A Year Goes By In A Blink...

WOW!  I know it sounds cliche, but where has the time gone?  One year ago this week I clicked on the 'OPEN' sign for my cake shop and supply store for the first time.  Since that moment, I have worked six days a week and baked thousands of layers of cake.  But the thing I remember most about the past year is the amazing people who have walked through my front door each day. They are the sole reason I am able to celebrate our first anniversary this week. 

People of all ages and all walks of life come into the shop each week.  Some are bakery owners needing last minute supplies, some are brides looking for information on a wedding cake and some are just killing time while their loved ones shop at the bridal store next door or are getting a tattoo two doors down.  I have my "regulars" who come in each week to get their boards and boxes for their weekly orders...and I have loved getting to know them over the last year. 

And then there are those who come in, some with a picture or sketch, some who have never decorated a cake before. These customers I love...We walk around the store and come up with several ideas to accomplish the same task: making said cake.  It's not about how much money they spend - it's about figuring out all the pieces of the puzzle that they will need - it's about the final product: a cake that will make their child's eyes light up, a cake that their grandchild will remember forever, a cake made and decorated with love.  I truly have the best job ever.  I am so grateful that I got to do it for an entire year and will, hopefully, do it for many more!

Four Months In...

Four months into cake shop-ownership and boy have I learned A LOT!  We are now fully stocked and customers, students and cake orders are rolling in! Each day...each class...each order is different and each customer that walks through the door has something new to offer my experience as a cake shop owner! 
 
Overall, life is good! It's just as exhausting and exhilarating as I thought and hoped it would be. The hardest part, by far, is the amount of time that I'm away from my children. I have always been a working mom, but the business spills into every moment of my life whether I am physically at the shop or not. The first month or two I justified it as a normal part of starting a business. But as summer vacation passes me by I have decided to take back at least a portion of my life with my kiddos. 

I've done a lot of calendar management, hired another instructor and other administrative things to limit the cake-shop spillover into my home time, but my favorite change comes once a week.  Every Saturday at 4:00pm I close the shop, turn off my phone, computer and my brain.  The kids and I have instituted Saturday night camp-outs at our house where we build a fort in the living room, eat popcorn (or any other treat, but NOT cake!) and camp out in the living room all night long. I wrestle with my boys, dance and sing with my daughter and just try to be present with them...without multi-tasking.  I listen to them.  I look at them. I tickle and hug them...and I look forward to it all week long.  What started as a special treat on Saturday night has become a tradition that is followed by cinnamon rolls and church the following morning.  It's my time to reconnect with my kids before Monday comes.  Life will only get busier when school starts in August, but for now at least I have my weekly date night with my kids...and I wouldn't trade it for the world! 

Feeling the Cake Love!

With only 5 days until our grand opening, I am feeling lots if things -  from excitement and relief to exhaustion and stress!  But the most overwhelming feeling is one of tremendous love and support...and it has come at the perfect time. 

I've been blessed with a great network of friends, family and even those I've never met!  The encouraging posts to this blog and my facebook page always cheer me up and seem to come at just the right moment.  And the love doesn't end in cyberspace!  A great family friend recently gave me a 'key to prosperity' keychain that I use for my store and kitchen keys - I can't wait to unlock the door on opening day knowing that I'm stepping into a new chapter in my life.  And since this is truly a family business, my biggest fan - my momma - is sending me tiny 'All Things Cake' T-shirts and gear for my kiddos and future shop employees!  Love it!

In the past 24 hours two more wonderful surprises - random acts of kindness -  have come my way.  First, an amazing blog post by Going Green Mom on 918moms.com.  It's my cake tale - told by an awesome mom and friend in her funny and heartfelt way. Thank you Kristen!!!

And just this morning I opened my e-mail and found a message from my UK namesake - All Things Cake UK!  They just wanted to wish me well on my upcoming grand opening...and they completely brightened my day!!

Wow - I am feeling the cake love today...

So Close!

So much has happened since my last post!  Deals fell through and others became official...what a learning process!  I'm sure there are thousands of lessons to come, but today I'm celebrating that I have an official location for All Things Cake in Tulsa!  We have an endcap space in a shopping center at 71st & Memorial (a very popular intersection in town!)....and minor renovations have already begun.  The interior picture above will soon house sugar art supplies and the french doors lead to our class and party room.  I can't believe it's all coming together!  And even better, Tulsa is ready for us!  I've received several calls and e-mails asking when we're opening, and I can't finally say...."very soon!!"

Thank You 2009!

Oh 2009 - you were a good year. I can say that today, your last, but 8 months ago I wasn't too thrilled. When I was laid off in April, I thought, "It'll be a rough month or two." I had no idea how hard it would be to find another corporate job with benefits. And when my husband's contract wasn't renewed, I'll admit I freaked out a bit. Three kids + no jobs = PANIC. But...my husband found another gig quickly, and it was even better than the last. I passed the time by increasing my cake classes at the local craft store....and dreaming. My day dreams turned into ideas in a notebook and that notebook became a business plan. Fast forward to today - I'm planning my cake gallery...with a little help from my cake testers and biggest supporters. This styrofoam will soon look like a wedding cake and will be sitting in a cake shop window...MY cake shop window! So today I can say, "thank you 2009...and bring it on 2010!"

New Logo - I'm Ready to Go-go!

Get a loan - check!
Form LLC - check!
Open business bank account - check!
Design Logo - What do you think?

Merry Christmas....now let's get to work!

Secured a space for the shop, BUT....the contractor opened our eyes to all the updating it needs to be up to code. New walls....new bathroom...not to mention my commercial kitchen! The kitchen I was prepared for, but the rest was a little shocking. We met with the architect to design the space and then next step is to get the drawings and a firm bid from the contractor to make sure we can move forward. I think it will all work out, but offices are closed for the holidays, so things are slow going. Patience is a virtue...right? I guess am just excited to open the shop and start working 80 hour weeks!! ;)