In this exclusive cover story, Sara Evans opens up her Alabama home and reflects on her blessed life with her children and husband Jay Barker.

Sara lives in a suburb of Birmingham where she and Jay and the children share an active lifestyle. “The kids can walk to school,” Sara tells Country Weekly. “The football field is right across from our house. We walk to restaurants, we walk to Starbucks.” She notes that Jay, a former University of Alabama quarterback and now a local radio talk show host, is often more recognized than she is. “People here truly love and adore Jay,” Sara says.

She also talks about cooking for the family, traveling with the children to concerts and her relationship with Jay. “He has made me a better mom,” Sara says, “and a better person.”