Knoxville, Tennessee

Simply Sweet Sentiments
for littles & the mamas who love them
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So very nice to meet you!
I am Christina Kenkel, wife to Pat, mom to four grown-up kids: Mary, Emily, Joey, and Katie. I grew up in St. Charles, Illinois, a far-west suburb of Chicago (Go Cubs!) My husband grew up on a farm in Iowa (Go...Cows?) We compromised by raising our family in the small town of Elburn, a place that could easily be compared to a cornfield. In 2014, Pat and I began a new adventure by packing up our empty nest and moving to Louisville, Kentucky. If you’re wondering if we are Louisville or Kentucky fans, unfortunately we weren’t there long enough to choose. Another career move brought us to Knoxville, Tennessee in November of 2016. Our favorite new phrase: “We weren’t born in the south, but we got here as quick as we could!”
“I Love Chai Tea” (maybe even more than IKEA!)
Actually, I love both. Fortunately, chai tea is readily available in Knoxville. IKEA, not so much. You’d think they’d put one in Nashville, wouldn’t you? Nope. Gotta go to Cincy. Good thing we have two daughters (and their hubbies) who live there and that we have Rosie, the Edge (yes, we name our cars) to bring home the loot. Speaking of chai, that sounds pretty good right now...yum!
I may or may not have a You’ve Got Mail obsession…
If you are so inclined, you can read more of the details of my decision to create Lucy Rogers Designs here. If not, that’s OK. There will be plenty of YGM quotes to fill in the blanks.
Sometimes I wonder about my life. I lead a small life.
Well, valuable, but small.
And sometimes I wonder,
do I do it because I like it, or because I haven't been brave?
(Kathleen Kelly, You’ve Got Mail)
The short story is that I've decided to be brave.
For the long story, see The Story Behind Lucy Rogers.
I have a gift for making a short story long :)
I love, Love, LOVE babies
Of the various “preps” during my time as a Family & Consumer Science teacher, Child Development was by far my favorite. I love kids of all ages, but teaching about prenatal development through the preschool ages is what got me excited to go to work in the morning. Once I decided to step back from teaching to spend more time with my family, I took some time to discern what work I could do that would be meaningful to me, make a difference in the world, and allow me to contribute to our budget. It didn’t take me long to know that being a nanny was my new dream job! I am currently caring for a sweet little boy who recently had his first birthday. We are in the stage where my job description changes almost weekly. By the time you read this, the steps registered on my Fitbit will have increased drastically!
