Day 1

I can't believe that this day we've dreamed of & planned for has finally come & gone.  This little shop just started out as a dream - a dream that gets bigger by the day.

I would've probably been happy with one sale today.  Even the seven things we sold are nothing in the grand scheme of things, but it feels big right now.

Now I'm writing thank you notes & packaging orders & I'm totally overwhelmed by so many things.  I want to remember every bit so on the days when I can't get my printer settings right or can't find the right shipping materials that I want to order, or days when I feel like we haven't sold enough...I want to remember this feeling of gratitude.

First off, I feel like this desire to create is something God created in me, & oftentimes I struggle with how to use it.  My mom teases that when I was a kid (& maybe just a few years ago too...), I would get on one thing & make a million of them.  I'd like to say you could still find a lot of tissue-paper-covered bottles & vases at my parents' house, but I'm sure they made their way to the dump long ago. So finding a use for this need to create is kind of a big deal.

There are days when being married to a nerd isn't easy.  I've spent many hours huddled with my kindle in the corner of a boring technology store while Grayson checked out the latest & greatest.  [Speaking of which, have you noticed how stores women shop at provide a place for the men to sit & wait?  Man stores don't have that.]  But these days, I've been ever-so-thankful for my nerd.  I would've given up long ago if it weren't for him.  He has been so patient & has spent so much time adjusting printer settings, comparing colors, pricing packaging material, & researching the best way to do things.  He has supported this dream & believed in it & in me far more than I have.  He has spent money that we hadn't planned on spending.  And he's celebrated the little victories right by my side.  I feel like I've seen an even deeper level of selflessness & sacrifice over the last month & it makes me love him all the more.

And of course, my fellow dreamer in all of this.  When I met Rachel last January, I knew from the start that we would be friends.  [And I secretly thought about how much my brother must love me to choose a girlfriend who is so similar to me that I immediately wanted to be her BFF.]  But these days of planning, & venting, & frustrations...they're worth it just to get to share this day of giddy excitement with her.

I can't wait to see what's in store.  We want everything we do to be God-honoring.  We want our business to be one of integrity.  We want to create things that just might give someone a glimpse of Jesus.  And we don't really know what that means from here, but we're ready.