Making homemaking simple and enjoyable “One Good Thing” at a time!

About Jill Nystul

Hi! I’m Jill Nystul (AKA Jillee)—blogger, author, and creator/founder of One Good Thing by Jillee! Born and raised in southern California, I now call a small town in Utah home where I live with my best friend and husband of over 30 years, Dave. We are fortunate to have all four of our adult children, three of their spouses, and two grand puppies near enough for regular get-togethers, and we hope it will always be that way!

Before I started blogging in 2011, I spent the majority of my career in TV news. After graduating from Brigham Young University with a degree in broadcast journalism, I worked as a news reporter/anchor, a segment producer for a daily talk show, and eventually a senior producer for another daily talk show (which earned me an Emmy award in 2004!)

My career also included a 14-year stretch as a stay-at-home mom to raise my four awesome kids. In many ways, my work as a mother and homemaker was not unlike my work in television—I worked long hours, always had a deadline to meet, and was constantly putting out fires (mostly of the metaphorical variety!)

During that time, I also found myself battling some pretty significant demons. I suffered from severe postpartum anxiety and depression, struggled with the pressure of caring for a young child with diabetes and celiac disease, and often felt overwhelmed by feelings of inadequacy and hopelessness.

I ended up turning to alcohol as a way to cope with the pain I was feeling inside. But as you can imagine, that only added fuel to the fire. My alcohol consumption quickly became an addiction that caused me to push my loved ones away, especially my husband. Finally, after several chaotic and self-destructive years and a year-long separation from my husband, I checked into a residential treatment center for addiction.

My “graduation” took place three months later on my birthday, February 20th, 2008. I now consider that day my “re-birthday,” when I was given a second chance at life. I left for home feeling terrified, but determined to follow the advice my counselors had given me to “find and pursue my passion” in order to avoid ending up right back in treatment.

As I attempted to live life “one day at a time,” the journalist in me was reawakened and I started writing. I started a blog called “One Good Thing by Jillee,” where I would share “one good thing” every day about life and home. Many of them featured my own little homemaking victories, like the way I removed sweat stains from my boys’ t-shirts or a recipe I made that became a family favorite! And to my surprise, my posts started attracting droves of visitors who were also searching for ways to create a home and life they love!

Focusing on “one good thing” helped me find real joy and a sense of purpose in my role as a homemaker, both of which I lacked as a young mom. As more and more people visited my blog, I recognized that I had an opportunity to help people like me, overwhelmed homemakers who were battling demons of their own.

Drawing on all of my skills and life experience, I dedicated myself to helping make life easier (and hopefully more enjoyable!) for anyone and everyone who does the important work of running a household. That is the passion that I have been pursuing every single day for the past 11 years, and I truly believe that being “Jillee” is the job I was born (and re-born) to do. Thanks for visiting my corner of the internet, and don’t hesitate to get in touch! :-)

(P.S. You can read the full story about my struggle with alcohol addiction, my journey to recovery, and the origin of my blog in my book One Good Life, published in 2015 by Putnam Books!)