entrepreneurship – Coastal Carolina Soap Blog

What Are You Selling?

You’ve heard me say before that we’re an entrepreneurial family, with my husband, our older daughter, and I all having our own businesses. Our daughter’s mowing business has all but died this year, with many people taking care of their own lawns, a customer moving, and so forth – despite her serious hustle to drive new business. That’s meant she’s had to find other ways to earn money.

My husband’s business continues to grow with requests for some light landscaping and organic fertilization treatments. The girls go out to work with him on those days and take care of those jobs so he can focus on applying the inorganic chemicals. They get to engage with the customers and get paid for the work they do.

Suddenly this summer, mermaid soaps have taken off like crazy! The older daughter is the “Mermaid Diva,” crafting gorgeous mermaid soaps, each one beautifully unique. I pay her for each one. Between making soaps and working with her dad, my daughter has made up about half of her usual summer income. She’s driven, because she is earning the money she needs to complete her soccer referee’s certification course; this will enable her to make even more money over the next year. She’s saving up for next summer’s mission trip, next year’s sports (soccer, dance, or both), and next year’s awesome Language Arts class, should she decide to take it.

Yesterday evening, my husband told me about his former employer – now independent – offering customers a discount on their first treatment if they sign up. It’s similar to what a major corporate competitor does, though on a larger scale. Thanks to what I’ve learned throughout the time of my business and the years I’ve been a part of IBN and under the mentorship of Donna Maria, I was able to help him reframe how he thinks about driving his business. The conversation went something like this:

Me: “Big box stores have gotten customers trained to think they must always get a discount. Big Company XYZ (the corporate competitor) probably averages about $50 per lawn, accounting for both postage stamp-size and high-end neighborhoods. The local office may get $10-$20 of that for their operating costs and to pay their employees. Where does the rest go? It keeps the CEO in boats and vacation homes. The techs are like worker drones. That’s it.”

Him: “No company I’ve ever worked for has ever given customers a discount for signing up.”

Me: “OK. And for good reason. Why do you think that is?”

Him: “They didn’t need to. They were selling quality.”

Me: “Exactly. How closely do you pay attention to car commercials?”

Him: “I really don’t.”

Me: “Think about Chevy, Ford, and Honda commercials. What do they focus on?”

Him: “Their features.”

Me: “No. Their affordability. Every single one sells their cars on ‘4000 off MSRP or ‘Just 249 per month.’ They’re selling on price. Now, think about Mercedes or BMW. You know the Lincoln commercials with Matthew McConaughey? What are they selling?”

Him: “Luxury. Handling. Performance.”

Me: “Right. And how often do you ever see prices on commercials for high-end vehicles?”

Him: “You don’t.”

Me: “Because those car manufacturers are selling quality vehicles, and their customers don’t care about the price when they’re getting quality. What are you selling to your customers?”

Him: “My brand.”

Me (smiling): “Wrong. Try again.”

He looked at me with a smile, not quite sure what I was looking for. I smiled back and said, “Let me know when you’ve figured it out.”

As indie business owners, we have to be aware of our motivation and even more aware of what we’re selling. We’re not selling a product or a service; we’re selling ourselves. I’ve often privately thought that being a business owner is like legalized prostitution without the sex. We’re selling bits of ourselves to our customers, hoping fervently that they’ll come back for more. Packed in with every soap or every lawn treatment, we’re selling ourselves, our back stories, our experience, and our knowledge.

Packed in with every soap or every lawn treatment, we’re selling ourselves, our back stories, our experience, and our knowledge.

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We’re selling to build our hopes and dreams, to leave a legacy for the next generation, whether that’s the next generation in our families or in the larger entrepreneurial community.

Why do you do what you do? What are you selling to people?

3 Tips For Expanding Your Small Business Into A New Market

Starting with the Finish in View

No secret… I walk a few times a week. I’ve walked in pretty-chilly temps and I’ve walked in weather where I begin pouring sweat as soon as I step out of the house – like walking through the sauna that is North Carolina in the summer. I don’t walk because I like freezing my butt off or sweating out two pounds of liquid in under an hour. In fact, if I could get the same benefits from not-walking, I would in a heartbeat, but the truth is, I can’t, and walking really does have a whole lot of benefits – psychological, holistically physical, emotional, and even spiritual.

When I start my walks, within the first quarter mile, I mentally plan my route and start thinking of the very end – that last quarter mile when I can start slowing it down, check my pulse, log in the time and calorie burn, and get more comfortable. I think about which route I’ll follow. It’s always the same four streets, but depending on how I walk them, it can be 2.5 miles or 2.8 miles. It may seem silly to think about finishing my walk before I have barely begun, but envisioning the end helps motivate me through every step and prevents me from taking short-cuts – skipping that little bit of .2 mile or not going down that short street.

Similarly, thinking about the end of a business venture from the outset helps a business owner work towards that goal, that completion, that teleos. As we celebrate 15 years of soapy business, I reflect back on those early days, and I did not have an end-game in sight. It wasn’t until several – SEVERAL! – years down the road that I began to think about things like having a brick-and-mortar store and passing my business down to my children. That particular route requires certain steps and a certain amount of time, just like when I opt for “route A” of my walking choices. Going the B&M route means striving to build up the revenue to sustain such a venture, taking into account overhead, staffing needs, retail traffic ebbs and flows, and so forth. Passing the business down to my daughters requires teaching them every aspect of the business, not just the technical aspects, but also the passion and the why.

Last year in the midst of the rebrand, the brick-and-mortar suddenly became less important to me, and the girls have no desire to run a soapmaking business, though they love making soap. They love the creativity and the design aspects, and the chemistry of it fascinates them, but that’s as far as their enthusiasm goes. So, it’s become time to work with another end-game in mind.

To be honest, I haven’t entirely worked that out, yet. Part of the rebrand involved an increased focus on wholesale and private label, though retail is still a very strong part of my business. At this point, though, I’d more love to have a separate work shop than a full-blown B&M. I’d enjoy the space separate from the house to make, wrap, and store my products. The completion of my business now would be having a strong business to sell off in – ideally – one huge chunk to someone who’d love and nurture it as I do. Again, this route requires a certain path, a certain set of steps, a particular journey to traverse.

Without the finish in sight, I could just meander along, making this product or that product, selling whenever, pushing for sales when I felt like it and ignoring my business when I didn’t. Similarly, when I walk for my health, having a defined time frame and route ensures I do at least as much as I need to, and it also restricts me from following whims that could take me on long treks – not that that would necessarily be a bad thing, but when the family is expecting me to be gone a certain amount of time, being gone for 2-3 times that would cause them to worry.

Goals are essential, but goals without a defined end are just nebulous scratchings on a dry-erase board, the result of moments or hours of brainstorming. As you set your goals, whether fitness, business, or lifestyle, determine to look at the end. It’s likely not the end, but it is an end, often that of a chapter before the next beginning.

Getting Right Back On

I went out last Friday for a wonderful trike ride. The weather was in the 70s – shorts and t-shirt warm – and being out pushing it felt awesome! I was tearing through the neighborhood, coasting through the large puddle in the cul de sac behind our house, enjoying the day and saying “hi” to neighbors. Friday was my day to push it, to nip that third mile. I was in the far cul de sac, and it happened. That cul de sac isn’t a constant-radius turn, and I lost control and began to tip. In fighting to stay upright and regain control of my trike, the pedals beat the devil out of the backs of my legs.

pic of bruises — “Ouch ouch ouch! Shit shit shit!” Exactly what I was saying as this was happening.

Bruised leg — And the left leg. It only hurts when anything touches it.

My trike survived with nary a scratch or ding, and except for that cut (which looks worse than it is) and my legs’ 50 shades of purple, I fared well enough. But now I had a choice. I could walk my trike home, where my older daughter was waiting to ride it, or I could ride it home. Walking was safe enough, though painful as all get-out as bruised and swollen as my legs were.

A little back-story… I never learned how to ride a bike. I tried, but I fell too many times, and one time, I got the wind knocked out of me. That experience scared me as I heard my fourth grade teacher’s voice in my head talking about broken ribs and punctured lungs. That was it for me.

So here I was a vast number of years later facing a choice – walk or ride; it was going to hurt either way. After walking around twenty feet or so, I hopped on my trike and rode home, and not straight home; while I didn’t do the route I had planned, I did add a bit extra to the ride before reaching home and getting cozy with two ibuprofen and an ice pack.

Like many entrepreneurs, I’ve fallen in business, too. I’ve been banged up and bruised, even shed a little O-positive. There have been some failures that made me ultra-sensitive, not wanting anything to touch the disappointment, frustration, discouragement, and/or anger boiling inside me. I wanted to give up, just walk the business back to its settled position, liquidate everything, and find something else to do. The thing is, I visited with that idea. I pulled it out, entertained it, and debated it. I dug deep underneath why I was thinking about quitting, and the answer always came back to frustration or something going on outside of my business.

Regardless of how banged up I was or how bad the business bruises were, I hopped right back in the fray. I didn’t quit nor did I give up. I did give myself permission to whimper and whine, to grab the figurative ice pack and pain killer (usually my favorite cozy pajamas and dark chocolate). After my little pout session – little being the operative word here – I reformed my plan and attacked my business from a different perspective. Without the moments of failure, I would have maintained the status quo, keeping on doing business the same exact way. Sometimes, in fact, those moments of failure are exactly what we need to keep us from taking our progress for granted and to shake us out of old mindsets. Often after a major failure, I reframe my thinking in huge ways and my business experiences significant growth.

Saturday, my family and I went to the beach (you can check out that video on my Facebook page), and my youngest and I took a 2 1/2 mile walk on the beach, banged up legs and everything. Today I was back on the trike for a glorious half-hour ride. There are three cul de sacs in our neighborhood, two of them not having constant-radius curves. I didn’t avoid them; I just slowed down and created a constant-radius response with my trike. I learned how to do it different, just as I do in business.

In business, as in life, there are failures and falls. The important thing is, “Never give up. Never, ever give up” (Winston Churchill).

You May Not Be Human

What do you want today? What do you want for this week? The coming month? This year? If you want it, do you want it badly enough to go after it?

In a discussion with a friend of mine earlier today, I challenged him: “You say you want something, but you never do anything to get it. Ya know, if I said I wanted to lose weight, it’s not going to happen if I just sit on my butt all day, shoving junk food in my face.” He replied, “It’s human nature to want something but never go after it.” Really? Because as I think about my friends, family members and acquaintances, I see a whole bunch of people who wanted something badly enough to go after it, including myself.

So, if there’s ever been anything you’ve wanted badly enough to work, sweat, and sacrifice for, chances are, you’re not human. I’m so sorry to have to tell you this, but I thought you should know.

So, if there’s ever been anything you’ve wanted badly enough to work, sweat, and sacrifice for, chances are, you’re not human.

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I was thinking about some of my “not human” friends today.

At least three who’ve given up smoking in the past year, because they wanted better health.
Several recovering alcoholics.
Many, many who have lost a LOT of weight due to diligent exercise and changing their eating habits. (One even did so well, he no longer needs insulin or other meds to manage diabetes.)
The countless others who have dared to pursue financial freedom through aggressive saving, debt-reduction, and wise investing.
Still others who are seeking financial independence through starting completely new businesses or diligently working to grow existing indie businesses.

Even animals want something enough to go after it. Have you ever seen a lion chasing a gazelle? The lion wants dinner, and that gazelle wants to see another sunrise. The lion has choices – wounded wildebeest, slow zebra, less intense gazelle. Chances are, the lion will eat. The gazelle has two choices – run like hell or feed hungry lions. There really is no other choice for him.

If even wild animals want something badly enough to pursue it by their very nature, then humans also, by nature, will go after what we want if we desire it badly enough. The difference is, we have moral guidelines and societal mores to place some boundaries on what we go after. Promotion? Sure! Neighbor’s husband? Not so much.

If my friend is right and it’s not human nature to go after what we want, then I challenge you to embrace your non-humanness. Be a gazelle. Be intense about succeeding at what you want or failing as you go after it. But DO IT. And do it again. And learn from every mistake, every miscalculation. Don’t fail and say, “Well, I tried” and never try again. Name the failure: “Shoot! I forgot to allow for that expense.” “I didn’t work hard enough grasping that concept.” “I messed up when I didn’t show up for work.” Own it. And learn from it.

Do you want the success bad enough? Then go after it. Do you want a better life, better health, more disposable income? Then work for it. You can do this!

What an Entrepreneurial Family Looks Like

It started off with me owning my own business. It’s not a unique business or completely new; people have been using soap for thousands of years. I do, however, have my own special niche that is unique in the industry. My daughters and husband are willing and (sometimes) enthusiastic helpers, because they know the advantages of my business being successful.

Then last summer, my older daughter began to run her own small mowing business. The goal at the time was to earn money to go on mission trips, but then she discovered that she really likes having money of her own. Her business grew a little this year with the incarceration of her primary competition. Hey, gotta seize the opportunities as they come.

Then it happened. After six months of “any day now” and corporate postponements, my husband got laid off as part of a corporate takeover and decided to launch his own business, a dream he’s harbored for at least twenty years. His former boss told him that he’ll be working harder the first six months than he has ever before, and his chemical supplier said that after the first one hundred customers, it gets easier. (He seems to be getting closer to that mark every day.)

Peter is doing what I call the “entrepreneur hustle.” The day after receiving his last paycheck – this happened to be a Saturday – he was busting butt building up his customer base. He’ll work for several hours taking care of his customers’ lawns, then come home and make phone calls and do computer work. My daughter went out with estimate sheets as she was working on her customer base. I go into shops and make contacts with people via email with whom I want to have a working relationship. Being an entrepreneur is all about doing the hustle. (Not to be confused with hustling customers, which is a bad practice.)

Being an entrepreneur is all about doing the hustle.

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I’ve gotta insert a quote by Dave Ramsey here:

“If you work like no one else now, then later you can work like no one else.”

What does that mean? Most people are happy getting by working a 9-5, Monday-Friday job. They make enough to pay their bills, tend to their families, save a little for vacation, hopefully put away for retirement. They are content biding their time, ticking off the minutes until retirement, complacently working as a cog in a larger wheel. Then there are the entrepreneurs. These are the ones who have a dream and a passion; they happily put in at least 60 hours a week to pursue their passion, and they reap the benefits from it. That means that they can set aside even more for their retirement nest egg and retire early, enjoying life while others are down in the coal mines of corporate America.

One day not long ago, my daughter was heading over to a neighbor’s lawn to mow. Peter was working in the office, and I was thinking a quick nap would be nice; after all, my work wasn’t going anywhere. I discovered that it doesn’t work that way anymore. Having this many entrepreneurs in the household has a peer pressure-type of motivation on each of us. With all this hustle going on, we each know that we’re not the only person working.

We also help each other. Peter has done a lot of legwork for my business. He’s made initial contacts with potential customers, he’s picked up oils for me, and he’s helped with manufacturing. Both of my daughters have helped wrap soaps and have helped make them. They often accompany me on deliveries and customer visits. My younger daughter and husband help the older daughter with her lawns when she needs a break. And we’re all helping Peter with his new business venture.

I spent part of Sunday night hand-addressing envelopes. The curse of having the best penmanship in the family.

This was how I spent Sunday night. I had a stack of envelopes that I’d told Peter I’d address for him. I sat in the living room at my parents’ house (we’d gone up for a funeral) while they watched a Chuck Norris series from the early 90s, and Dad and I ruthlessly critiqued the commercials, all aimed at the elderly and gullible. I’d discovered that the handwritten note goes a long way towards making customers feel special. Peter had over 60 letters in this stack alone, and no way were we handwriting that many letters! This is time-sensitive, though we did personalize the mail merge, and one of my former soccer families got a personal greeting at the bottom of their letter. Each was hand-signed, as well.

Whether or not they’re all working on the same business, the entrepreneurial family shares some characteristics.

Entrepreneurial families help each other out. People go into business to make money, and usually that money is to help the family in some way, which creates a common goal. Helping each other is a way to ensure that everyone meets his/her goals.
Entrepreneurial families encourage each other. “Ohhh… That soap is gorgeous!” “Her lawn looks good!” “You’ve got this!” And one I texted today: “Yea! But this is getting so commonplace now :D,” upon learning that Peter had sold another account. Frequent encouragement keeps each other energized and confident about the next step.
Entrepreneurial families motivate each other. “What do you mean you’re going to sleep for two hours this afternoon? Get your butt up and get working!” “Hey… I need to use the desktop this afternoon. Why don’t you go ahead and get your computer work done while I’m in the workshop?” When you’ve been working all week on a new business and the weekend rolls around, the last thing you want to do is work more, no matter what the work load looks like. Motivating each other helps keep the work flow going and ensures they meet each next small or large goal.

I never dreamed we’d have so many entrepreneurs in one family! It’s an adjustment for sure, but we’re all feeling calmer, more confident, and way more excited about what lies ahead.

One Important Trait of Billionaires

Optimist or pessimist? Or just a completely pragmatic realist? I’m determined to go into the coming year letting my Tigger-like optimism merge with my pragmatic strategic thinking to push my business further. No more “what ifs” or “if onlys.”

One Trait of Billionaires from Sara Nesbitt on Vimeo.

Are you a Piglet or a Tigger? Or, like I’m striving towards, a Tigger with some of his bounce tamped down?

Thinking Strategically | Scott Adams Blog

Striking the Work-Life Balance as an Entrepreneur

You just know it would work out this way. Three weeks of fall break, three weeks of fun, canning, movie watching, and not a peep out of my large order customers. We’re talking crickets, folks. Crick-ets! Days before it ended, orders started rolling in right and left. What??? Now?! And it’s not just that orders started rolling in, but they came in with announcements of preorders. Three weeks of “Oh my gosh, I’m so bored!” now has given way to some serious hustle, right as we’re resuming our second term of school.

This past weekend was especially busy as I worked to fulfill last week’s orders. The biggest thing is, though, I wanted to clean off the dinette table. Two batches of soap, lotion bars, and lip balms, and there wasn’t room for a dirty thought on that table, let alone room for a person or four to sit and dine. In the midst of all this, I really want to put forward with the great cleaning-before-decorating thrust, as well as begin our holiday cooking. My girls like helping me cook, but the younger one, especially, just wants to sit down with me and watch a movie, read, or snuggle. It’s so hard finding the time to do everything while still attending to the family as they need, but over the years, I’ve developed my own tricks for making this work for us.

Lists. Lists help me visualize what tasks I need to accomplish in what order. I’m a bit obsessive in my list making, thinking always in a linear fashion: A then B then C then D… And D can’t happen until C happens. Lists are a great way for anybody to square up their work priorities, but it seals the deal when I’m trying to balance work and family life.

Lists are a great way for anybody to square up their work priorities.

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Working ahead. When it’s at all possible, I take an hour or two at a time to knock out something ahead of time. Maybe it’s a batch of soap that’s that customer’s standard order. Or perhaps it’s 100 tubes of lip balm for this customer. Those tasks don’t take a huge amount of time, but doing them sooner rather than later can free up a huge amount of pressure and stress later.

Prioritizing my day. When it comes to my day, what’s most important to me? Usually it’s breakfast, shower, exercise, and the girls’ education. Then what comes next? Production, newsletters, blog posts, marketing, website work. Somewhere in the midst of this comes a huge pair of brown eyes and a sweet voice saying, “Mom, can we _____?” No, not right now… Wait. What. Is. Important. To. Me? Is it crucially, vitally necessary that I change my slider on my website right now, or can it wait til tonight after the girls are in bed? The point at which I start making my business more important than my family is the point where I need to give up the business. The business will be around a while, but my daughters won’t be little girls forever.

The pnt at which I start making my biz more impt than my fam is the point where I need to give up the biz.

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Taking time away from the business. This was probably the hardest decision for me to make. Once upon a time, I was all about doing everything possible for my business and my customers, regardless of the sacrifices I had to make. I started last Christmas when I shut down my business for two weeks. I still received large orders from customers, but all that was required of me at those times was a quick email assuring them I’ll process their orders when we reopen. Once I made this decision, I realized it was the best one I could have made for my stress level and my family.

No. Such a small word with such great power! Actually, I say “no” by saying “yes.” To the last-minute request to add soaps to an order… “Sure, and I will add two days to your order processing time.” “I’ll happily take care of that after my vacation.” “I’ll process your order when we reopen early in January.” These boundaries are my way of saying, “No, I won’t let you make further demands on my time.” Work Me ends here, and Family Me begins here, and Family Me wants to savor this time.

Family Me is now in high demand, so Work Me has to clock out for a while.

Just Chill!

One woman, many hats. CEO. Teacher. Home manager. Wife. Minister. That’s a lot for one person, and the potential for me to get super stressed out is high. Obviously, stress is neither good for myself or for the girls, so I have to find ways to reduce stress in ways that don’t involve eating copious amounts of chocolate. At the same time, I want to do things that are good for my brain, good for my body, and somewhat productive. But not soap. Ninety-eight percent of the time, making soap is for business, though I do enjoy playing with it occasionally. I choose activities that can stand separate from soap.

For my body, I’ve been doing some resistance exercises daily, and in the past week or so, the girls have been joining me, so we can count that as part of school as we learn about how our muscles work and how these exercises help us. I started out with planking, wanting to strengthen my arms and tone my core. Then I decided to add push-ups to the routine so I can get rid of annoying upper arm dimples and tone the muscles there. Next, I got this wild hair about doing crunches. Like that’s not enough, a friend posted on Instagram a brief video of her doing roll ups. If crunches are like a street gang’s tag artist, roll ups are Al Capone. Yep, that much more evil. Supposedly, each roll up is comparable to four crunches. This is what they look like.

I started with where I was then, even though my counts were pitifully low. However, I’ve steadily increased my counts, my seconds planking, and my strength. It feels awesome! My first goal? Get these arms toned to look great with my red sleeveless dress before attending a wedding next weekend and the abs smoother so I won’t have to wear a body shaper under it. My second and long-range goal is overall fitness and tone.

For my brain and body, I’ve been spending time knitting. Studies have shown that knitting is good for the brain, as well as stress levels which positively impacts the heart as well. I’ll knit about anything, and I’m constantly pushing myself to learning new patterns and techniques. Last week I finished a long-term project – my first lace shawl.

Lace scarf made of a black wool-blend yarn spangled with multicolored sequins

2015-10-01 10.42.09 — A close-up of the lace, both body and edge

Pair the relaxation of knitting with the absolute peace that comes from having a cat curled up next to you asleep, and that’s the way I end many of my days. I’m so chill by that point that I can barely make it upstairs to bed. This leads to a sound night’s sleep and a refreshed awakening, which is a great way to combat stress!

What do you do to just chill?

The Life of Al Capone through Vintage Photos

Time for a Little Caretaking

As most of you know, not only am I an entrepreneur and CEO of a growing bath + body business, but I’m also a mom and a home educator. My days are often busy, but I don’t declare that to make myself look superior; it just is what it is, and most days, what may look like busy work to some people is productive hobby time for me. With all these responsibilities and duties, there must be time to completely unplug, relax, and unwind away from it all. A little over a week ago, Mary, Vice President of Product Development and COO of Girly Arts Made by ME, and I struck off to the beach for the weekend.

This was exactly what we needed. You may have caught my write-up last week about the impressive guest care skills of Garison at The Winds Resort at Ocean Isle Beach. That whole weekend was exactly what these Corporate Divas needed. Just picture white powder beaches with warm water, lush tropical landscaping, and restful moments reading in a hammock under waving palm trees. Yeah, it was that good. There were cold beverages, good eats, and restful nights’ sleep accented by a friendly, accommodating staff.

That picture-perfect postcard that mocks you with, "It's beautiful. Wish you were here." — That picture-perfect postcard that mocks you with, “It’s beautiful. Wish you were here.”

A peek at some of that luscious tropical landscaping The Winds is known for.

We enjoyed our time immensely and returned home feeling loose and mellow. I truly haven’t experienced that much calm time in forever, and it was amazing!

It’s important, now that we’re home, to maintain that peaceful feeling, to take moments to do things that help promote a calm spirit. Knitting is my mini-vacation of choice these days. Studies have actually shown that knitting helps lower blood pressure. I find having a cat lying beside me also helps me feel incredibly relaxed. Between the two of these things, most nights it’s a serious struggle getting upstairs to bed, because I’m half asleep with my knitting needles in my hand. My current project is a lace shawl. This is it in process:

Sneak peek of the black and sequin lace shawl I'm knitting to go with a red dress. And jeans. And... — Sneak peek of the black and sequin lace shawl I’m knitting to go with a red dress. And jeans. And…

This is our secret for chilling out and relaxing, and in the process, we returned home with grand ideas and fresh energy for taking care of orders going into the busy holiday season. How do you recharge your battery?

Getting Back to Basics

Once upon a time, I was a suited-up professional working in a healthcare environment, punching a (mostly) 8-5 clock. Some days I worked until 7 or 8, and I was on call every single weekend. I was rocking the soap biz on the side, working markets one weekend a month. We lived in a townhouse in a nice urban area and could walk to the grocery store if we wanted. Unfortunately, it was uphill coming back. In fact, making soap was the closest I came to doing the neo-hippie-slash-homesteading thing.

A couple of years after leaving that position, it became very clear to us that we were going to be trading urban life for coastal rural life. I was pregnant at the time, so finding a new job wasn’t high on my list of priorities, but making a home was. I had visions of biking places, eating fresh-caught fish on a regular basis, and having our own little garden spot where we could grow our own fruits and vegetables, enough for our family. One out of three ain’t bad.

In the six years since we moved, my business has taken off in unexpected ways, and I have changed in unexpected ways. I never dreamed I’d be home educating my daughters. Our “little” garden spot has had really bad years and really great years, but those great years haven’t yielded just enough for us to enjoy, but enough to share. This year, it’s giving us some to can, too. That’s another thing I never expected to be doing – putting up my own canned goods. We tend to gravitate towards condiments (cranberry mustard, jellies, jams, and butters) and dessert stuff (pie fillings and chocolate sauce), although we have made and put up pickles, Brunswick stew, and chicken soup. These, too, we are able to share.

jars of chocolate sauce — Jars of homemade chocolate sauce that Mary made. Taste better than Hershey’s!

When we lived “in the city,” I didn’t own a working sewing machine; I’m on my second one since we moved, one that my fellow business owner said is “a good one for children” (thanks, Sarah), but which is most definitely a step up from my Singer. I used to sew; when I was a teenager, I made pillows for myself and for gifts, and I’ve done some of that since being married. My long-time customers have seen the bags I’ve made for gifts or to hold bars of soap, too. I’ve made a messenger bag and three purses. Most recently, I’ve sewn curtains, a rather large project, as they’re covering a sliding glass door.

Soapmaking. Canning. Sewing. Knitting. (My oldest daughter is over my shoulder, or I’d show you what I’m working on for her.) I look around at all these things my hands have made, at all the ways I’ve stretched myself to create a warm home and the ways we’ve worked together as a family to achieve it, and I am pleased.

(Next week, look for pictures of homemade pesto and more pickles. I wish I could share our bounty with you.)

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