2020: My Year In Review

Well…let’s just jump right in here!

I closed my brick and mortar in 2019, December 22nd, to be exact.  That was our last day open.  And that was the day my hubby and I cleaned out my carport to make room for anything that would be coming back home with us.  It was a beautiful day, and we got rid of a bunch of junk to make room!

I had also tried to re-arrange the far garage of our three-car garage for a little more storage.  Thank goodness.  We needed it. 

Then we had the task of packing up what was left, which didn’t look like much until we dug into it. We were boxing things up, packing in totes, trying to decide where to store them, deciding what to take to my friend’s store in Macomb, putting the vendor’s remaining items in piles, and then letting them know when they could come to pick them up.

And then came the store items. We were listing and selling some of the things we wouldn’t need on Facebook, meeting people to see the items, and meeting vendors to get the rest of their items, packing up the trailer to bring whatever I didn’t take to my friend’s store, back to my house. 

We still had to go through everything in the bakery.  My mom picked up her items, and I took mine, and then I sold a bunch of them in one lump to a friend who was opening up a café.

That was all so exhausting.  As if the store itself hadn’t been exhausting enough!  But it wasn’t over yet. 

We still had to sell the building.  We had met with our realtor a couple months earlier but had told her to keep it on the down-low as much as possible.  There was some interest right off the bat, but nothing 100%, so we then listed it.

Again, there was interest, but everything takes so much longer than it should.  One person was interested from the get-go but tried getting grants and all that hard work, and it still fell through, so they ended up just getting a loan.  But again…it all takes so much time.  And then, of course, it was Christmas and New Year’s, and God only knows whatever else that plays into it to make it take forever with banks and lawyer’s offices.

Anywho, we were finally done and papers signed and out of there for good on Friday, February 21, 2020.  Right before Covid hit.  To say we were thankful and blessed is a true understatement.  We would have felt that way anyway, but knowing what we now know…we feel thankful and blessed times a million.  God guided us 100% of the way!  Of course, we would have loved to have it sold a month a two sooner, but it’s all in God’s time. 

Backing up a smidge…January, once we had the store completely cleaned out, I focused on my house for a couple weeks, purging, organizing, and cleaning.  It had been years since I had taken any kind of time to really go deep on my house.  Re-doing furniture and then the store itself, along with the furniture, had consumed almost every waking hour to that point.  It felt so good to get a handle on some things in my house.

But time waits for no one.  And I jumped into blogging finally.  I had been wanting to start a blog since the previous March but had no time for it.  My first blogpost was live on January 21st of this year.  It was a Valentine’s Day craft.

DIY Paper Mache Valentine’s Day Letters,

You have to start somewhere, right?  I have about 69 blog posts under my belt now.

I continued on with the blogging, in addition to trying to regain my house and myself.  Little pieces of myself were coming out every day.  Pieces I didn’t even know that I had lost. It’s hard to put into words, but I could just see myself thinking more clearly, the way I used to before furniture and the store had completely taken over.  It has definitely been an eye-opener.  I did not truly realize how much of myself I had lost until after the store was closed.  Let’s just say that it’s good to be back!

I did furniture sporadically during this time.  It wasn’t lighting me up like it used to.  I wasn’t finding as much joy in it.  I think I had been cranking out furniture like a machine for so many years that I had burnt myself out.  I just couldn’t get into it.  I started doing more crafting: signs and home décor.  So much easier and less time consuming, and start to finish was very fulfilling. 

I set out to do 30 days of lives.  If I am honest, I wanted to at least do 10 in a row and see how it went!  I made it!  And ended up closer to 60 with only missing a few days here or there.  That was fun doing all the crafty stuff with everyone!  But as an introvert, it was a little much to be “on” every day, even if it was only 30 minutes to an hour!

In July, I started my very own private group.  The things we were doing were painting furniture, mixed media, sign making, repurposing, etc.  And I had to force myself to do the furniture things, lol.  I just could not get into it.  We have done so many things in there, including mixed media, stenciling a wall, recovering bar stools, upcycling, and doing furniture from start to finish.

Oh, and I should mention that I have been taking my finished furniture and home décor items to a store in Macomb all this time.  There were actually a few months where I didn’t take anything over because #covid. 

So, just a recap, once we get to September or so, I take my finished pieces of furniture and home décor items and signs to a store in Macomb, IL.  I am blogging.  And I work with the women in the group on all the creative things. 

Then came harvest.  I had not been able to help much in the field for the last few years, and I wanted to make a point available this year.  I was rusty.  If you want to know more about how Harvest went, feel free to check out this blogpost where it talked all about it and how I felt!

Harvest 2020

After Harvest, the guys had beautiful weather and got so much fieldwork done.  I can’t remember the last time they were able to get so much fall work done!  After I got out of the combine, I had to make up some classes with my girls and get back to blogging and the mess that was my house after being out in the field.  But it was all good.

Somehow, somewhere in November, my furniture mojo came back with a vengeance!  I’m back, baby!  And it feels right!  I think I narrowly escaped being completely burnt out on furniture forever.  I am refreshed and have so many techniques I want to try!

And that furniture mojo led me to focus on furniture painting and techniques in my private group.  I have gained a lot of clarity this year.  And the furniture is still a very strong passion of mine.  So, earlier this month, we started deep diving into furniture.  We have been doing a lot of prep work, which is so very important.  We’ve also done some techniques, and I am so excited to see where we go in together in 2021!  I always say that I have more ideas than time, and it is more true than ever today!

Going forward into the new year, I plan to

1. Keep Blogging
2. Keep Guiding My Ladies in my Private Group
3. Creating One of a Kind Furniture and Home Décor to Sell. 

Those are my three main focuses.  I would also love to plan some junkin’ trips!  I have several places in mind so far that are fairly local to me!  If you know of any ‘must-see’ shops I need to hit, please let me know!  And you can rest assured that I will blog about all these things!

I think I have gone on long enough!  I wish you so much joy, peace, and blessings now and in the coming year!

XOXO,

Tammy