Hey guys! Thank you for stopping by our little corner of the internet, where I have been writing for over a decade. What an amazing story we have to share!

I am Crystal VanTassel-Lopez, a Dallas mom blogger. Maybe you’ve seen me do one of my live tv segments over on Good Morning Texas?

We are a large blended family with NINE children between the two of us. And what a journey the Lord has taken us on- each journey teaching us more and more what faith truly is. It is trusting and believing in Him!

Getting to Know the Lopez’s

We have eight boys, six of which are still at home.

My husband came to the marriage with two children- now ages 31 and 17. My husband has been married once before- to the same woman for 16 years. My husband is ten years older than me.

Vincent is 31, married and has a daughter. They live in East Texas.

I came to the marriage with a son who is now 19 and lives in Colorado. He lived with us until he was 12. Someday we will share our story of parent alienation and a horrific local family court system. In time, when my heart is ready.

Our oldest at home is Anthony, he is 17. He is actually my step son, but most people do not even know that. We look alike and act a like. He has lived with us since the end of his Kindergarten year.

Together we have twin who are 12, Nick and Luke. They are fraternal. And get this- my husband is a twin, my mother is a twin, and my mom’s twin sister has twins. I literally shocked when my OB told me I was having twins. SHOCKED!

Our biological baby is Matthew. We literally called him Baby Matthew until he was 5 or 6 years old. He is now 9 and is the little gypsy of our home. He changed my mama heart in so many ways.

In November 2015, we offered to help a family we knew through church with their then 18 month of great grandson. His name was Luke and his middle name was Henry.  Since one of our twins is named Luke, we included his middle name and when we refer to Luke Henry, you know who we are talking to. We initially were voluntary caregivers through child protective services for Luke Henry, and now have legal custody of him.

In December 2016, LH’s newest baby brother came to live with us. His name is Jack and he was 5 months old. He was born with meth in his blood and urine and was being moved from his current caregivers. My husband was contacted and asked if we could care for him until his biological mom could get the help she needed. He will be two soon and we are close to being legal custodians of him as well. This journey has taught us so much about our family and our faith in the Lord.

As long as I have known my husband he has longed for a daughter. Everywhere we went our group of boys were so hard to miss. We kind of walk into a room and take over. Person after person would ask, “No girls? All boys?!”.  It became second nature for my husband to say, “God knew I could not handle a daughter.”.

In February 2018, my husband received a Facebook message that forever changed his life, and our family’s journey. He had no idea that at the end of his senior year, he conceived a daughter.

Amazing, right? God has a plan for each of our lives. He does.

This website is all about resources and solutions for moms. We homeschool, meal plan, create easy recipes, share educational activities for kids, and more. But most of all, we give Glory to God! He has blessed us beyond measure.

We have worked with brands like Bounty, Old Spice, Hersheys, CVS, Target and Walmart just to name a few.

 

 

Are you interested in working with Crystal & Co., or having me promote your brand? Read more about my stats and influence.