foothills of the Shenandoah Mountains of Virginia.
Meet Our Kids
Susy and Scott Anderson have been in Nashville, TN for over ten years and are transitioning to life with a full blown teenager in the house. With their younger two following close behind, life remains full and happily chaotic most days. Scott continues love the challenges of running his company, Threadbird, a full service screen printing and merchandising company, based in Nashville and Orlando. Susy is teaching pre-school three days a week at St. Bartholomew’s while all other hours are full of sports, schoolwork, extra-curricular activities, travel and fellowship at their home church, The Village Chapel.
Chris and Christy Yates, their four kids and flock of hens live by the mountains just outside Charlottesville, VA. Chris is working on a new book and teaching philosophy at James Madison University and a Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture. Christy does campus and community ministry with Theological Horizons and is a contemporary landscape painter. They love their church, All Souls Charlottesville.
Allison and Will Gaskins and their family live in Falls Church, VA where Will works in residential real estate and Allison is working towards her MA in Literature while also working in management with Sara Groves Music. The kids think it’s great that Mom has homework too. More often than not, they have to help her navigate the technology necessary to hers. Their home is lively, often with extra people living with them, as well as more pets than the parents ever wanted!
John and Alysia Yates are happy to call Raleigh NC home, and John is following in his father’s footsteps as a pastor. He is the Rector of Holy Trinity Anglican Church downtown. Alysia enjoys being at home with the kids and also works as a freelance editor and writer. Their four children span from college to middle school, and their home is a noisy, messy, happy place.
Libby and McLean Wilson live in Memphis, TN with their five children (13-year-old daughter and four eleven-year-olds!). During their fifteen years in Memphis, McLean has worked with his family business creating hotels as well as redeveloping historic spaces (The Crosstown Concourse) and using his creative energy with his business skills to keep the family legacy thriving. This is an adventurous crew that spends as much time as possible outside on trails and at beaches…traveling and exploring as a family as often as possible. They took advantage of remote learning/working during the Covid year to move out West and off the grid while focusing on family, the Father and nature. There was a big shift in their family priorities five years ago when they almost lost a child due to a failed liver. The transplant brought a beautiful focus for them onto their crew of seven and God’s creation. If you want to reach them, you may not find them!
