Summer Goals: An Update

The last week of July always incites a slight panic in me.  Summer is almost over.  Three weeks until it's back to teacher meetings.  And I didn't do a darn thing I wanted to!

The first month of summer is usually filled with pool and sleeping in and catching up on all the things I feel like I have missed out during the school year.  This June I feel like I just played played played with my kids.  And I LOVED it.

After the 4th of July passes I always feel like, "ok, time to get to work on some of my summer goals."  And I kind of dink around on them a little bit and then all of a sudden it's July 30 and I realize I haven't come close to finishing any of my goals yet.  Hence, panic.

I had four big summer goals this year.  I have so far accomplished only the first one.  (It is the most important one, though, so I am willing to give myself a little break.)

1.  ENJOY my children.  Swim, play, read with kids.

2.  READ Heart of Darkness, Sense and Sensibility, Lolita, and Handmaid's Tale.  I've read none of those.  I am halfway through Sense and Sensibility, though.  So far it's meh.  It's got nothing on Pride and Prejudice, I'll tell you that much.

3.  WORK on creating a line sheet for Hey June and contact 20-30 small shops, boutiques, and salons about selling our product in their store.  I would love to generate a lot of wholesale business that can provide a more steady income during some of the slower months. (Ahem, July.)

4. ORGANIZE and tidy my home completely.  Make it a place where I can feel so much joy.

This past week I have really been getting to work on goals 3 and 4.  My goal is to have my line sheet finished and sent to small businesses on August 4. (If you know any small boutiques or salons that you think would do well with Hey June product in their store, let me know!)  Our business continues to grow and that has been an incredible blessing for us.

The tidying of the house has been in full swing as well.  Almost impossible with a toddler and a baby, but I am giving it my best shot!  Last year I read The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up (Summary of how I felt about the book is here.) and I just finished the book's sister, Spark Joy.  I really enjoyed both of them and I honestly do feel like it's been life changing in the way I clean and organize my house.  

My two biggest take aways from the book:  

1. THROW THINGS OUT.  I have a much stricter screening process on what is ever allowed in my house in the first place.  June's rando art projects, kids meal toys, free t-shirts I will never wear--- that stuff hits the garbage before it gets inside.  Anything that is broken, I don't know where the other part to it is, doesn't fit me anymore... it all gets the boot!  I have also started throwing out a lot of the "some day" things realizing that some day never happens.  Some day I really wanted to read that article in that magazine.  Well, if a month has passed and I haven't made time for it, it's probably not that important to me.  Chuck it.

2.  Fill your home with things that SPARK JOY.  I have invested more money in my home including dish cloths, cleaning supplies, dressers, blankets, etc. in order to have the things I really love and that make me happy when I see them.  It's a long process, but I enjoy being in my home so much more than I ever have in my life because I have deliberately put the things in the house that bring me a lot of joy.  And I get rid of the things that don't.  

All that being said, I do still have a long way to go.  When I attempted our big round of "tidying up" a year ago I was in my first trimester of pregnancy and sick sick sick.  I started to feel better and school started up and then it was Christmas season with jewelry insanity and then it was baby time and subsequent months of blurred bouncing bouncing bouncing of a hard baby.  I remember little of any of that.  Just that I'm here on the other side.

SO... here I am now, ready to give the tidying up another go.  I gutted out the basement and I am in the process of our garage.  I spent about five hours one evening going through all of June's old clothes and only keeping my very favorite ones.  There were garbage bags and garbage bags of clothes that I gave away.  It felt amazing!  A very real purge, if you will.

I also made Greg do his closet.  (I was tempted to handle it myself but the book's author is big into not throwing anyone else's stuff away!)  More garbage bags!

I LOVE how much cleaner and less cluttered our space feels already.  I have stocked up on garbage bags, rags, and cleaning supplies.  We're definitely making headway over here but I will have to work pretty hard to be done by the time school starts  (Cue crying emoji face.)

Stocking up on garbage bags has been nice, too because I've been able to save the box tops for when it is time to go back to school.  Reynolds Kitchens™ and Hefty both support the Box Tops for Education program- helping schools raise money for supplies, technology etc.  Obviously, as an educator, I am all about buying anything that can in any way give back to schools.  You can find Box Tops on Reynolds Kitchens™ products Parchment Paper, Oven Bags, Slow Cooker Liners and Bakeware Pans. You can also find them on Hefty Trash Bags, Hefty Foam Plates and Hefty Cups.

Now through August 29 you can enter here to be one of 50 daily instant winners and enter to win the grand prize of $1,000 worth of Box Tops for your school! A total of five schools will be chosen for the grand prize and you can enter once a day until 8/29 so bookmark the site. 

My next big tidying projects are the junk drawer (the bane of my existence), the pantry (it's so gross), and June and Hugh's closets.  Having kids and dealing with their clothes and toys added a whole new level to the clutter chaos.

(Also, I am feeling weirdly guilty now because one of the key things in the book is not to organize by room or by closet but to organize by item instead.  I think this is an awesome idea but I have absolutely no idea how to implement it when I don't have large chunks of time to dedicate to tidying.  I have to steal 15 mintues here and 15 minutes there so it doesn't really work to scour the entire house of every art supply and then organize them.  It'd probably be more effective.  But one tidying woman can only do so much!)

This is my kitchen.  It sparks a lot of joy for me and it is place where I always want to be

This morning Hugh woke up at 5 am.

It was still dark outside.  I could feel Greg beside me shuffle out of bed, get the baby, bring him to me to nurse beneath the crisp sheets of our king sized bed.

But we couldn't get comfortable, Hugh and I.  He's getting bigger now.  Doesn't rest as easily on my arm as he once did.

So I shuffled back to the nursery, collapsed in the rocking chair.  Hugh cozied up to me and after a few sucks was already drifting back to sleep.  He was heavy in my arms, not needing the comfort of nursing, just the comfort of mom.

Most times during middle of the night feedings I am half asleep.  This morning I was wide awake.  Hyper aware of everything around me.  The sweet baby heavy in my arms.  The mountain mural I painted on his wall while 8 1/2 months pregnant.  The turquoise lamp that fits his nursery perfectly and that I worked so hard to find.

Suddenly I felt my dad there with me too.  Stopping by.  He does that sometimes.  Drifts in an out.  Pops in to say hi.  Sometimes it's when I need him the most.  Sometimes it's like this morning- just a sweet little unexpected surprise.  Hi Bopper.  I'm still here.  I still love you.  Look at my amazing little grandbaby in your arms.

After a few minutes I put Hugh down and looked at his sleeping baby perfection.  His pursed lips.  His fat cheeks.  I felt so grateful.

I checked in on June in the room next door.  She was sleeping on top of the blankets, her head down where her feet should be.  The soles of her feet were dirty.  Her hair in messy, left over pigtails from the day before.  I draped a blanket over the top of her little three year old body.  She smelled like dirt and sweat and summer.

Back to bed.  I nestled in close to Greg, my slumbering grizzly bear.

I couldn't sleep.  I felt overcome with gratitude.  My babies.  My home.  My husband.  What gifts I have been given.  It was so hard for so long, but lately it has been easy.  So grateful for the easy.  And grateful for the hard, too. So many times I wondered if we'd make it.  Job loss and depression and faith crisis and cancer and I wondered can we do this can we do this can we do this?  Are we strong enough are we strong enough are we strong enough?

I don't think we're out of the hard times.  But for so long there was so much darkness.  And now I feel light again.  I feel light inside of me, feel light inside my home.  I feel light in my words and light in my sleep.  I feel light when I look at my sleeping babies and light when I crawl into bed next to Greg.  And after I take a minute to recognize that light, the gratitude overwhelms me again.

We can do this.  We are strong enough.

Mom Identity Crisis

I logged in to my blog today.  Imagine my surprise to see that it has been a month since I last wrote.  A MONTH.

Sometimes the idea of posting on my blog overwhelms me.  It's the funny thing about a blog.  When you are blogging every single day (or 5 times a week) there is no limit to the things you have to say.  When you blog irregularly, a month can pass and it still feels like there isn't much to say.

Having Hugh knocked me off my feet in a way that I was totally unprepared for.  When I had June I felt like my identity remained in tact.  My schedule, my life, my routine... it was changed in a lot of ways but remained the same too.  I felt like I was still the same person, living the same life, but with one great big awesome addition.  I worked the same job.  I lived in the same house.  I had the same relationship.  June was such an easy baby that we could meet friends to play tennis and she would watch from the stroller nearby.  We took her out to dinner with us, stayed late at firework shows.  She became the instant third member to our party and was happy and easy to come along.  I didn't understand the big deal about how HARD having a baby was.

Of course, Hugh has been none of those things.  I thought he would just mold easily into our lives, the same way June did.  But he didn't.  He is so fickle about sleep.  It is on his schedule and no one else's.  He can go from zero to 100 in one second flat.  With two babies to take care of all of a sudden there is so much that seemed overwhelming.  No dinner out with kids.  Definitely no tennis or volleyball.  With June we could still easily sleep in even- she would happily play on the floor beside us while we dozed in and out.  Hugh gives us a 7 am wake up call and there is no negotiating.

All that being said, it IS getting easier.  Hugh is 5 months now and we are starting to develop a good little routine.  He likes routine.  He likes schedules.  The more we deviate from his routine, his way, the harder the day is.  Some days it is worth it- like the 4th of July.  Most days it is not.  The routine-deviation tax is high around here and we can't afford to pay it often.

So we stick to a routine and he is good.  I mean, right now both children are napping.  And they both went to sleep without tears.  Victory!  I watched the clock like a hawk and timed Hugh's nap down to the minute and he rewarded me for my schedule- loyalty with an effortless nap.  Thank you, King Hughie.  Your subjects never tired of serving you.

All that to say that I feel like I've kind of been having a mom identity crisis around here.  Probably the same mom-identity crisis that so many have with their first child- only I'm having it with my second.  With just June, I felt like mom was one of so many things I did.  I was still the same person. Now mom is The Thing.  I am not the same person.  With two kiddos there doesn't seem to be a lot of time for my other identities.  When all the caring for other children is done, I collapse onto the couch and drink a soda while watching mindless television until I pass out.  (That sentence feels so depressing, but it is my dream right now.)

I really really hope I can get back to blogging consistently.  But it's been crazy enough around here for long enough that I know I can't make too many promises.  I haven't forgotten my blog.  And I do long to write.  That's as much as I can give you right now.

This blog post actually got a lot longer than I intended it to.  I thought I would just write a quick paragraph before telling you all about our sale at Hey June.  But my fingers and mind needed to write, I guess, and this is what emerged.  Thank you for always being here to listen to "what emerges".  And now, the sale.

Our customer appreciation sale is going on in our jewelry shop.  Hey June provides 2/3 of our income, with my teaching gig and Greg's side acting jobs picking up the last 1/3.  It is absolutely astonishing to me that Hey June has done that for our family.  We are so grateful.  So much of it is because of you guys here- your initial support launched the business into what we needed to be able to make it our primary income.  Thank you.

The customer appreciation sale is 20% off, but I am feeling so tender-hearted and grateful to all of you loyal blog readers that I am going to give you guys 25% off.  That is anything in the shop and it will go through Sunday. (The sale actually ends today, but you know, you guys get the perks.)  Use code LIFEOFBON25.  And if your order total is $25 or more you will get a free pair of stud earrings- just put in the comments which pair you want for free.  I'm basically giving our business away, it's cool.

Golden Graham No Bake Salted Caramel Bars

This post is sponsored by Golden Grahams but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Father's Day is a week from tomorrow.  I always kind of start to brace myself for Father's Day.  Since my dad died, it has traditionally been the hardest day of the year for me.  Even harder than his birthday or the anniversary of his death. (Well, this year my dad's birthday is on Father's Day so the doubling up like that doesn't help either.)  

I will always miss my dad on Father's Day.  I have accepted that.  But since seeing Greg become a dad, my Father's Days have gotten much easier.  Instead of missing my own dad so much, I can celebrate the father that my daughter has.

Greg is so good to June.  He is attentive and silly and loving.  He adores her.  Doesn't every girl need a dad who adores her?

Greg always makes an effort to do activities with his kids.  The other day he called me at work to tell me that he and June were "catching mermaids" that day.  We've all been on a mermaid catching kick ever since.  Tonight we went over to "Farm Country".  The place was all but deserted and June got to ride the pony to her heart's content.  It is so rewarding to watch my husband and kids interact.  Is there any thing greater in this world than watching two people you love so much bond?  (Side note:  Greg is also a very good dad to Hugh, but Hugh is still in boring baby stage so there's not a ton to say about him...  But believe you me, Greg has put in his time rocking, bouncing, soothing that crazy baby.)

For snacks we brought some Golden Graham Salted Caramel bars.  Greg told me that he never ate Golden Grahams as a child so I knew I had to show him how great they are.

This picture is not staged at all.  

It was June and Greg doing "cheers" with their Golden Graham treats.

In the interest of full full disclosure, I will tell you that I have tried and made several recipes for this blog.  But THIS golden graham salted caramel bar recipe is the best one I have ever tried.  It will become a family staple that we will eat for the rest of our lives because it is that good and we absolutely gobbled it up.  It is such a unique treat with the salt, caramel, and almonds added in.  All you have to do is look up the ingredient list and you know it is going to be amazing  And it is super quick to make (About 20 minutes to prepare) and requires zero baking.

A couple of adjustments I made when making this treat:

-  I used 16 ounces of marshmallows, not 10 ounces.  This was by accident, but of course it made it even better.  It's so gooey and yummy and I love that the cereal and almonds are covered in the marshmallow/caramel mix.  Next time I won't do as many marshmallows, but I do think I'll do a bit more than the recipe calls for.

- I did not microwave the marshmallow, butter, caramel mixture.  Instead, I cooked it on the stove.  The microwave seemed like a bad idea and I feel like everything cooks better on the stove.  The trick to making sure the bars aren't hard is to not overcook this mixture- that will make sure it stays gooey and soft.  I cooked on low and stirred constantly.  Don't let it boil!

-  I did milk chocolate instead of semisweet chocolate.  I believe milk chocolate to be the most superior of chocolate, so of course I used that.

- I did probably double the chocolate the recipe calls for.  Once the chocolate was melted I just put it in a plastic bag and drizzled it over the bars.  So good and only a little messy.  LOLZ.

Hugh got in on the action too.

The finished product can not be beat.  Greg and June both devoured these.  They are that good, I promise.  The crunchy and gooey mix + the salty and sweet mix really makes this such a unique and yummy treat.

This post is brought to you by Hugh D. Larsen who slept long enough for me to write this post tonight.  Way to go, Hugh!

Some other Golden Graham recipes that look very interesting to me:

(Click for Recipe)

Golden Grahams™ S’mores Candy Bark Recipe

Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake Bars Recipe

No-Bake Peanut Butter And Jelly Golden Grahams™ Cookie Recipe

Golden Grahams™ S’mores Ice Cream Bars Recipe

Thirteen minutes

I just put cookies in the oven and in thirteen minutes the timer will go off and I will eat those cookies.  So thirteen minutes is how long I have to write.

I feel this need to get back to blogging.  To get back to writing.  But the days pass and I don't make it a priority.  I could say I'm busy.  Because I am.  But the truth is that if I really really wanted to find time to blog I would.  So maybe I haven't wanted to.

It is 7:56 pm and today was my last day of work.  I am on summer vacation.  It is needed.  I don't know if I could have survived another day.  I mean, of course I could have.  I'm being dramatic.  But I really don't know if I could have.

Right now, at this very moment, my students are graduating.  I am supposed to be there.  I emailed my boss and asked if I could miss it.  A 14 hour work day with a four month old babe at home didn't sound that fun.  And do they really need all 100 teachers to sit in black robes around the stadium and sit through graduation year after year? In any case, I think my principal sensed that I'm at my work/home life breaking point.  So he said go ahead and stay home.  I'm grateful for that.  He has been a wonderful boss to me the past four years.  He is leaving now.  Being transferred to another school and I feel sad and nostalgic.  He has been so good to my family.  He hired me and then a year later hired Greg.  When Greg suddenly quit (literally went home on a Thursday and never went back) my/our boss was so understanding.  To Greg's email he responded, "Life is messy.  Put your family first."  That was in September.  That Christmas he gave our family $300.

I will miss my boss.  But my new boss used to be my vice principal and she is absolutely fantastic.  A smart and fiery redhead who gets things does.  I'm excited for the changes.

It is summer now.  The days are suddenly long and hot.  How did summer get here so quickly?  What took it so long?

People ask me "do you have plans for summer?"  No.  No plans.  Catch my breath.  Plan more than one day ahead.  Remember what it's like to be me in between endless feedings and rockings and bedtimes and grading papers and 7 am haggling with students over five extra credit points.  You don't really make summer plans when you're so busy just getting to the next day.  January- May is a total blur to me.  Last thing I remember I was teaching an ACT prep in the middle of January.  I woke up and it's June.  A regular old Rip Van Winkle.

I suspect I was/am dealing with some postpartum depression.  It feels mostly better.  Except for on days when it doesn't.  So I put one foot in front of the other.  I go to bed early and feel better in the mornings.  I drink a lot of coke and eat at least one cookie a day.  This isn't really a time to be mean to my body or to expect my love handles to quickly disappear.  It isn't a time to force myself into a size 4 swimsuit or demand that my pre pregnancy jeans fit by August.  It's a time to be nice to my body and to my mind.  We've been through a lot.

Hugh is getting easier.  And then sometimes he is hard again.  But the trend is toward easier.  On Sunday night I rocked him, held him, bounced him for two hours trying to get him to go to sleep.  Then Greg tried for an hour.  Finally after three hours of fierce cajoling, Hugh slept.  We were exhausted.  Mad.  Flabbergasted.  Tonight he started nursing and fell asleep in five minutes.  He's been asleep ever since.  There is no science to babies.  Just chaos.

As I write this, June is self soothing on her bedroom floor.  She flew through naptime but still is refusing to go to sleep tonight.  She's exhausted but refuses sleep.  So she's crying through the door.  A futile hope that Greg or I will come to her rescue and tell her she does not, in fact, have to go to bed, but can instead stay up all night eating popcorn and watching Sofia.  A toddler's wildest dream.

The timer is beeping and the cookies are done.  I'll see you tomorrow?

Mother's Day Sale

Hi friends.

I want to thank you for all your kind responses to my last two posts.  I know there is a lot of judgment and eye rolling in the mom community, but I have found nothing but support and understanding when I have reached out to other moms- both online and in real life.  So thanks for that.  We took Hugh to St. George for a little "vacation" and he had a great weekend.  For three days we thought he was another baby.  Then we got home and he went right back to his old self.  It is nice to know, if nothing else, that a happy baby resides in him somewhere.  It's just a matter of pulling it out.  So many of you sent suggestions and just kind thoughts and good juju.  I appreciate that more than you know, although responding to everyone will be a challenge.

I wanted to let you know that our Mother's Day sale at Hey June is tomorrow.  (Thursday May 4).  Everything in the shop is 20% off.  We only do this sale twice a year- once a Mother's day and once on our shop's anniversary in September.  Along with everything being 20% off we have our whole spring line finally listed- I spent the afternoon editing pictures and listing jewelry while Hugh slept on me.  Fun!

Anyway- coupon code is MAMA20 and that will go live at 10 am MST tomorrow.  (12 pm EST/ 11 am CST/ 9 am PST).  The first ten orders will also get a free pair of stud earrings so be one of the first to order if you know what's good for you!

Thanks again for all your support and love.  This online/ blogging/ small business community is the reason we can pay our bills.  You all are amazing. 

Long rock arrowhead necklace: $34

Hammered copper cuff- $14

Lariat necklaces- $28-32 (MY FAAAAAAVORITE)

Opal necklace: $26

Pineapple necklace: $20

Long pink arrowhead necklace: $32

Pink Circle Necklace; $26 (Also available in turquoise)

Rectangle necklace: $26 (Also available in turquoise)

Aqua threader earrings: $20

Triangle threader earrings: $16

enya

he cries

we swaddle we bounce we swing.

he cries

we feed we burp we spit up

he cries

we swaddle and reswaddle

baby go to sleep.  just go to sleep.

he cries he cries he cries.  he writhes his stomach against mine.  he is uncomfortable.  he can't help it.  please baby go to sleep.

he cries

I come downstairs and turn all the lights out.  I find enya on my phone.  I hold him tight against me in the dark in the kitchen.

and we dance.

shhh shhhh shhh shhhh

we move slowly in the dark.  Steady, even, soothing.  Who can say where the rain goes?  Only time.

I feel his little twelve pound body heavy on mine.  He relaxes.  His neck drops.  His breathing slows.  The babe has fallen asleep.

the tears run down my face.  So grateful for this new baby.  So exhausted by this new baby.  I am so happy.  I am so sad.  

Two kids- it's a wild, wild world

Gosh.  It has been so long since I have written on this blog.  I feel like I think that every time I write.  Maintaining any type of consistency with blogging has proven to be such a challenge the past year.

And yet when I write it feels so good.  I pull up my blog, and it feels like I'm coming home.  My fingers go crazy with their click click clacking.  They yearn to write.  I yearn to write.

In the interest of full disclosure, having two kids is kicking our butts.  My butt.  Greg's butt.  All of the butts.  Welcoming June to our family was so easy and effortless.  It was like we had always been waiting for her to be a complete family unit.  She was literally the perfect baby.  Newborn June days were full of bliss.  (I was reading my journal from when June was born- she was sleeping through the night at two months!  WHAAAAA?!?  Hugh is almost three months and we consider it a huge victory if he ever sleeps more than a three hour stretch at night.)

Welcoming Hugh has been more challenging.  Everything about it.  The pregnancy was tougher, the delivery was more painful, and baby Hugh is not content on the level that June was.  I mentioned this on my instagram a few days ago, but he definitely seems to have reflux or something else that is bothering his stomach.  He demands to be held upright and he wants to be bounced, swung, shushed, the whole shebang.  He writhes, he spits up, he fusses, he must be held  ALL. THE.  TIME.  I love holding my babies!  Except for when I have serious shiz to do.  Then I get stressed.  You can't hold a baby for three months straight.  I guess you could, but then who would pay the bills?  And what would one eat?!?

Hugh and June are 31 months apart.  I *think* this will be a really great age gap.  Close enough to play together, far apart enough to have their own identities and keep my sanity.  Well.  That's what I *thought* anyway.  Maybe when Hugh gets a little older?  Right now it is just complete chaos.  They both feel like babies to me still, they both have baby needs, and yet somehow their needs are SO different. I can't double up on any of the work.  They have to be fed differently, bathed differently, put to sleep differently.  They are both demanding and needy, (through no fault of their own- they are babies!)  and I feel like I have neither the skill nor the energy to adequately care for all of those needs. How does any one in the world ever make it past two children?

After I had June I never wanted to go back to the days of not having kids.  I had thought I would.  But I didn't.  My heart was so ready for June, even though I didn't know it was.  She joined my life and there was no looking back.  And now I hate hate to say it, but sometimes I do long for the days of just one child.  The pre-Hugh days.  And then I look down at little Hugh, who through no fault of his own is being wished away, and I am filled with so much guilt that I rock and hold him for hours to make sure he never catches on that I sometimes think that.

I try to be gentle and patient with myself.  We are in such a hustle stage of life, and Hugh wasn't exactly part of our plans.  We are running a small business out of our home.  I am teaching part time at a high school.  I still make some attempt at professional blogging.  We eat and wear clean clothes (most days.)  And now we care for two small children.  It is alot!  Anyone would struggle with so much on their plates.  I'm exhausted and I have to keep telling myself that that's ok.  It is also ok if my house is a mess and the laundry unfolded.  (This week I am paying someone to come clean my house which feels like a failure in its own way- I do not even have it together enough to clean up after myself!)  And it's ok if we eat out more often than I cook.  And it is also ok if I fall asleep Friday night at 9:00 right in the middle of a movie night with Greg.  It's ok if I file my taxes literally the last possible day.  It's ok that we're not ok!

In other, happier, news- the jazz won their first playoff game since 2010 over the weekend.  June, Greg, and I stayed up late and snuggled in our king sized bed watching it.  Our cheers woke up the nearby sleeping Hugh when Joe Johnson's buzzer beater went in.  Normally I say there isn't anything in the world worth waking up our sleeping dragon, but that--- that was worth it.

And now some pictures from our spring break in Las Vegas.  These are hard times, but they are happy times, too.

12 Tips for Starting a Small Business

This post is sponsored by Square Cash but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Eighteen months ago, Greg and I started our small business, Hey June.  Greg was unhappy in his full time teaching job.  He was suffering from depression and anxiety and the 10 hour daily marathons with rambunctious, horny teenagers were not the cure.  (Shocker.)  For so long I had had the dream of selling birthstone necklaces on etsy, but I never dared pull the trigger.  This gave us the reason we needed to finally dive in head first.

We were so scared though.  Starting a business venture like that feels so vulnerable.  You are showing the whole world that you are trying something risky and if you fail, you fail in front of everyone.  I felt sick for weeks, I was so nervous.

Lucky for us, we didn't fall flat on our faces.  We made a few sales and a few more until now the small business has replaced Greg's teaching income and then some.  It has been such a blessing to us and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't feel gratitude for the opportunity to make and sell jewelry.

I'm sure there are a lot of you out there who maybe dream of the flexibility, earning potential, and work-for-yourself schedule that owning and running a small business allows.  Or maybe a small business is your worst nightmare! Either way, I want to share a few tips that really helped us in launching a successful business.

1. Repeat after me:  there is enough.  I think this was the biggest thing in launching our business- getting in the "enough" mindset.  It is so easy to feel competitive with other businesses.  Etsy tracks your sales, which is awesome, but it also lets you see how more more successful all those other shops than you are.  And it can get in your head.  I try very hard to keep an "enough" mentality- there are enough people who want earrings in the world that I don't have to be competitive with others who sell earrings.  We can all have enough.  A huge inspiration for me is The Daily Tay who freaking kicks butt with her t-shirt line.  She always sends good vibes and is not jealous of the success of others.  I try hard to follow her lead.  It has been a process, but I feel like being genuinely happy for the success of those around you puts you in a better place to be successful yourself.  Success begets success.

2.  Learn how to take good pictures!  I don't even think you necessarily have to have a nice camera (although it definitely helps), but learning a few photography tricks is key for a small business.  Use natural light!  Use a white background!  Study the pictures of people who sell similar product to yours!  Study the pictures of items you really want to buy and decide why you want to buy those items! I will be honest, the five excruciating years of blogging I put in before we started Hey June were crucial- I had already learned a long, slow lesson about the importance of good pictures.  I feel like I was able to avoid such a steep learning curve because I had learned slowly over the course of my blog how to take decent pictures.  I still don't love my pictures the most (and there are many I want to go back and redo from the very first months of our business) but they are good enough to do our product justice and to make people want to buy.  Yippee!

3.  Talk to the pros.  A lot of people have already been successful in what you are trying to do.  Talk to them!  I will never stop being grateful to my friend, Amy, who for five years has had a successful handstamping jewelry business.  When I asked her for help starting with the birthstone necklaces, she didn't bat an eye.  I am so grateful for her help in getting started.  Alexa Zurcher, who does amazing graphic design, helped me find a printer in our area to do our earring labels.  Taylor helped me buy our label printer which is the greatest gift any small business owner has ever been given.

4.  Buy a label printer.  See above.  (This is the one I use.  We bought it in December and mostly I am just so mad that I didn't buy it the day we started our business.  It's an investment, but worth its weight in gold.)

5.  Have someone to keep you from going insane.  Running your own business can be absolutely nuts.  There were days in December where Greg and I were both putting in 12-14 hours.  It can be such a zoo.  And then it can be followed by weeks of nothing.  And then you get the craziest review from someone online who only gives you three stars because you offered them a coupon code if they posted your item on instagram and they don't want to post your item on instagram.  (Seriously.  This happened.  People are cray.)  That's why I have Greg so I can tell him how totally nuts that person was and then we laugh about it and watch an episode of Parks and Rec and the world somehow goes on turning.  Without someone to talk to, though, the small business madness could totally get to you.

6.  Package your items in a cute way!  This one surprised me.  Shocked me.  If you look at our reviews on etsy soooooo many people mention how we package our jewelry.  We put our earrings on a crisp, professional looking earring card, we put them in a small box, stamp the box with our logo, and tie a ribbon around it. Greg doesn't get the bow, but I tell him it's like opening a present and people like to open presents.  Boy was I right.  People lose their shiz over this.  At Christmas we got real crazy and tied a RED ribbon around the box.  People went nuts.  For Valentine's Day we did pink.  The crowd went wild Now that it's spring we're losing our damn minds and USING PASTEL RIBBON.  PEOPLE CAN NOT GET ENOUGH OF THIS.  I can not stress this one enough.  Packaging is everything.

A post shared by Bonnie Larsen (@heyjuneshop) on Nov 28, 2016 at 5:43pm PST

7.  Send items quickly.  This one is one that Greg I disagree with a little- I like to get items out the next day because I am an OCD freak.  Greg is okay to wait a few days as long as it falls under our shop's promised 3-5 shipping day policy, but to me personally, the faster we send out an item, the more likely that person will buy from us again.  And tell their friends.  Our etsy reviews confirm this.

8.  Follow businesses you admire.  I am energized by watching other small businesses who are doing it right.  I have already mentioned a few of the ones I really look up to in this post.  Others who inspire me in the business world besides the ones already mentioned are Freshly Picked, Made by Mary, Elizabeth Ivie, Little Olive Clothing Co, and Deidre Emme.  I also watch a lot of Shark Tank.

9.  Give oh give, give oh give!  I have found giveaways to be a great way to boost business, and to just send some good karma out in the world.  They can get hard to manage though, and sending free stuff can be a pain for us because I don't have a good system for keeping track of it.  The more giveaways we do, though, the more success I feel like we have.  This goes back to point #1- there is enough!

A post shared by Bonnie Larsen (@heyjuneshop) on Dec 8, 2016 at 1:46pm PST

10.  Have a social media following.  This one has been a struggle for me lately- our main shop advertising is done through Instagram, but since they changed the algorithm, I find that many followers don't see our posts.  I have seen some small businesses just dominate the facebook world, but that somehow feels even scarier to me than instagram.  Although I don't feel like I'm on the top of my instagram game, I do know that it boosts our sales significantly.  Any time we have a sale we announce it only through instagram and this blog and I am always SHOCKED by how many people take advantage of the coupon code.  You've got to have a social media connection.

11.  Get the convenient apps!  If you are selling on Etsy, the Sell on Etsy app is crucial.  The other app that I couldn't do without is Square Cash.  The idea is really simple- it's a safe and fast way to send and receive money.  You link it to your bank account and you can send money in an instant.  It is the same idea as Venmo, but I love that it doesn't have a social sharing aspect so that others can't see who you are sending money to and when.  That weirds me out about Venmo.

I use Square Cash with our business constantly.  Anytime someone wants to buy jewelry from me in person (friends, family, etc.) I have them send the money through Square Cash.  (It also has an auto deposit option so that it will automatically deposit the money into your bank account.  I think that is awesome.) I always pay our market and boutique show fees through Square Cash.  It is such a no brainer for me.

Also, I can not emphasize this enough- IT IS SAFE.  Square Cash uses a passcode and touch ID.  Everyone I know who has not hopped on the money sending app train yet does so because they think it is not safe.  It is!  (Also, just for the record, I use Square Cash for so much more than my business.  I pay people back with it, I split the bill with friends it, I buy things on our neighborhood garage sale page with it, I EVEN PAY OUR BABYSITTER with it.  If you do not have this app yet you need to take a long hard look in the mirror and ask yourself WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE?!?  (You can download it here.)

12.  Surround yourself with people who want you to succeed.  Aside from #1, I think this is the most important thing any business owner can do.  Surround yourself with positive people.  I am so grateful to my blog readers and friends on the internet who were a huge boost in getting this business started.  My family was all crazy supportive.  Every time I see my aunt she is wearing one of our necklaces and it kind of makes my heart melt.  My friends in the neighborhood all sport the studs we sell.  It seriously means so much to me.  A community of support is everything.  Thank you!