We’ve had a very busy week at Not Your Granny’s! We made scones, cookies, turnovers, fudge, marshmallows, and more for our booth at the Hitching Lot Farmer’s Market Holiday Sale. The work began on Monday morning and ended around 2:00 a.m. Saturday. Thankfully, we had a great turnout and enjoyed the day very much. It was so nice to meet new customers and make our friends and neighbors aware of the services we offer.
During the action-packed week, we managed to squeeze in a blogging webinar between batches of goodies. Armed with new information about the value of reaching our customer base, we began to brainstorm ideas for the next few blog posts. Just as I was about to say something intelligent, we heard a shrill wail from down the hall. My daughter was awake and hungry. As soon as I had her more comfortable and settled into a bouncy seat, Destiny’s older son walked through the kitchen and announced that he was going to California, and that he needed one of our cardboard boxes to pack his toys. He’s four years old, and he never runs out of hilarious comments and questions. Melyssa taped up a box for him to use and he began stacking various items in it, all the while narrating his actions. Half a broken cookie, a large stuffed elephant and the engine and caboose of his toy train all went in. Our attention returned to the matter at hand, and within a few minutes, Destiny’s younger son woke up and was hungry.
We are new at this home-based business. I am frequently overwhelmed by the conflict I feel when I’m in the middle of mixing batter or rolling out dough and get interrupted. I know my daughter is more important than the food, more important than the deadlines, but the struggle is still there. I’m doing all of this for her, in a way, so that I can earn a little extra money while staying at home with her. The only problem is that when I’m working from home, and she’s right there needing me all day, I’m expected to fill two full-time positions. Add in another mom and two more kids and imagine the chaos we enjoy on a daily basis!
But then there are the sweet, wonderful moments, such as when we have the four-year-old taste test, which he loves. Or when I’m nursing and making bows at the same time and my little baby girl looks at me like I’m the greatest, most wonderful person in the world. Or when we swap up and take care of each other’s children without hesitation. They say it takes a village to raise a child, and I think they’re right. My daughter and Destiny’s sons will learn to respect other adults, play and share their toys with non-sibling children, and hopefully to become a bit more self-reliant as time goes by! We had a couple of lunch breaks at McDonald’s to let the older boy run off some pent-up energy while we strategized and organized. We are learning to balance our families and our occupations. And I, for one, couldn’t be happier with the results!
