Today is January 1, 2019! There is something so exciting about the very first day of every brand new year! It's a time of new beginnings, yes, but it's even more than that for me. It means that I can look back on what went well the year before and continue to build on those things.
It also means I can accept what didn't work out so well and - either - change them, tweak them, or let them go altogether.
Either way, it's a time of re-evaluating where I am in this life - the good, the less-than-perfect, and the "needs improving." (I refuse to say there is anything "ugly" or "bad" about my life. I lead wayyyyy too blessed an existence to give in to that kind of thinking.)
So that is what I am doing today. At least until 1:30, when I will go next door to my mom's and eat black-eyed peas, cabbage, and cornbread with my family! Totally digressing here, but...will those three things bring us good luck and wealth in this coming year? Not a chance! But I am all. about. those. traditions!!! Keep 'em coming my way as long as possible!
It's quiet around here right now, and perfect for reflecting. A rapid fire of fun and uplifting group texts amongst our six grown kids made the rounds this morning and now the men folk are out shooting and doing boy stuff while Bronte and I are nesting and cleaning and reflecting and blogging - totally girlie stuff. (Sure, she's doing most of the nesting and resting, but she is very faithfully following me from room to room and - right now - she is snoring softly at my feet as I type.) There is something calm, peaceful, and "all is as it should be" in my world.
There are several new things that will be rolling out business-wise in the next few weeks and months, but today I am thinking back to my KREW - my group of ladies who worked tirelessly with me this last year in the Bohotique, on the blog, and in the business. Though vastly different in ages, we bonded so seamlessly and so ENTIRELY over a deeply common thread - that of sisterhood and of empowering one another and inspiring other women to do the same. In a world where it is all too easy for women to be one another's chief obstacle to success, our aim was to shine a light (and to shine HIS light) on what truly matters: the individual contributions we all bring to the table that, together, create something so beautiful and so whole that it leaves no question that it could not have happened on its own.
Although I have made the decision to let the Bohotique go in order to focus more fully on what we do best - the B&B and venue - and while I am returning to my personal blog over Sunshine and Sweet Tea - I am forever indebted to the women who worked alongside me in 2018. This post is dedicated to them.
It has been my experience that God blesses those who bless others.
Today, let me update you on the lives of my KREW...:) THEY have blessed my socks off in 2018!
In no particular order...
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Jennifer Gross was one of my dearest friends, and a talented writer and business woman, who also just happened to be mom to my two eldest nieces, Madison and Makenzie:) When Jen agreed to join my team, she was running 3130 Home, an online and onsite home decor boutique, as well as penning her own blog. Nearing a cross-roads herself, Jen was trying to make some career decisions of her own, but yet she willingly took on my vision and volunteered her time and talents, giving us several blog articles (including the one that I still LOL over - aka "The Swimsuit Edition") and relentlessly praying over our mission.
Flash forward to Jen today...Even though it wasn't even in her sights a year ago, today Jen is an Ebby Halliday realtor, a talented home stager, and still partners with her husband, Todd, in their construction business.
That cross-roads Jen was at...? Yeah, God directed her footsteps in a LARGE way!
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Peyton Hawkins was a former student of mine who, along with her sister, Ali, joined me on the team - first as my "models" for our Bohotique clothing - but then as my Social Media gurus, namely Insta! :) The first few weeks we worked together, I would sit in the Boho House (before it WAS the Boho House:) with these girls and we'd talk while we worked. I'd hear their hearts as they shared with me the desires of their hearts, as wells as....yes, the heartbreaks...the disappointments...the fears...As the year moved along, Peyton reconnected with a "friend," who helped to heal that broken heart of hers. As she continued to complete her senior year of high school, work tirelessly at her PAYING job, spend her off-time working on our social media and house-sitting for Mike and I, she fell deeper and deeper in love with this...friend. Travis Swistok.
Flash forward to Peyton today...Peyton was one of The Hitchin' Post's July brides. She married her Marine and she and Travis are stationed in North Carolina. Peyton may not run my social media anymore, but nothing brings tears to my eyes any quicker than reading P's inspirational posts about all that God and Life have taught her in the months since her marriage. She is TRULY a model - not of clothing, but of true beauty and holiness and everything a young wife should be.
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Ali Hawkins is the whole package. Right brain AND left brain. Engineer major AND hobbyist decorator extraordinaire. I remember having her as a sophomore in my English II Honors class and her face literally lighting up when I would announce a new project. "I LOVE PROJECTS!" Some things just don't change; Ali still loves a good project, especially if it involves a challenge of some kind that requires a bit of engineering to figure out. I never had to worry once I turned something over to Ali. I didn't question timelines or deadlines or doability. I just knew it would get done.
Flash forward to Ali today...Although I miss her more than words can convey and although I have yet to find a house sitter that Thoreau and Bronte love as much, Ali now has the pleasure of decorating her own apartment while she finishes up her junior year of college. In a little over a year, she'll be doing amazing things, things I can hardly wait to tell you about, things like creating prosthesis for animals...she's simply amazing...that's Ali. And that's only the beginning. I started off by saying that she's left AND right brained. There is no limit to what we will see out of Ali - God has amazing things in store for this one!
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Alex Freeman was a first year teacher my first year at Pewitt. Partly because of our age difference and partly because of how much we instantly adored one another, I became somewhat of a mentor to her. She came to me for advice and I loved hanging around her because she is just so dang funny! No one has a bigger smile or a bigger laugh - no one! More often than not, we'd talk about relationship issues and about why God hadn't sent Mr. Right her way yet. YET. (Remember that word - YET...) At 26 years old (then) Alex was ready for Life to start already! By the end of the year, we had developed a bond that we both knew would be life long. Even though she moved on to another district after that year, and then on to another city after that, we stayed close.
When I reached out to her to join this project, she didn't hesitate. Another talented writer and a - BEYOND - gifted musician, Alex has a heart for God and a heart for people. She immediately began contributing to the blog via her own blog. One of the posts that I will never, ever forget is the one she penned (aka typed) on the Power of YET. I've often thought back to her words in that post as I've contemplated the waiting process that generally accompanies anything worth gaining, owning, or having. More often than not, there is a lesson to be learned in the waiting and it's in the YET portion where we can best listen, best learn, best receive.
Flash forward to Alex today...Alex is a teacher, a musician, a writer, a marketer, a designer...and y'all...Alex is in love!!!! It's her story to tell, and I certainly don't know all the details; but I am one happy surrogate mother/mentor who is absorbing all the Insta posts, feeds, and stories about her Mr. Right:) It didn't happen eight years ago when we both wanted it to; but - like everything else in this life - when God does a thing, He does it well.
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Chelsy Edwards was first my student two years ago as a sophomore in Honors English II, and again this year as a senior in Principles of Hospitality. She, too, joined our team last year as a model for the Bohotique clothing, but then stayed on to help work the birthday party business at the venue. Chelsy embodies what I hope and wish for every young girl - strong family values, high standards for herself and others, generosity for those less fortunate than herself, and a smile that knows no boundaries. She truly is a ray of sunshine. She has not had the easiest year this year and, since she's a senior, that has made me sad. In true Chelsy fashion, though, she chooses to not dwell on the negative and focuses instead on what lies ahead. Chelsy is one of the ones from the class of 2019 that I will miss the very most.
Chelsy today...Already accepted at University of Texas at Tyler, Chelsy has already applied for and received her apartment housing, as well as several scholarships that will go toward her education. She plans to major in English (proud moment for this teacher right here!) and go into teaching and/or professorship. Chelsy is faithful, loyal, and loving and I cannot wait to see what all lies ahead in her future! I'm so thankful I am blessed enough to have a front row seat!
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Rachel Clayton, best friend to Chelsy and "mascot" to my old debate team, is another of my student recruits to our KREW. Rachel was also one of my sophomore English students. While we came to know each other well back then, it wasn't until she began to "attend" debate the following year, that I came to REALLY know THE Rachel Clayton, and to fall in love with the delightful and hilarious person that she is. Ridiculously talented and endlessly funny, Rachel was dubbed our mascot for debate, and it was during those afternoons that I learned more about what she hoped for, dreamed about, and was working toward in regards to her future. When I approached her about helping out with venue events, she so willingly gave of her last summer before college and worked for me whenever possible. She was another one that you could give a job to and then forget about it - you could rest assured it would get done - and the right way.
Rachel today...Nearing the end of her first year at Tarleton University, Rachel is majoring in business with a minor in fashion studies! Still loving on dogs, cows, and Airstreams!!!
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Here you have it...my KREW! You can see why they are each so very near and dear to my heart. They are friends. They are sisters. They are prayer partners. They are like-minded women.
They are loved and cherished by me, today and always.
Even though we are each going our own way and accomplishing the things we are meant to do in this life, there is a cheering section in each of our lives reserved for our group, I can assure you! With each goal reached...
each graduation, each marriage, each child born, each promotion...
Or with each loss..
each disappointment, each death, each heartache...
This is a sisterhood that was formed on something far bigger than any ONE of us, and it is one that will live long after some of us are gone.
Hopefully daughters will tell their daughters and so on and so on and so forth...
And that is how the world gets changed...one girl at a time.
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