Mom influencer Kirstin Czernek believed her prayers had been answered when she moved her family from Florida to their dream home in Tennessee—only to be brought to her knees when the youngest of her four children was diagnosed with cancer.
At the time, the 37-year-old social media star had amassed a huge online following by sharing her joyful perspective on her unique parenting journey, and fans were thrilled to get the chance to watch as she prepared to embark on a new chapter in a new home alongside husband Tomas Czernek and their kids: Mia, 10, Kai, 8, Aria, 6, and Luca, 2.
The couple adopted three of their four children from foster care and have openly documented Aria and Luca’s Down syndrome journeys, offering advice to other parents about how to handle the genetic condition, always providing a positive attitude even in the darkest of times.
Yet, celebrations of the family’s Franklin, TN, home purchase and big move in July 2024 were cut short by the devastating news of Luca’s leukemia diagnosis.
Instead of becoming a sanctuary where the family could embrace a new phase of their life, Kirstin and Tomas’ new home was turned into the site of a brutal health battle as they supported their youngest child through his grueling treatment.
The first year of their life in their new home was dominated by hospital visits, blood tests, and chemotherapy sessions, during which the whole family rallied around their youngest member, offering unwavering support and love to the youngster, who completed his treatment in September.
Now, Kirstin and her family can finally breathe a sigh of relief, and enjoy the delayed jubilation for their fresh start in their new home.
The 1994-built, 3,900-square-foot, four-bedroom, four-bathroom contemporary abode became the family’s stable home base while Luca endured long hospital stays for treatment, with the living room in particular providing sanctuary from the stress of health challenges and everyday ups and downs as a young family of six.
Yet while the home helped to keep them grounded during those difficult times, Kirstin says she is finally ready to take on the renovation projects that were quickly shelved amid her son’s diagnosis.
In the latest installment of Celebrity Sanctuary, she details her vision for designing a space that supports her whole family’s well-being, and allows her to soak up special moments with her kids in this season of life, and all the happy—and healthy—ones to come.
What made us want to choose this home was the location and layout. We were wanting a home in a school district specifically for Aria and Luca, who have special needs.
The layout also needed to be super functional for our family of six. The boys share a room, but Luca’s room is a few steps up from Kai’s in a loft area, giving them their own space.
The girls have their own rooms, and we have a playroom, which is on the split level, making it perfect for the kids to play, but also, I can keep an eye on everyone.
In terms of renovations to the home, when we first moved in, we painted the whole house in Benjamin Moore’s Chantilly Lace. We went moody with the office and painted everything a super dark gray—almost black.
Our son Luca got sick and had leukemia shortly after we moved in, so we had to put house projects on hold last year. In the near future, we plan to redo aspects of the kitchen, like backspace and countertops, change out some more light fixtures, and eventually redo our master bathroom.
My sanctuary in our house is the central spot in the house. I struggled with the layout initially, but I feel like we [arranged] it perfectly. I love the flow of it. This is the spot my family unwinds.
After school each day, we catch up here. Plenty of board games and play have happened here. It’s cozy but also functional with having four kids.
I wanted it to feel like a space and place my family could unwind. I wanted everyone to be able to relax and feel comfortable.
My kids come down with their Kindles and read on the couch while we have a fire going, and you can just tell how much they are unwinding from their day. I love that I have a space and place for them like this.
To me, sanctuary means a place I can unwind, snuggle my babies, where we can all show up and rest. I drink coffee there in the morning, and there’s always one of my babies snuggled up next to me. I know this won’t be forever, so I’m trying to savor every moment.
My perfect day in my sanctuary looks like morning coffee and baby snuggles, a little midafternoon work with some tea, catching up with the kids after school, and ending the night chatting with Tomas once everyone’s asleep.
My style is pretty traditional. Up until this house, we always lived in historic homes with a lot of character, so it was important to me to bring some of those elements into this house. The staircase is pretty contemporary alongside this room, so it was important to blend the two.
I derived design and decor inspiration from an accumulation of Instagram design accounts, Pinterest, and just my style in general. The couches and coffee table are from Pottery Barn, and the decor is a mixture from over the years.
The coffee table books, I have collected and had for years. I swap them out from time to time, but I love them.
My favorite feature of the room is the gas fireplace. I love how easy it is to get a fire going. It really has the best vibe.
I have made my sanctuary my own through design and memories. I think a space feels more and more like your own when you are able to collect memories there. I now have memories of holidays and day-to-day life in this space that are so special to me.
I work from home, so a lot of times, it’s a blend [of work and life]. I actually work quite a bit in this room, because I love how calm it is.
I set boundaries on the time frames I work. So during the day, I work in the living room, but once the kids get home from school, I’m done with work for the day and completely shift to it being a place of rest and time with them.
My husband and family love this room as well. Tomas and I always hang out here when we put the kids to bed and unwind and chat for the night. The kids love this being a cozy spot in the middle of the house. Guests have said they love how cozy the room is and how much seating there is.
I am very happy with the current state of our sanctuary. I feel like since we moved recently and I designed it, I don’t have any plans to change it anytime soon.
