Full, Lovely Life
September was full, lovely, simple, and full of progress! Ready for the recap, friends? Buckle up! 😂
That Heart Monitor: I dutifully wore my heart monitor for a few weeks, and am happy to report that all is well! Heart monitors have really slimmed down with modern technology, I have to say! It was basically one narrow sticker on my chest, with rechargeable ports that would click into it. Both ports would sync my heart data with a cell phone (pictured above), and beep with alerts and updates. No wires. No army of electrodes down my side. Just the one! I wore it to the beach, and got a lovely sunburn-outline as a souvenir. 😜 One morning, I rolled my eyes as it beeped obnoxiously, assuming it was time to change my sticker or charge the phone. Instead it read, “Your monitoring is complete!” I was so relieved, and happy, and proud of myself for making it through that window of time. Even though this wasn’t a huge inconvenience, it was just another unexpected variance in my life, you know? I became acutely aware of the high proportion of V-Neck T’s in my wardrobe. (My infusion-friendly wardrobe just put the heart monitor on display! haha) I am so thankful that the monitor did not pick up any heart murmurs or inconsistencies to worry us. I’ll just be careful standing up suddenly, and breathe deeply when I get lightheaded. It’s manageable!
That School Job: It’s back!! 🥳️ I was invited back to my part-time tutoring job this year, and I’m so excited. I’ll work all day Tuesday and Thursday with small groups of students who need reading remediation. After last year, I decided that was enough school for me in this season. I get to foster tiny communities, lead tiny 30 minute lessons, and go home! It’s some of my favorite teaching perks, without the headaches and the hours. I never could have imagined this was an option for me. I’m so thankful. So happy!
That Hurricane: Andrew and I were so blessed and safe during Hurricane Helene! It rained absolute buckets and we lost a few large trees, but none hit our house. The lights blinked a few times, but we were able to keep power the entire time. It was strange to be cut off from the world without internet or cell service. We had no news access or way of communicating! I embraced my 90’s lifestyle of DVD’s, books, baking, etc. As of this posting, all our services are back! Please pray for the absolute devastation of western NC. It is a totally different world only 30 minutes down the road from us.
That Small Business: I announced Still Good Co. in my last blog post, then the newsletter, and finally on the podcast. So it’s really real! ☺️ I believe in it’s message so much, and just want everyone to know that their innate goodness and value will never change, no matter what life throws at them! It’s a natural extension of what I’ve been writing and podcasting from the beginning, just with a new fundraising emphasis for metastatic breast cancer research. I have such big dreams about where this could actually go. It’s hard to take one step at a time and break it into actionable phases. As with all things in life, I’m practicing patience and flexibility. 😂 I have a rough outline of tasks I’d like to get done: getting products made, creating/posting advertisements for said products, finalizing my online store, etc etc. I’ve never done anything like this. I have long way to go, but I’d love to celebrate some wins with you here!
Doing 2 hours of retail math with my lovely sister, Sarah. She crunched the numbers until I could break even and actually donate to research in every item sold. 🙌
Finding a local small business that fit my budget! 🙌
Booking a photographer to shoot some official content for Still Good Co! 🙌 I even recruited some sweet friends to be in the pictures with me.
Booking a pop-up shop at The Coffee Nook for October 12! 🙌 Mommy and I will be there 9:00-2:00 selling Still Good T-shirts and stickers. (As an added bonus, it’s Octoberfest weekend! This means quadruple the foot traffic by total accident- haha) The Coffee Nook is even crafting a special pink latte for our pop-up and will donate a percentage to our fundraiser!
Asking our local popcorn store to create a pink/green/blue popcorn mix! (MBC ribbon colors, yes?) The “Still Good Blend” will donate 50% of each bag to our fundraiser. 🙌 I’m hoping the popcorn will provide a fun option for visitors that aren’t interested in stickers or shirts.
Every step, every “Yes", every follow on Instagram, is God clicking pieces into place. ❤️️
Over the hurricane weekend, we had no internet or cell service. We were incredibly blessed to have power and safety here at home, and I’m so thankful. And…the whole time, I kept thinking about the phone calls I needed to make, the designs I wasn’t able to create, the emails I needed. Each time they bubbled up in my head, I prayed that God would help this to fall into place in His time. After 72 hours of that, you know what I felt? The most peaceful, quiet mind. (What? Yes!) The glamorous launch season I had in my mind may not happen in the next two weeks. My online store and “waiting list” isn’t ready for October 1st. My product line has exactly 2 shirts. 😜 Instead, this beautiful, local premier is falling into place so smoothly. With real people, and real community partners, who have heard me share my heart behind Still Good and were so excited with me. I got to practice sharing my “elevator pitch,” and it got smoother every time. We’re starting with real people and my friends. And that’s a beautiful beginning to celebrate!
To my online friends: I pray the online store will be up and running soon! The good news is that MBC research and MBC ribbon enthusiasm are not limited to October. It’s a year-round cause with year-round thrivers and year-round needs. I’ll see you there soon!
Outside of planning a fundraiser, podcasting, newsletter writing, and working at school and church (sheesh)- how has life been? It’s lovely! Andrew and I have enjoyed cozy nights at home, LR football games, good TV, etc. We even embraced the magic of pumpkin beer at Lowe’s Foods! Nothing like a casual grocery stroll on a Saturday night, with nowhere to be and a pre-made meal in your cart. 😂 #goodlife
Now that our internet is back and I can work more actively on these projects, I pray I can continue trusting God to settle all the moving pieces. I want to hold that peace and stillness from the weekend. I want to carry that calm and not mess it up with my anxious heart. To work well, without sacrificing my wellness. After all…
“How do you know what is going to happen tomorrow? For the length of your lives is as uncertain as the morning fog—now you see it; soon it is gone. What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we shall live and do this or that.” -James 4:14-15
I’m so excited to have an opportunity to make plans and do projects, but I’ve learned to hold them loosely. I know God’s vision of the future is better than what I can imagine. Still Good Co, Andrew and I’s beautiful life, my future in teaching, the podcast and so much more are all in His loving hands. I know leaning into each opportunity to trust Him and watch Him move is the best part of this whole journey.
May we all hold our plans loosely, with open hands and expectant hearts! ❤️️
