Finding the time

When I told my husband I planned to pursue Stringbeans, his first question was "When?" As in, how are you going to fit that in between volunteering at the kids' school, writing, pitching articles, volunteering for PanCan, taking care of the kids and the dog, doing laundry, picking up groceries, managing our household plus our house on Whidbey Island, running to appointments, etc., etc., etc.?

I'll admit, I'm already pretty short on time. Luckily, my business partner is a mom just like me, so she faces the same constraints. Our kids are friends, so we end up holding meetings at the bus stop (morning and afternoon), while walking the dogs, or on the treadmill at the gym. I'll call her with a question from the grocery store (yes, I'm one of those obnoxious people chatting while I'm in the dairy aisle). She knows she can call me with an idea bright and early because my kids have woken me up anyway.

We're working it out. And my husband knows that it's his turn to pick up some of the slack. The laundry is piling up, but that's ok.

Vacation!

We just got back from a week in sunny Florida. I'm glad we got to soak up a little vitamin D because when we returned to Seattle we were welcomed by snow. Yes, snow in April. How I love the Northwest!

In any case, while in the sunshine state I managed to sneak in a little bit of Stringbeans business and drove to Miami to attend Material World. My aim was to source a fabric supplier who would be willing to work with a startup business. I spent the first hour wandering in a daze. It seems that with every step I take in this business I realize how little I know! Once I got over the shell-shock, though, I was able to gather a few business cards and I actually attended a couple of workshops. Next steps - hire a patternmaker and a sewing contractor. But that's a post for another day.