2013

Everyone has years that define who they are. 2013 was one of those years . I have become
accustomed to moving just as I started to get comfortable somewhere. But traveling across the country to the mountains in Idaho and hopping to an island for college and serving a mission in South America were moments of change throughout my life. Change of location, change of lifestyle and change of mindset. I have come to recognize that with true change comes opportunity. 
 
2013 was simply a year of opportunity.

I watched countless amount of movies that narrate that of a young girl with big dreams who finds herself stuck in the same town wishing she had taken chances earlier in life. Her fear of change eliminated her opportunities.

I made a commitment at a very young age that I would never allow that to be me. I did not have it down pat. I still struggled with the need to seek approval from the people I cared about most. If I had a goal I wanted my father to reassure me that it was a goal I could meet. If I had a business idea I needed my sister to tell me it was as good as I thought it was. If I wanted to make a big purchase I wanted my mother to say, "yeah go for it". Maybe it was the accountability I sought after from my father, or the need to "Pitch" my idea to my sister to hear out loud that it was just as good of an idea as my brain made it to be at 2 a.m.

But in 2013 I decided to put my desire to seek approval aside & I just ACTED and went after what I wanted. One year ago  I graduated from college.
It didn't feel too different than any other day besides having 25 leis around my neck! I just looked at it as a window of opportunity for every single one of us who sat patiently waiting for our name to be called. As a sat amongst students from 72 different countries my perspective on life tweaked itself. I just want to be successful and happy. Success to me is not measured by a corporate ladder or a salary. Success to me is a fulfillment of goals. I sat with my husband on our tiny broken table in our one room home in Hawaii I scribbled the goals I had for myself for the next few years. He did the same. Then we came together and made a few goals as a couple. I don't know what it was about that night but visually the future was right in front of me. Neon opportunities on a poster board staring right back at the both of us. It was the most motivational moment in my life. (I recommend making a goal/dream board with specific goals)

We flew back to Ohio for Christmas with all we had. 5 pieces of luggage slightly moist from the Hawaiian humidity and sand caught in the zippers to my luggage. Reality set in when Christmas Vacation was over. I graduated college with zero debt which was a goal of mine. But I had very little money to my name & Jamie was starting his semester at University of North Texas, we had no place to live or a car for me to even go look for a job. We knew we should live in Texas and that there were opportunities there but we felt a little lost.

My father had always taught me to save my earnings and It was a relief that I was able to make it through college without taking out a single loan. I  feared credit cards. The idea of buying something you don't have the money to pay for made me feel anxious and possibly paying interest on top of that made me avoid it all together.

We made the decision to go ahead and pay  for Jamie's tuition on our first credit card. Then looked at each other and said well we need to make a lot of money in the next month. In my head I screamed I will not pay a penny of interest! That was my motivation.

I read "Start Something Stupid" by Richie & Natalie Norton in 2 days and started to Act on the motivation I received from a couple who took chances and happened to write a really cool book about it. I took the $27 cash I had and bought a pair of vintage boots and some materials to decorate them. I stayed up all night combining different fabric and belts together & took a photo of the finished product and put them online. I called my pair of boots that I hoped would be accompanied by many more in the future- The Wanderlust Collective. They sold that night!

I took the profit from that pair and purchased a few more pair and my bedroom desk business took off. Before I knew it I was shipping out boxes to boutiques all over the country. 24 pair at a time.  Jamie began looking for jobs and making several Hobby Lobby stops on the way home to pick up materials for the boots.  We slept among fabric, vintage belts and needles, One month later we were able pay off his tuition bill and buy a used car in cash.

Meanwhile, I received a phone call from a gentlemen who had heard through a President of a company I knew that I had worked with Entrepreners and wanted to know if I would be interested in working for a company that worked with business owners. I traded my boots in for a new suit and sat in a conference room in a high-rise down town Fort Worth in a interview.

This truly was an interview different than all the others. One where I was able to open up about my experience on my mission in Chile and how it changed my life and priorities within it.

I was hired as a Business Performance advisor and embarked on an entire new career that allowed me to work with business owners every day and allows me to help them
grow their business and essentially make more money.

I wanted to be a mover and shaker and be in charge of my future and this company has allowed me to do so.  Meanwhile, Jamie was hired to work as an assistant account executive for company in Trophy Club.  The owner often reminding him that he will always work around jamies school schedule and to put his education first. Sometimes we wake up and remind each other how grateful we are for the blessings of our life and the tiny itsy bitsy miracles that make up a really happy marriage. I cannot wait until he gets into Physicians Assistant School! Although we have another year and a half to go.

We have no desire to live in a fancy house or drive a snazzy car but we have goals of having a family soon and getting Jamie through his bachelors and PA school debt free.

In July, I felt as though I was beginning to grasp my position at my company. I was able to help business owners and relieve some of the burden they carried. I was starting to build a network of people that I could help. Normally the youngest one in the room I could not pretend as though I had years and years of business experience but I could confidently say I could help them grow their business by working my company,  a company that has helped small-midsize business owners for 26 years. I began to give presentations and attend business events and began to find my place in tight knit Fort Worth...
When I returned home in the evenings I craved creating.  I decided  I needed to channel my creativity into something. I had a garage full of vintage and craft items from my wedding//A few thousand dollars worth of items I considered an investment on the day of purchase months before my wedding. So I bought a booth in grapevine and started a little storefront in an antique mall- filled with mason jars and vintage furniture! On Saturdays I could refinish furniture or make things to sell- and I did not have to be there-I could just create and price! Even though it is a small business, on the side, it makes me happy! And with the extra cash, I can justify a few new purchases :)

Early one morning my mom called and was crying hysterically. My beautiful cousin had died. Only a few years younger than me. I wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out. Why had I not reached out to him recently... Why had I not taken it upon myself to make more of an effort? The funeral was one of the most heartbreaking yet beautiful moments... As we were all reminded of what a special person he was. I could not stop the waterfall of tears as I remembered his imagination and his precious kind personality. What is life? Why are we here? I spent 18 months in Chile teaching people the purpose of life and how amazing it was that we could return to live with Our Father in Heaven and our family after our life here on earth. But I sat in a church and asked myself..."do I truly believe that?" An overwhelming sense of comfort and peace came over my whole body. Was that even a question? Of course I knew it to be true. I knew it like I knew the Grass was green. My cousin would have a chance to return to live with his family and we would all be reunited. What a special day that would be...

In November, I sat in my office and had this overwhelming feeling I needed to set an appointment to go to the dermatologist and get a few moles looked at; something I have put off for almost a year. I called 6 dermatologists near by and not one could get me in until 2014. Finally I found one that had an opening the next day. The doctor did a full body scan and said that several of them needed to be removed and tested.

6 pm on a Tuesday I entered our home, dropped my work materials and plopped on the couch just as my cell phone rang.

It was her. She said, "Im sorry but one of your moles came back Cancerous. We need to go ahead and removed it and a several inch circumference surrounding it to insure we got all of the melanoma.

I kept thinking this can't be right. Two of us in one family? I had not tanned in 5 years. I knew I could break down in tears but I decided I was not going to let it altar my work day or my mental stability from then on out. After the surgery and 50+ internal & external stitches I found myself regretting tanning and not wearing spf- more than anything in my life. I wanted to scream from the mountain top that it's Not worth it! Not for Prom, a Cruise or even a wedding! You will pay for it later...

I lay here in bed... Remembering the moments of this past year... What a special blessing 2013 has been for my husband and I. We have grown so close and have learned to pick our battles. I have become a little less bossy and he has become a little more aware that women get emotional and that it's a good idea to just bring home the chocolate when that time comes :)

So many new things coming in 2014-
Career and financial Goals
Creative Goals
Live in the moment a little more often
Goals to volunteer and make a difference in my community
Laugh even more!
Take mini trips!
See all of my best friends
Cook :)
Work smarter
& serve others.