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I Just Wish I Had a Bigger Kitchen: And Other Lies I Think Will Make Me Happy
In a social-media saturated world, it's all too easy to see the shiny lives of others and find your own less than lustrous. And while most women won't admit they're unhappy, they will tell you they just wish. "I love my life! I just wish____." After 10-plus years of professional life online, Kate Strickler, founder of Naptime Kitchen, has experienced the many ways we see a life on the other side of the screen--and wish it were our own.
Setting out to fight the lie that what she had wasn't enough, Kate discovered simple perspective shifts that ultimately helped her fall in love with the life she already had. Here she shares the small changes you can make that add up to a whole new outlook on life. With her trademark real-life tips and life hacks mixed with humor and stories she's never shared before, Kate helps you identify and dismantle 10 lies about relationships, money, time, and home life. As you discover how to live and mother in ways that work for you and your family, you'll stop just wishing your life away--and begin to truly enjoy the one you already have.
Setting out to fight the lie that what she had wasn't enough, Kate discovered simple perspective shifts that ultimately helped her fall in love with the life she already had. Here she shares the small changes you can make that add up to a whole new outlook on life. With her trademark real-life tips and life hacks mixed with humor and stories she's never shared before, Kate helps you identify and dismantle 10 lies about relationships, money, time, and home life. As you discover how to live and mother in ways that work for you and your family, you'll stop just wishing your life away--and begin to truly enjoy the one you already have.
192 pages, Hardcover
First published August 26, 2025
1887 people are currently reading
11363 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 933 reviews
September 3, 2025
The title lured me and I'm glad it was short because there wasn't much in here in terms of rich content. Definitely a case of "I'm an influencer and here's what I have to say".
November 22, 2025
These kinds of books are hard for me to rate, the ones that mix their ideas so completely with the author’s own life that you can’t actually separate the two.
Strickler’s objective is to stare down 10 “I just wish” comments that feed discontent. It’s a worthy goal. And I have absolutely started sentences of my own with those three words. The ones she tackles include the title’s bigger kitchen, more friends, being a better mom, more money, more control … they’re universal.
The sticky part is that Strickler comes from a life of privilege – her words, not mine – and that makes some of what she’s saying hard to swallow. She has my respect because she acknowledges this conundrum directly more than once in the book. But also, it’s still there, in almost every chapter.
Stories about body image include her very small dress size and her Botox treatments. Stories about struggles in parenting are set in Disneyland or on her grandfather’s boat. Stories about money include her receiving it from a lot of places that not everyone does.
She’s right – in some ways this makes her the perfect person to acknowledge and push back against the monster of discontentment. She’s proof that people struggle with it at every social and economic level.
It's to her credit that she’s honest and smart enough to acknowledge both what she has and her relative youth as a mom and wife. That choice allows her ideas and lessons to land helpfully when they could have gone badly in other directions.
My favorites were the chapters on parenting, body image and feeling like a failure. Strickler is a Christian, but the book is more infused with that worldview than full of specific verses or lessons. And she is careful to say (again, multiple times) that she isn’t trying to speak to people in deep crisis and loss. She’s speaking to the everywoman, the one just living life with its endless small joys and average weights and temporary victories and normal setbacks.
In that spot, you can listen well and learn well, for example, when she writes about her struggle to get her fourth child to sleep, after the first three responded beautifully to every piece of baby book advice she used on them.
“The pride I had in my own ability was replaced with something much softer, something more welcoming and easier to hold: humility.” Living a normal life with its normal pains – the tantrums, depression, disappointment, envy and more – equips us to love all the people living normal lives around us.
“Humility softens us. It is like a warm blanket ready to wrap around someone who needs to be understood.”
Strickler’s objective is to stare down 10 “I just wish” comments that feed discontent. It’s a worthy goal. And I have absolutely started sentences of my own with those three words. The ones she tackles include the title’s bigger kitchen, more friends, being a better mom, more money, more control … they’re universal.
The sticky part is that Strickler comes from a life of privilege – her words, not mine – and that makes some of what she’s saying hard to swallow. She has my respect because she acknowledges this conundrum directly more than once in the book. But also, it’s still there, in almost every chapter.
Stories about body image include her very small dress size and her Botox treatments. Stories about struggles in parenting are set in Disneyland or on her grandfather’s boat. Stories about money include her receiving it from a lot of places that not everyone does.
She’s right – in some ways this makes her the perfect person to acknowledge and push back against the monster of discontentment. She’s proof that people struggle with it at every social and economic level.
It's to her credit that she’s honest and smart enough to acknowledge both what she has and her relative youth as a mom and wife. That choice allows her ideas and lessons to land helpfully when they could have gone badly in other directions.
My favorites were the chapters on parenting, body image and feeling like a failure. Strickler is a Christian, but the book is more infused with that worldview than full of specific verses or lessons. And she is careful to say (again, multiple times) that she isn’t trying to speak to people in deep crisis and loss. She’s speaking to the everywoman, the one just living life with its endless small joys and average weights and temporary victories and normal setbacks.
In that spot, you can listen well and learn well, for example, when she writes about her struggle to get her fourth child to sleep, after the first three responded beautifully to every piece of baby book advice she used on them.
“The pride I had in my own ability was replaced with something much softer, something more welcoming and easier to hold: humility.” Living a normal life with its normal pains – the tantrums, depression, disappointment, envy and more – equips us to love all the people living normal lives around us.
“Humility softens us. It is like a warm blanket ready to wrap around someone who needs to be understood.”
August 28, 2025
Lovingly practical yet drenched in grace for ourselves and others.
October 26, 2025
As someone who is actually facing hard things in life, this book is stupid and was not worth my time.
August 4, 2025
I finished this book in less than a day. It's written in such an engaging style that I genuinely felt as if (pardon the cliche) I was sitting down with the author at a park play date. I really enjoyed the memoir-ish vibe and all the personal anecdotes, but also that each chapter was simply stuffed with practical application, including a snapshot summary and journaling prompts, too. I think so many women will benefit from Kate's honest thoughts on contentment and how to pursue it in our highlights-real culture. This is a needed message!
That said, I did rate it 4 out of 5 stars. Why note 5 stars? I thought the author missed the opportunity to use Scripture or other examples of women pursuing contentment (whether historical or modern) so it almost felt like a secular book at times. Even so, though, I think this book will bless many and I will definitely reread it.
That said, I did rate it 4 out of 5 stars. Why note 5 stars? I thought the author missed the opportunity to use Scripture or other examples of women pursuing contentment (whether historical or modern) so it almost felt like a secular book at times. Even so, though, I think this book will bless many and I will definitely reread it.
September 7, 2025
I love Kate but was disappointed in this book. Her style and words of wisdom work well in short form on Instagram. The first two chapters were good. However, it went downhill from there. I found most of the book lacking in content and was surprised how some of the chapters were full of ramblings that didn’t really connect in my mind. It felt like she wrote the application questions and then tried to fill in the rest through stories and summarizing others’ words.
August 28, 2025
So many snippets of wisdom I will reference for years to come. I laughed, I cried— just loved this and already going back through to read it for a second time and annotate even more. A must-read for the modern woman, especially mothers 🩷
September 30, 2025
Not to be harsh but this seemed to me like another influencer could sell a book so might as well write one. I appreciated that Kate shared about things she’s currently wrestling with, and I commend her for using actual, real-life examples with specifics (sometimes TMI haha), but she doesn’t quite reach the level of depth that I’m looking for in either a self help book or a memoir.
Its a bummer too that her faith is just an add-on (she says this in the book, and that in writing the book she learned that it’s actually more than that). Her Christianity is flimsy; rather than overhauling the lies she believes with the power of the gospel, she gives half-hearted suggestions to maybe make things a little better. Even more of a bummer that the extremely obvious solution to most if not all of her disappointments and temptations is to get off of social media, but it doesn’t sound like that’s a consideration.
Nonetheless, I enjoyed reading it, especially peering into the challenges of being a highly productive type, since I’ve always compared myself to people like Kate and “wished I was more like her.”
3.5 ⭐️
Its a bummer too that her faith is just an add-on (she says this in the book, and that in writing the book she learned that it’s actually more than that). Her Christianity is flimsy; rather than overhauling the lies she believes with the power of the gospel, she gives half-hearted suggestions to maybe make things a little better. Even more of a bummer that the extremely obvious solution to most if not all of her disappointments and temptations is to get off of social media, but it doesn’t sound like that’s a consideration.
Nonetheless, I enjoyed reading it, especially peering into the challenges of being a highly productive type, since I’ve always compared myself to people like Kate and “wished I was more like her.”
3.5 ⭐️
November 30, 2025
This book was not it for me. It felt like rambling and was lacking a central message. I can see why there was no wait on Libby.
November 19, 2025
This was fine. It boils down to the need we have to stop comparing ourselves and be grateful for what we have. I agree, but I still want a dishwasher. 😉
September 4, 2025
There was a reason this was available with no wait on Libby lol
September 26, 2025
2.5-ish. Definitely comes from a place of privilege, but there were some good tidbits about keeping things in perspective.
September 26, 2025
4.5 ⭐️- let it be known, I picked this up without any familiarity of “Naptime Kitchen”. Maybe it’s the fact that I’m following just a few steps behind the author in my current season of life, but I resonated with most every chapter of this book, and ultimately felt so validated and seen. I appreciate the author’s bravery and honesty in her writing. It was imperfect, but all the while real and wise—which made it that much more relatable. Worth the read!
October 1, 2025
Pleasant enough listen but really nothing revelatory. I wanted big ideas and didn’t feel that this got there. Maybe I’m biased against influencers writing books simply because they’re influencers. This felt a little disjointed. Good idea, mediocre execution.
Some takeaways:
-watch for moving goal posts. Sometimes these are appropriate and necessary, but reaching your goal and never acknowledging or celebrating it (in favor of immediately looking on to the next bigger better thing) will leave you unfulfilled.
-be mindful of an internal vs external score card. Which things are doing to appear a certain way instead becoming the person you want to be.
Some takeaways:
-watch for moving goal posts. Sometimes these are appropriate and necessary, but reaching your goal and never acknowledging or celebrating it (in favor of immediately looking on to the next bigger better thing) will leave you unfulfilled.
-be mindful of an internal vs external score card. Which things are doing to appear a certain way instead becoming the person you want to be.
September 4, 2025
Absolutely enjoyed every single minute of this read. I love Kate. I’ve followed her for years. I was thrilled to see she was writing a book. I plan to own the book, but listened to it on audio. She narrates it and does such a wonderful job. This is the book for us women, for us mothers, daughters, wives. It makes you think and it makes you appreciate things a little more.
Loved it!
Loved it!
November 8, 2025
I just wish the author could identify with regular people. She tries so hard to relate and be relatable while also admitting she grew up quite wealthy and that the wealth she grew up with can make her seem out of touch.
She's trying to write to regular moms, but she's not living the same life as regular moms. Also, did she really go on and on about her own humility?! *insert eye roll here* The tone of this book is so high and mighty with a splash of know it all.
The ten "I just wish statements" had a lot of repetition and overlap. They could have been combined, and she could have had a solid five. But, the basic message is simply finding contentment and joy in the life you're currently living.
Strong start, but I just got tired of it at about 1/3 of the way through. I loved the idea of this book, but the author lost me in the execution.
She's trying to write to regular moms, but she's not living the same life as regular moms. Also, did she really go on and on about her own humility?! *insert eye roll here* The tone of this book is so high and mighty with a splash of know it all.
The ten "I just wish statements" had a lot of repetition and overlap. They could have been combined, and she could have had a solid five. But, the basic message is simply finding contentment and joy in the life you're currently living.
Strong start, but I just got tired of it at about 1/3 of the way through. I loved the idea of this book, but the author lost me in the execution.
September 30, 2025
Hmm… I enjoyed listening to the audiobook - felt like a long chat with a close friend or older sister. I appreciate Kate’s overall message, her relatability and vulnerability, and her attempts to point the reader to the gospel. The chapters on marriage and control were probably my favorites. I can see this being an approachable and beneficial book on a topic that is particularly tempting for women in this day and age, but there are many more rich books on contentment that I would recommend before this one.
September 4, 2025
The best thing about this book is that it led me to the Wiser Than Me podcast.
Each chapter is a different “I just wish…” theme, and I could relate to each statement, but didn’t gain much beyond that. It would have been a DNF except I’m reading with a group of women, and I am actually looking forward to hearing how others would combat these lies we like to tell ourselves. Otherwise, would not recommend.
Each chapter is a different “I just wish…” theme, and I could relate to each statement, but didn’t gain much beyond that. It would have been a DNF except I’m reading with a group of women, and I am actually looking forward to hearing how others would combat these lies we like to tell ourselves. Otherwise, would not recommend.
September 8, 2025
I wasn’t aware that this was going to have as much Christianity in the book as I do not follow the author on IG and didn’t know who she was when I started the book.
September 24, 2025
Absolutely obsessed with this book and can’t stop talking about it! So honest and engaging and practical!!
September 3, 2025
3.5 ⭐️
The concept was interesting, but the execution wasn’t for me.
It lacked a little luster. I don’t think this book will have much sticking power in my mind for the long haul, and I thought it would going into it.
The concept was interesting, but the execution wasn’t for me.
It lacked a little luster. I don’t think this book will have much sticking power in my mind for the long haul, and I thought it would going into it.
September 29, 2025
this really should have stayed a Instagram post.
September 1, 2025
"Folks are usually about as happy as they make up their minds to be." - generally attributed to Abraham Lincoln.
Part memoir, part self-help, this insightful book provides a beautiful reflection on life. I have followed Kate Strickler of Naptime Kitchen for years and love her mix of funny, down to earth, relatable content, clever hacks, and deep meditations on a life well lived. She brings all that and more to this book, which is deeply personal and revelatory. She opens the book talking about how easy it is to compare ourselves to others in the age of social media. But then goes on to have chapters that talk about various areas in her life and her own personal struggles and how different shifts in perspectives have helped improve her overall outlook.
This is not the first book written by an 'influencer' that I have read. In fact, it's not the only one I have read this month! But it by far the best I have come across. This goes beyond the surface level. Kate shares intimate stories from her life from her loneliness in her early college years to moments of irritation with her husband to her postpartum struggles with her fourth child. I deeply appreciated Kate's willingness to be vulnerable and share her truths in her writing. I felt like Kate was inviting us into her home, much like she does on her Instagram account, and showing us the good, bad, and the ugly. She reflects on the type of mom, friend, wife, and general person she wants to be and how she wants to be remembered and in doing so, encourages her readers to be reflective about their own lives and how they approach them.
I listened to this on audio, which was read by the author herself. I loved hearing her stories in her own voice! It made it feel like I was just listening to a long audio message from a friend. I also loved the quotes that opened each chapter, that beautifully summed up the content of the upcoming chapter.
Part memoir, part self-help, this insightful book provides a beautiful reflection on life. I have followed Kate Strickler of Naptime Kitchen for years and love her mix of funny, down to earth, relatable content, clever hacks, and deep meditations on a life well lived. She brings all that and more to this book, which is deeply personal and revelatory. She opens the book talking about how easy it is to compare ourselves to others in the age of social media. But then goes on to have chapters that talk about various areas in her life and her own personal struggles and how different shifts in perspectives have helped improve her overall outlook.
This is not the first book written by an 'influencer' that I have read. In fact, it's not the only one I have read this month! But it by far the best I have come across. This goes beyond the surface level. Kate shares intimate stories from her life from her loneliness in her early college years to moments of irritation with her husband to her postpartum struggles with her fourth child. I deeply appreciated Kate's willingness to be vulnerable and share her truths in her writing. I felt like Kate was inviting us into her home, much like she does on her Instagram account, and showing us the good, bad, and the ugly. She reflects on the type of mom, friend, wife, and general person she wants to be and how she wants to be remembered and in doing so, encourages her readers to be reflective about their own lives and how they approach them.
I listened to this on audio, which was read by the author herself. I loved hearing her stories in her own voice! It made it feel like I was just listening to a long audio message from a friend. I also loved the quotes that opened each chapter, that beautifully summed up the content of the upcoming chapter.
December 30, 2025
I enjoy the Naptime Kitchen Instagram account, but I didn’t really have high hopes for a book written by a content creator/influencer. But I’m so happy to be wrong! The genius of this book is that Kate uses stories from her life to tap into the very human insecurities and fears that most of us have as wives and mothers and then uses her Christian outlook to very practically help us to think rightly about ourselves and our circumstances. In a very conversational, narrative style, Kate offers down-to-earth, actionable ideas for changing your mindset. She quotes a few people I wouldn’t, and you won’t find Bible verses here or “biblical arguments,” per se, but you will find a Christian wife and mom who wants our marriages and our parenting and our daily lives to live out the gospel and rest in Christ in the most everyday ways.
(Disclaimer: I don’t know anything about Kate Strickler or her religious beliefs; in this book she’s claiming to be a Christian and everything she said in regards to Christ and the gospel lines up with Scripture.)
(Disclaimer: I don’t know anything about Kate Strickler or her religious beliefs; in this book she’s claiming to be a Christian and everything she said in regards to Christ and the gospel lines up with Scripture.)
Read
January 16, 2026Listened to audio, nice to hear Kate’s familiar voice. Easy listen, lots of stories. Helpful principles weaved in, always love a good nudge toward gratitude and contentment. I really was impressed and surprised by her vulnerability.
Folks in the reviews are upset that a very privileged lady wrote a book about being discontent with her life, but that was..like…the point. She has a veryyy pretty life and yet still struggles with discontentment! Like that one model who did the TED talk about how much body shame she experiences. Sometimes “moving up” doesn’t automatically give the contentment we’re looking for, so this is a nudge (not a textbook) toward finding contentment today. Buuuut maybe I’m just defensive bc I have a personal tie LOL. Also maybe skewed bc I now have headphones for the first time in years and can listen to something while I workout and this was my first airpod-listen?? (Wow, a game changer!) Either way, I enjoyed.
Folks in the reviews are upset that a very privileged lady wrote a book about being discontent with her life, but that was..like…the point. She has a veryyy pretty life and yet still struggles with discontentment! Like that one model who did the TED talk about how much body shame she experiences. Sometimes “moving up” doesn’t automatically give the contentment we’re looking for, so this is a nudge (not a textbook) toward finding contentment today. Buuuut maybe I’m just defensive bc I have a personal tie LOL. Also maybe skewed bc I now have headphones for the first time in years and can listen to something while I workout and this was my first airpod-listen?? (Wow, a game changer!) Either way, I enjoyed.
September 22, 2025
Kate (yes, feels like we’re on a first name basis) has a way of seeing my soul and putting my thoughts to paper. This will be one I lend out to all my friends and come back to time and time again.
September 9, 2025
Every bit as delightful as I had hoped. Kate Strickler brings depth in such an approachable way!
October 16, 2025
A light hearted book on real things that cause us discontentment. Enjoyed it!!
September 10, 2025
I try to restrict 5⭐️ to only my favorite books, books I want to read again and books that I would recommend to anyone. This is one of those books. I found myself often with tears brimming my eyes, so moved and encouraged by Kate’s words. Kate was able to speak the Gospel to the modern woman whether they are a the Christian or non Christian. That is no small task, I’m sure that God is moving in this book and in its readers.
October 2, 2025
Great on so many levels. Real about women’s lives and great reminders and ideas on how to deal with emotions and anxiety’s in a women’s life. Marriage, children, work, belongings etc.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 933 reviews