We moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana in July of last year and it was hot as a damn furnace. My boyfriend - it sounds funny calling him a boyfriend after almost 7 years - got a new position in his company and we packed up our bags, sold the house, and moved from the rural Eastern Shore of Maryland to downtown Baton Rouge, the capital of Louisiana. We're renting a 740 sq ft house - a huge downsize for us - in a very eclectic neighborhood just blocks from the Mississippi River. We can ride our bikes downtown for a bite to eat and walk to the farmer's market. Everyone is friendly and there is a great sense of community. Its a huge change for us and we love it.
I thought it would be a piece of cake finding a job in my field in a capital city. In the meantime though I had a good amount of contract work to do for my previous employer so money was coming in. As time passed with only a few job interviews and my contract work beginning to trail off I needed to find a way to make money so I could continue to contribute to my portion of our household expenses. I remembered back to last Spring when I was sitting with my dad and my brother at Hamilton Tavern in Baltimore. We were having burgers before heading downtown to an Orioles game. My dad asked us both what our ideal job would be - what would we do if we could do anything at all. My brother answered that he wanted to work for a major league baseball team, something he's wanted for years. I remember my answer because it was completely honest - no trying to please Dad, just the honest truth. I told him I wanted to live in a small house where I didn't need to make a lot of money to live the simple lifestyle I wanted, to work from home with flexible hours and time for family and friends, and to do something creative like start a needlework business that would turn my hobby into a way to support myself.
I had thought about opening an Etsy shop many times but never actually did it. Going to work in an office building every day, staring at a computer screen was tiring. By the time I got home all I wanted to do was sit on the couch and watch television until bed time. Things are different now. When you take the 9-5 and the daily commute out of the equation your outlook on life changes. I still set an alarm and wake up fairly early. I have coffee and a small breakfast. I go for a nice long walk around Capital Park. When I get home I might start a load of laundry, clean up a room in the house (which is so easy with a small house), make a grocery list, I even volunteer at an animal shelter 2 days a week. All of these positive changes in my life have given me the confidence to take the next step...
The time is right and I'm ready for the challenge. I am incredibly lucky to have a boyfriend who is so supportive and friends who have given their kind words. Expect great things from K+IC and I will not disappoint!
I will be posting regularly here on the K+IC blog so add me to your readers. I also have a
Facebook page and a
Twitter account. Of course there is also the
Etsy store so favorite it and check often. Will you be my first customer??
I can't wait to see what 2013 will bring!
