GPP: What do you love about raising three girls?
Kelsi : I love having daughters for the obvious reasons like getting to relive my childhood through toys, Barbies, dress-up and princess movies. But best of all is watching the three of them play and interact together. They have squabbles, like any siblings do, but most of the time, they are each other’s best friends.
GPP: How do you make time for each of your girls individually?
Kelsi : My husband and I take the kids on one-on-one “Mommy-Daughter/Daddy-Daughter dates” about once a quarter – girls choose where we go and what we do! On a daily basis, we read books individually with each girl before bedtime.
Those nighttime snuggles or drives in the car en route to extracurriculars are usually when the best conversations and questions come up.
GPP: What does having family nearby mean to your family?
Kelsi : One of the best decisions my husband and I made was to move back to Pensacola when we were ready to start having kids. Whether it’s babysitting, childcare when someone is sick, help with house projects or having loved ones to share holidays and make memories with – there’s a reason for the expression “it takes a village.” We are very blessed to have an amazing village helping us raise our girls.
GPP: What are your favorite things to do together on weekends?
Kelsi : We get together with my parents, brother, sister-in-law and nephews every weekend! In summer, we have pool time. As a former theater kid, I now take my girls to shows at Pensacola Little Theatre, Ballet Pensacola or Pensacola State College.
GPP: What makes the Pensacola area feel like home to you?
Kelsi : I was born and raised in Pensacola and am blessed to have many extended family members in town. Plus, our church and my daughters’ school community, combined with the work families my husband and I are fortunate to be part of – we have an amazing network of people who make Pensacola feel like home.
I work for LifeView Group, which is a nonprofit family of companies, so in my daily life, I have the privilege of witnessing inspiring people impacting lives across our community through mental health care and support for people with disabilities. We live in an incredibly compassionate and welcoming community.
GPP: What has motherhood taught you about yourself?
Kelsi : How to give up control! By nature, I’m someone who prefers having a plan and knowing what’s coming, but that’s simply not the reality with motherhood. While I still like being prepared, I’ve learned to trust my instincts and ask for help from the village around me so that when the unexpected arises, I can “PIVOT!”
GPP: What inspired you to start writing fiction at such a young age?
Kelsi : When I was 7-years-old, I started writing short stories about my dolls in a Lisa Frank notebook, using a sparkly pink gel pen. As I grew up, I eventually progressed to novels. In college, I started as a journalism major.
Since then, I’ve worked in healthcare and nonprofit marketing, which is incredibly rewarding because it combines my love for research and wordsmithing with being part of a mission-minded team.
GPP: What brought you back to writing this year?
Kelsi : After my middle daughter was born, I took a break from writing fiction. Being in the trenches with small kids, I wasn’t mentally in the space to be creative. But when I was praying about my 2026 New Year’s resolutions, I felt a strong calling to pick up one of my books I’d finished ten years ago. I figured I’d dabble a bit, maybe review a chapter each month. I ended up re-writing the entire novel by October 2026. What I’m most proud of is not that I finished, but that I listened to God and started down this road at all.
At first, I really questioned myself. This is going to take ages, and I already don’t have enough hours in the day. But for something I really love doing, I’ve somehow found the time – even if it’s 10 o’clock at night.
Rapid Fire:
- Beach or pool? Pool!
- Morning or night? Night
- Super power you wish you possessed? As someone who’s typically rushed and running late, I’d like to instantly appear in places I need to be!
- Favorite family tradition? We host a Christmas Eve party for our extended family and any friends in town for the holidays.
- One word to describe motherhood? Blessing
Kelsi Gulig and her husband, Chris, met at the University of Florida and have been married for 15 years. Together, they are raising three daughters — Emma (10), Claire (7), and Ginny (3). The Gulig family stays busy with cheer and theatre activities for their two older daughters, making family life full of fun and plenty of activity. When Kelsi finds a little quiet time, often after the girls are tucked into bed, she enjoys escaping into the world of fiction through reading and writing her own stories.
