Jumping Feet First
Hello. Welcome to my blog, Feet First! This is where I hope to share my insights on life, tell stories from the past and present and to document the many adventures and trials that my family and I are embarking on. I have a lot to say and I hope you will join me as we move forward.
Coming up with a name for this blog has been very difficult for me. I have never been someone who is able to make a long term choice with ease. Over the years, this has proven to be both helpful and also extremely frustrating. When I was in my early 20’s, I found myself in the lobby of a tattoo shop. I was living in Seattle, embracing my independence. What better way to fully assert myself than with a life long tattoo. This is a time when tattoos were losing their taboos, however they were not fully mainstream, as they are now. While in the lobby, I was trying to decide what I wanted to have on my body for the rest of my life. I decided it was going to be a tree frog perched upon the Virgo symbol. It was going to be glorious. Yep. This was it, a commitment. The moment I decided, is the moment I walked out of the lobby. I realized there is no way I can make a decision that has lasting impacts, as a tattoo most definitely would. To date, I am still a naked canvas. I was thankful for that moment of indecision.
Naming anything is difficult. When my son was named, I had a list of over 25 names that I read, one-by-one, to my husband. My husband had one name on his non-existent list. That level of certainty is beyond me. It turned out to be a good name, thank goodness. I guess if it wasn’t, that would totally be on him! So here we are, I have made the decision and I have titled my blog, Feet First.
My husband and I recently decided to uproot our lives. We are not alone in this endeavor. There have been many people who have made the choice to make changes, especially in light of COVID and the varying degrees of which priorities have changed. Based on our timing, one would think that we, too, are making similar changes. Although true in a sense, this move has been on our radar since before we were married, about 14 years ago. We started day dreaming about what it would look like to work for ourselves, creating with our hands, our hearts and our heads. We have had many iterations of this dream. When we dream, we dream huge. We have extraordinary plans that get whittled down into real possibilities, which is where we have arrived.
We purchased land, I gave a year’s notice to my job, COVID hit, lumber prices went through the roof, we purchased a house, we sold a house. Here I sit, on the property where we intend to build a store where we will sell locally sourced goods, most of which we will set-out to make ourselves. Our new home is in the country, complete with ponds, a creek and open pastures. When I say that we intend to build a store, I mean that in earnest. We will build it, ourselves, seeking help when we need it. We are brand new to this area, not having any supports or any previously existing relationships. Everything about this endeavor is terrifying and exciting. We are jumping in feet first, with all of our gusto and all of our might. I will share this journey with you all, hopefully gaining you as customer, down the line. This is going to be a blast, trust me.
Let’s do it, I’m all in!