After 4 Years Of 'Unstable Living,' Mom Surprises Her Children With Keys To Their New Home
When strangers heard the family's story, they wanted to do even more for them, giving them more than they ever could have imagined.
Krakenimages.com | Shutterstock There are far too many people dealing with unstable housing situations in the United States. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, 653,104 people were reported to be homeless for at least one night in January 2023.
A woman named Andrea shared in this struggle with her own family. She and her three children spent four years not always knowing where they would be able to sleep at the end of the day. Now, she has been able to give her kids a gift that was years in the making.
The mom surprised her children with keys to their new home.
In a TikTok video on her account @pack_light_andrea808, Andrea filmed her children looking at a house that they no doubt thought was just that — a house. She teased her son, asking if he would be able to keep up with mowing such a large lawn. The children laughed along with her, thinking this was all just something nice to think about.
Then came the surprise. She handed out three keys, giving each child their own key to the house. They looked at them in disbelief for a moment before the reality of the situation hit. “Is this mine?” one of her daughters asked. “Wait, so this means …” her son said, trailing off.
The children were so happy they cried tears of joy.
As each of the children ran off to the front porch with screams and tears, Andrea’s youngest daughter could be heard saying, “This is our house?” in absolute disbelief. After running to the front door, they then all returned to their mom and shared a hug as a family.
In the video’s caption, Andrea shared just how difficult the journey to reach that point was for her and her family. “For four years, my children and I had unstable living — off and on — while I battled through the storms of mental health, uncertainty, and heartbreak,” she wrote.
Andrea explained that there were times when she thought she would give up, but she didn’t, all for the sake of her kids. They gave her a reason to keep going and to believe that one day they would truly have a home of their own. She posted the video on May 28, 2025, and said she was sharing it in honor of the one-year anniversary of her family living in their home.
The kindness of strangers helped the family fill their new home.
While that would have been a wonderful story in and of itself, kind strangers made sure it was not all that the family had to celebrate. Someone commented on Andrea’s original video and asked her to share an Amazon wish list so others could contribute to their future success and help make their house a home.
Since then, Andrea and her children have received countless packages with everything from bikes to mattresses to cleaning supplies, all from well-wishers who wanted to see the family thrive.
In a follow-up video, Andrea shared that she never thought so many people would be touched by her story. She simply wanted to share it to mark their one-year milestone and to celebrate Mental Health Awareness Month. The love and kindness of strangers truly surpassed all of her expectations.
Everyone can do what they can to pitch in and help others in need.
The National Center on Family Homelessness shared that 2.5 million children in the U.S. are homeless. That makes up one in every 30 children in the country. There was a time when Andrea’s children made up part of these statistics. While they have been fortunate enough to find stable housing, there are still so many other children in need.
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Lending a helping hand and being there for those in need, just like people were for Andrea’s family, can go a long way to supporting others and boosting your own mood in the process.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
