My Last Day
This is me on my last day, picking up my new laptop that the boss (Tim) bought for me. I look at this picture and can see how utterly terrified I was.
I did a thing….. and started a blog. I know, I know it seems like everyone has a blog. I am hoping you’ll find this one a little unique and hopefully…. a lot inspiring.
It has been 9 months since I left a 25 year corporate career to become a part time entrepreneur (joined my hubby’s business) AND to be a full time mom. If you don’t know my back story, I’ll try to be brief. My husband Tim and I have been married for 16 years. He is the musician, the entrepreneur…..totally unemployable. I’ve always had the stable corporate gig. Given this situation, when we had children we agreed that HE would work a part–time schedule so that he could be around for the kids – take them to school, to doctor’s appointments, soccer practice, etc. This worked quite well for many years. But, as my job got more demanding and his business and career as a public speaker started taking off, working part-time wasn’t going to be an option if he wanted to grow his business. We agreed that I would eventually exit my corporate job and join his company to help it grow. We had a 2 year plan.
Then, the news came that my company was offering a voluntary severance package. So, instead of them choosing who to lay off, they offered to let a group of employees opt out of employment. The offer was too good to pass up. I applied to be one of those “separated” from the company, and was given a last day of March 22, 2019.
With my newfound “freedom” (which is what one thinks will happen when they own their own business only to find out that this is a misnomer….but more on this later) I started orchestrating what my new schedule would look like. This included still waking early, but doing meditation and exercise, driving the kids to school, and walking the dog in our local Peter’s Canyon. And….every Thursday I could hit the $2 sale at my favorite thrift store. I only started thrift shopping a couple of years ago, but now that I had the time to sift through everything to find the perfect gem, I was ALL IN. This also helped me feel less guilty about my shopping hobby. I come from a long line of shoppers and while I was always what I would call a “bargain” shopper, thrifting was pretty new to me.
Still, the business wasn’t going to grow overnight and my severance package money wasn’t going to last forever. So, I started shopping my own closet. This meant wearing stuff that was forgotten or maybe not appropriate for my former corporate digs. Being your own boss means you can make up your own dress code! As I did this, I started posting my photos on Instagram. People started to react positively. A few women even said they’d pay me to help them shop their closets. WHATT??? So, I decided to write down the methodology that I used. (If you head over to the home page of my website you can download my “6 Ways to Shop Your Closet” guide for free.
Some of my early IG posts…..
‘I also have become a big fan of plant-based eating. I went vegan over 2 years ago and love the challenge of coming up with delicious plant-based recipes that my family will love. I have always hated preparing meat. I thought it was gross. Once I learned how to choose the right foods, going vegan was easy. My husband and kids are mostly non-meat eaters. I don’t cook any meat. I do buy the dairy products that they like. But, anything I prepare is going to be vegan. When the kids are not at home, like at a friend’s house, grandmas, church, I don’t want them to have to worry about what they can and can’t have. So, I don’t impose any restrictions on them. If we go out to a restaurant, they can order meat if they want to. This is a nice balance for our family. Since I am the only vegan in the house, any restaurant we go to needs to have options for me. This has cut down on our eating out, which is good for the budget as well as the waistline!
One of my other passions is up-cycling items into beautiful new pieces for my home. Over the years I have both inherited furniture and purchased it second hand. (And, yes some of it is new, too). I enjoy the challenge of taking an old worn out piece and transforming it into something unique and beautiful. For example, when we moved into our current home, my husband made me PROMISE we would replace our old mismatched hand-me-down night tables. I agreed. But, I had a certain look I wanted and didn’t feel like paying a fortune. I visited one of my local thrift stores that always seems to have good quality pieces, and I found these matching nightstands. They were the perfect size and just what I was looking for. I just painted the exterior, covered with wax and polished up the handles. Voila! That was over 5 years ago and I still love these. They have great storage too.
My next project will be reinventing an old handmade toy chest that a friend gave me. It had been in her grandma’s house and when her grandma passed, her family didn’t know what to do with it. Knowing how I love a good paint challenge, my friend texted me and asked if I would like to remake it into something, Challenge accepted! I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it at first. I have decided I am going to make it into storage for my daughter’s art work. Stay tuned for the AFTER result. I am hoping to complete it over the holiday break when the kids are off from school.
IIf there are topics that interest you that you would like me to cover, please leave a comment and let me know. My goal is to share my passions in a way that educates and inspires. So, please let me hear from you!
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