I read a great blog post today about how we need more 9/12s. September 11^th marked a tremendous tragedy for our country, but September 12^th marked the time of change. We all acted differently, looked at each other differently, faced our problems differently. We were united. We were supportive. We were encouraging. We were there to help our brothers and sisters in need. While none of us want to go back and re-live that horrible time, I think I would like to re-live how it changed us. I need that reminder. Don’t you?

So it is with our lives. Our pasts are full of mistakes, trials, tragedies. None of us want to go back and re-live the bad stuff—the hurt, the grief, the stress. But do you ever think about going back to re-live a lesson learned? I thought about it a lot as I wrote my story, Welcome Home.

In two-and-a-half weeks, I poured my heart onto the page. I cried, laughed, sobbed, and remembered all the emotions of defeat, anger, despair, hurt, and always – joy. It was an amazing time. And I realized that even though I had endured incredibly difficult circumstances, I needed to remember how they had changed me. How I had grown. How each lesson learned brought me to greater joy. God’s unfathomable joy, that can’t be taken away.

I pray that you are encouraged by our story, and I pray that you too, will take the time to remember.

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Overwhelming trials . . . met with overcoming joy.
Kayla Woodhouse is not your typical twelve-year-old. Due to a rare medical disorder, she feels no pain, doesn’t sweat, and needs protective cooling gear just to go outside. With her restrictive lifestyle; countless hospitalizations, including brain surgery; and the resulting mountain of hospital bills, what’s a family to do?

How the Woodhouse family has faced seemingly impossible challenges is a story that has captured the hearts of America. Millions of people have experienced glimpses of their lives on Discovery’s Mystery ER, The Montel Williams Show, and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (recently voted one of the show’s all-time best episodes!).

Now Kayla’s mom, Kimberley, takes readers behind the cameras to reveal their family’s journey as never before told. From medical sleuthing to cross-country moves, from freak fires to battles with insurance companies, Welcome Home proves that truth really is stranger than fiction. This candid life story reveals both success and failure and demonstrates how, even during tough circumstances, to shift your life from heartbreak to extreme joy.

Peek inside the Woodhouse family’s life (and their famous house) with a 16-page photo insert.