Can’t believe it’s been almost three months since I last wrote here. I could say it’s gone by in the blink of any eye, but that’s entirely not the case. It’s been three months of ups and downs – such is the roller-coaster life of a small business owner!

Let’s take a look back, shall we?

These babies got quite the workout in late February and early March while our treats were for sale on Fab.com! Six of our products were listed and sold in lightning speed -  we sold just about 500 orders in the week our sale was on the site. Fun fact: That’s the same number of items I sold in my first YEAR on Etsy!

Selling on Fab was a HUUUUUUGE learning experience. The #1 takeaway – I needed to move commercial kitchen spaces, and fast. The place I started at was perfect for getting an itty-bitty business of the ground, but if I ever intend to have another huge wholesale event [which I dooo!] then I needed a space with bigger and better equipment. Enter the 30-quart monster above! They’ve got TWO of those babies at my new space AND a 60-gallon MEGA mixer I can use too. Oh the possibilities!

March closed out with one of the best things ever – the Craftcation Conference. Craftcation is a hybrid indie business/crafty conference where makers can learn how to Make and learn how to make Money doing what they love. It’s what inspired me to become a Real Business in 2012 and it’s been the catalyst to SO many big dreams currently in the works for me personally, and for Bake All The Things.

*Concurrent with closing out Fab and attending Craftcation, some other stuff happened, and is still happening. I was in the emergency room twice, diagnosed with kidney stones, and some horrible-awful personal stuff began as well. Sure, I try to portray a rosy-posy image on social media, but sometimes Real Life is messy and complicated. And I get to decide how much Real Life to share. And sometimes that means business mistakes happen while I learn – and 99% of the time, people have been understanding. Can’t change anything in the past – onward and upward!

Sometimes pain gets masked with sugar. And disguised as business research. This cherry blossom cupcake from Crumbs definitely perked me up!

Part of the journey I started when life started spinning out of control was to seek solace in new experiences, in getting out of my comfort zone. So I took a water color painting lesson with the lovely ladies of The Craft Cabinet – a joyful evening with inspiring women where I learned that even if you haven’t picked up a paintbrush since preschool, *somewhere* inside there’s room for creativity.

Respite was taken at my parents for a weekend and then it was time to turn 29. The past year has been absolutely wild and I’m looking forward to what the next one brings. What you’re looking at above is hands-down the best brunch ever: Mascarpone stuffed baguettes, dipped in creme anglaise  AND THEN BROILED, with fresh berries from Starling Diner in Long Beach. I’d go there weekly if my metabolism would let me!

And then just as I was getting caught up with backlogged orders…BAM! ER visit followed by being admitted to the hospital for the first time ever. Followed by emergency surgery to remove my first kidney stone…and then a narcotic-haze for a week in recovery. The good news? That sucker is gone. The bad news? It’ll happen again, and I won’t be able to pass them on my own – I’ll need to have surgery every time.

But I’m out of the worst of it for this time, thank goodness. And just in time too – I’ve got EXACTLY what the doctor ordered coming up this weekend at the Blend Retreat. A girls’ weekend of healthy living, fresh air, and sisterhood! I’m going by myself, to a place I’ve never been [Park City, Utah (image via ShutterStock)!]…and I couldn’t be more excited for the trip! And then it’s back to the kitchen and back to business!!

Life is still a roller coaster, and the loops and dips simultaneously more scary and more exciting than I ever could have imagined. I’ve learned some incredibly tough [yet necessary] lessons in the last few months. Now though, spring is a time for renewal, for change, and I’ve got so much in the works on a brighter path for my personal life and for my bake shop.

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