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Ep 1// Reflections and Perspectives for Thriving in a “Working Season”

Updated: Oct 6, 2021



Hey friend, are you in a “working season”? Are you sprinting full speed ahead, hustling towards your goals? Are you trying to navigate, taking steps of progress when all the circumstances aren’t in your favor? Did 2020 leave you spinning, but you’re finally ready to refocus and RISE UP?


In this episode my friend and fellow mompreneur, Brittney Jones, interviewed me and asked me all the juicy questions as I reflected on my experience and perspective from 2020. Let’s just say that “HUSTLE” was the name of the game for me last year. Whew!


And although I’m in a very different season and I cannot wait to fill you in on all that God is teaching me...I want you to know me better and where I’m coming from.


And more than anything, I hope this conversation blesses your heart and leaves you with some encouragement for “pressing on” and showing up as your best self, despite the chaos of external circumstances.


P.S. Be sure to check out all the amazing interviews on Brittney’s podcast, “All My Favorite People”...connect with her on IG @lifejesusstyle and at www.lifejesusstyle.com




Full Episode Transcription:

0:01

Hey friend, are you in a working season? Are you sprinting full speed ahead hustling towards your goals? Are you trying to navigate taking steps to progress when maybe all the circumstances are in your favor? Did 2020 leave you spinning but you're finally ready to refocus and rise up.


0:17

In this episode, my friend Brittany Jones interviewed me and asked me all the juicy questions as I reflected on my experience and perspective from 2020. Let's just say hustle was the name of the game for me last year, and although I'm in a really different season this year, I cannot wait to fill you in on all that God is teaching me. I want you to know me better and where I'm coming from, and more than anything, I hope this conversation blesses your heart and leaves you with some encouragement for pressing on and showing up as your best self despite the chaos of external circumstances.


0:51

Welcome back to The Nourishing Mompreneur Podcast, where we get encouraged and empowered to pursue our greatest potential within the walls of our home. Hey, Mama, my name is Michelle Hiatt, and I'm so thankful you're here. Do you feel like your life is good, but something feels unfulfilled? Do you feel stuck in the trenches of motherhood? exhausted and working so hard, but feeling like you're getting nowhere? Do you have big dreams you hold in your heart, but you've been living so long? Are you motivated for more, but don't have the clarity or the courage to do anything about it? Do you want to discover God's best and see if it's really possible to be an excellent wife, and intentional mother and be successful in business, all for the glory of God. As a wife of 16 years, a homeschooling mom of five, and an entrepreneur, I know exactly how you feel every bit of it. I truly believe that the most important work you will ever do is within the walls of your home, and that there is purpose in every season. If you are a fellow business minded mama with a heart for home and a love for Jesus, let's process this journey and grow together.


1:56

Thanks, Michelle, for joining me today.


1:58

Thanks for having me. I'm excited.


2:00

Yes, me too. So let's just start off with why I thought you would be a great person to kind of kick off my podcast with I'll let Michelle kind of tell why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself, and then we'll jump into our conversation.


2:18

Yeah, my name is Michelle Hiatt. I'm a stay-at-home work-from-home homeschooling mama of five here in the Orlando area, and I'm on a growth journey, just to be all that God has called me to be and really just loving the process. Yeah, you have to write it is a process.


2:43

Well, I wanted to talk with you especially because as you know, you know, COVID came this year and kind of really threw some people for a loop, myself included. And I kind of took this last year 2022 and the year prior, but a lot this year to really dig into just the word and what I felt like God was calling me to for this upcoming year for 2021. And one of the things that I feel like I was shown is that I kind of let the ball drop this year, I let the pandemic I let COVID I let quarantine kind of stopped me in my tracks. And as I'm scrolling through social media this year, as I'm, you know, attempting to move forward and just move into some sort of normalcy this year, I noticed that you my friend were doing in my opinion, such an excellent job of being consistent and just continuing on and pressing through. And I was so inspired by that. As you know, I reached out to you just a couple of weeks ago, kind of telling you all of this, like I just love that there was no like stopping point, at least from my perspective from you. And so I was hoping you could just share with those people that are listening kind of what where you were mentally at the beginning of all of this. What you feel like God has been showing you this year, just kind of a recap of 2020 for you from your standpoint.


4:29

Yeah, absolutely. This has been quite a year for everybody. And, you know, everybody's response has been different. And I know for me, just like everybody else I remember at the beginning of the year as far as social media is concerned, everybody was just so ready to be over 2019 like bring on 2020 let's do this a new decade. Everybody was pumped up for 2020 and then Coronavirus came and it just left everybody in kind of Chaos and I'll and a huge sense there was just kind of the shaking that happened and how everybody responded It feels like from my perspective there was like two like sides of the spectrum there were those people that like sped up their life sped up and they were just like busier than ever and then there were those that just slowed way down and almost stalled out and just kind of got stuck and so for me, it was a just like everybody started the year off really strong was excited and pumped when one of the goals that I had my husband I had this year was to go on a date night every week that was one of our new big goals that we've been married 16 years now and we've never really done that with five kids. It's not that easy just to get out all the time. One of our goals is to prioritize that and so we were rocking it out on our weekly date nights and I'll never forget this was when things were just starting to get pretty intense with the Coronavirus at this time that's what they called it before COVID for us even COVID we were the restaurant was packed we were actually even sitting at the bar and we're just talking and things were just starting to shut down you could just see this whole thing this whole situation spiraling out of control and we were talking and I was looking at him I was like babe What are we going to do, you know, thinking about our businesses, our family, what are we going to do and he looked at me and he just said the cream always rises to the top. And I understood what he meant because back in 2012 we actually lived in the mountains of North Carolina on 33 acres in the middle of nowhere and we had dairy cows that we melt every day and by we I mean he milked every day and it was a quite an adventure but the point is is that way if you've ever dealt with raw milk if you've ever dealt with like raw fresh dairy you know that if you'd let it sit the cream rises to the top there's so much so that there's a distinct line you can see the visible difference between the cream and the milk and it's just it's in that settling that that's where the cream rises and I just felt like okay, we need to settle in and this is our time to rise up I just felt like it was time to step up and to continue what the Lord had put on my heart the path that I had, but even to to amp it up because I just felt like it was the right thing to do and so that was kind of that encompasses every area of my life as a wife as a mother in business kind of the perspective and the response that I had initially but don't get me wrong there was a there was a big shaking that happened I mean we understood from the beginning before there was even that the phrase new normal which I hate that by the way same I was actually saying that before it was even the thing I was like guys wake up like this is going away everybody was kind of in vacation mode, everything shut down and went into quarantine right at the time of spring break so everybody was really kind of embracing it and just in vacation mode and chilling out me know guys like this is not the time to let your guard down. This is not the time to go to sleep This is a time to wake up to step up and to rise up and so that is just after we initially kind of felt shook and you know, there's just a trembling that happens when you are a business owner when you're an entrepreneur and you have businesses that you're running and children that you're feeding there's it's a big deal. But all in all, that was kind of our response. And one thing that's just talking about the whole milk analogy and thinking about that, it's got to bring this up because when we lived in that homesteading season, I also was making homemade butter, right and I'll never forget the first time I made it. I didn't know what I was doing. I did a YouTube video but I literally took and ladle the cream off very carefully into a mason jar. And the first time I ever made it, we just shook the jar and that's how you make butter. You literally take the cream and you agitate it, you shake it up, and the butter separates, you know from the buttermilk and you end up with butter, it changes form it changes shape. But as precious as the cream is with all of its good fats and vitamins and minerals. The butter is even more precious, you know. And so I just believe all in all that through the shaking through the agitation that this year has brought. This is our time as women of faith as believers, as entrepreneurs, as mothers as fathers as husbands, as brothers as sisters, as all of it. This is a hard time that we can rise up and make something beautiful even through the shaking. If we just kind of embrace the process, you know?


9:47

Yes, I do know, I need not to like take away any of the big things from that that you just said but I actually made butter at the beginning of quarantine myself. I've never done it before. It was like something fun and new to do. And it's such a great analogy because, you're right like that the agitation like I'm thinking about it in in the season right now, you know, it's just gotten cold here in Florida. And you know, we've had to prune back some trees so that they can grow here in the spring, when, when the works in the sun comes back. So I love that I love the idea of, you know, unrest and unsettled for the purpose of something really good. So talk to me a little bit about how you persisted with your businesses, specifically, because of our podcast, this podcast is going to be for entrepreneurs, for sure. It's definitely something that I want to talk about. But, you know, you actually started a business in the middle of a pandemic. So you want to tell me a little bit about that? Yeah.


10:57

Yeah, so to be straight up, when all this happened, like my husband was, we were, we understood the gravity of the situation. And we understood that this was not just like a little thing that was going to go away that this had huge repercussions. And that was gonna be felt for a long, long time. And so understanding the bigger picture from the beginning, we were just like, Oh, my goodness. And initially, we kind of thought our income is like, it's gone, like, what are we going to do? What are we going to do? Right? And so I believe, though, in every situation, it's just an opportunity for growth, right? And I think that's how we have to look at it as entrepreneurs, we have to look at every challenge, every struggle, every situation and say, How can we grow? Where's the opportunity in this? Because there is opportunity if you look for it. And so I'm in that mindset of thinking, like, what are we going to do? How can I help like, it felt like more important than ever, that I step up and do the things that I'm doing? I was walking on the driveway one day and kind of praying about it. And I just thought, I'm going to start handcrafting liposomal vitamin C. So it was just one of those things, I was looking at the situation. I thought, All right, everybody is struggling right now there's a lot of fear. And there's a lot of concern, understandably so with COVID. Vitamin C is one of the most important things that we all need. This is a solution to what other people need, this is something essential, right. And everything is just boiling things down to what is essential, and what's most important, but there was nobody else in all of Orlando doing anything like that. And for my family, it was getting hard to come by, I was trying to order vitamin C and stock up for my own kid. And I couldn't find a good source, I couldn't get it in a timely manner. So I just thought, Hey, I'm gonna make this handcraft this for my family, it's fresh, it's pure, there's nothing else like it. And I'm going to offer to the community of Orlando. And at that time, I thought that it could potentially save a life. Honestly, if you understand what it is and how it works, I really thought that this is going to be really helpful to other people, this is going to meet a need, this is going to support people, well, not just my family, but those that I'm in contact with. And I really thought Oh man, this is a great idea. This is gonna, like go viral and nobody else was doing it. And it didn't exactly work out like that. Oh my goodness. But that was like the initial thought. And it was spurred out of it for us a deep necessity. Like, I honestly thought when I started this business, this could be putting food on the table for my family, you know, and that necessity never ended up that was never the case or the need for it think the Lord. But I think as entrepreneurs, we have to think like this, too. There's just such a balance because I'm a big believer in a lot of senses as pick one thing and go all in, you know, if you chase two rabbits, you're not going to catch any of them. A lot of times you can get spread too thin, especially as a woman because if you're a wife and your mom, you're already spread thin, you're already juggling all the things. And so when you add multiple businesses in there, it can get complex, and it can hinder your performance and your productivity and the success in that. So typically, I wouldn't advise having two businesses that you're actively growing and building. But that's what I did anyway. And it was hard, really, really hard. It's been hard. But it's been an incredible, incredible journey. Because when again, just understanding in this season, the value of having multiple streams of income, my husband is always like, Man, it's better to have a bunch of times if you know, just put me in a picture, then just a couple because you can just see what bites and what works, you know. So that was just kind of something that started on a whim and really spurred out of COVID and just that, that whole thing.


14:40

Yeah, you know, they say that invention is built out of necessity. So like you find a problem and then you solve it and now you've essentially invented something and while you may not have invented vitamin C, that's so great. Like I love that you looked at well, I personally looked at it as a huge challenge and a barrier to continuing business and keeping that momentum going. I love that you saw it as a challenge and an opportunity. And I think that's really what was most inspiring to me. Just watching you kind of pull that off in the season was, you know, I took a little note out of your notebook and was like, Okay, I can be like, Michelle, I can keep going, you know, but here's the thing, this is the thing I have to just say so much is that, like, when I look back at 2020, I feel really proud of how I showed up, I feel really proud of my response. And I'm thankful for that. Because I know that it was what I was supposed to do. But everybody's different. And this is the whole thing is that you have to know your season. Do you know what I mean? Because what's right for me may not be the right thing for you. And for me, it was time to like, get hyper-focused, to put your nose to the grindstone to just get to work, it was time to get focused and get to work, cut out distractions, cut out the noise, and just move and do what I can do. Because in these situations, there's, you know, I'm sitting around and I'm looking and I'm kind of frustrated. In general, with the way I'm seeing a lot of you know, I guess I would say probably women, moms, other people responding because, you know, everybody, there's nobody that was exempt from the repercussions of, of all the circumstances of this year, it's been a lot. But how we respond is up to us. And there's just a lot of complaining a lot of frustration. Just a lot of, you know, of course, there's joking, and I've been a part of all of it at different points, but it's like, Hey, there are things that we can't control. But what can we do? You know, I think it's important to always ask ourselves, what can we do, and that's our responsibility is to be in alignment with what God is calling us to do. Whether it's a season of wrestling, my best friend, went the opposite spectrum. She literally cut everybody and everything out of her life, went into hermit mode, and went into doing some deep inner like restorative work in her heart that she needed to heal in some areas. And now she's coming out of that season and is feeling amazing and stronger than ever, and is ready for the next step. homie, it was the opposite It was a working season for me, and I was just supposed to work hard, push hard, and just be a light and walk in that courage, you know? Well,


17:30

I think you did that very successfully, I would definitely say that you are a little light for me. And I'm, like I said, just really inspired by your ability to just press on. I love that your friend did the opposite, though. Because that's kind of I feel like maybe where I landed was a little bit more in the Take it easy season. Um, do you think homeschooling your kids, and that piece of it not changing quite so drastically? Like, for example, my kids were home for like six months? That's not normal at all. So do you think that was a factor in being able to kind of press forward and kind of keep that ball rolling?


18:13

Yeah, you know, I think that I definitely had an advantage in the sense that I already homeschool, like, one of my favorite quotes is like, the most important work you will ever do is within the walls of your home because my home is a sacred place. For me. It's where we work. It's where we do school, it's where we live our lives. I mean, we, this is our spot, you know, so being home. We're used to that. But I have to say, it doesn't matter whether you're homeschooled or not. It was just a different season. Everybody felt it, it was just more challenging how now those challenges look different for everybody. But it was definitely felt there was definitely more pressure. And so I do feel like there was an advantage in adapting to that. But it was one of those things. This is where I feel like having a strong sense of focus, you know, came into play. And I think we have to be so intentional about that. Because the louder The world is and the more noise that there is, the more we have to really focus on the things that matter most. Because where we focus is where we're going to put our energy, and we have the opportunity and the choice to focus on the good. And those are the things that we're going to see I mean, the perspective and the meaning that we put in life is up to us, we get to choose that and we have to just make sure that we're doing the right thing so for me, like for example social media, oh my gosh, what an exciting to be positive. And it's been because I talk about that because I build my business mostly online. So I'm very present and I am seeing all the posts and all the memes and all the things but yet I'm trying to do business so I have to constantly have this in my face all the time. But for me it's I have very you know, I'm aware of things I have very strong opinions. I have very clear thoughts on everything that's going on. But the right choice for me personally, was to not put my energy towards that, because putting my energy towards drama towards debate towards anything that wasn't going to breathe life into me, was not going to be beneficial. And one of the biggest things that I just would remind myself and that I would speak is to protect my peace. Yeah, to protect our peace, especially in the times that we live. And I think it's just always true, but I think that's a key thing.


20:34

Yeah. How, how did you do that? Like, can you give us some examples of the kind of protecting your piece? Or, like, what did you lean on? What did you turn to during this year?


20:46

Yeah, I think specific, that kind of like, was a mantra or, like a light verse or something that you kind of held on to this year?


20:56

Yeah, I don't know that there was like, one thing specifically, I mean, it's always God's always I mean, he's, he's the rock, sure, you know, is shaking. He's the thing that keeps us standing firm, and that keeps us aligned with his will and the path that he's called us to. I think that daily habits, I know, like, we're kind of on this topic of consistency. But I think that, honestly, consistency is, in so many ways. It's the secret sauce to success. It's not fancy, it's not glamorous. But consistency is key to progress. It really is. There's no way around it. It's not necessarily fun and exciting, but that's just what it is. But along those lines, like daily habits are so important. You know, they're just getting up every day. Yeah, I was pretty faithful with getting up every day, praying, staying super focused on my goals, reading affirmations, gratitude is huge. These are just like daily habits that kept me grounded, kind of where I would start and finish my day, and kind of encap my day with these things and just prayer and moving my body. I mean, I think just the most simple thing, just walking on the treadmill running. That is huge, to changing your state and keeping a good attitude and just kind of keeping your head in the game because we have to really fight to keep our head in the game always in life and in business. But even more so when we're faced with an uphill battle.


22:28

Yeah. Well, you talked a little bit about your goals. Is consistency kind of the secret? But do you have? Like, what is your game plan look like with your goals? Do you set everything out? like six months in advance? Do you? Are you kind of a week-by-week person? Like what's your strategy? Because you're very successful in my eyes, like I see you through the lens of social media, obviously, we're friends in real life. So I get to see you, you know, from that aspect, too. But through the lens of social media, like you're you are doing all the things you you are in multiple avenues of business. So how do you kind of keep it all straight? What's what are your goals and your planning? What does that really look like?


23:12

Yeah, well, I didn't know anything about goal setting. Something I've really learned about the last few years how to do it like effectively, and what that looks like. And I know this sounds crazy, but this is probably a couple years ago, I was on the beach walking and listening to an audiobook. And I actually wrote my eulogy. Right? So bizarre. He ever heard of that? Oh, weird. I actually wrote my eulogy. Because this is the thing is like, when you think like, at the end of my life, what do I want people to say about me? Kind of like do I want to be what kind of Mom What kind of what, what do I want to leave behind. And when you have that, like big, big, big vision, as you make decisions in life, and as life happens, it's easier to decide and see, okay, this is a distraction. Okay, this is going to help me move towards who I'm supposed to be in the goals that I have. It's easier to determine that stuff. But I kind of wrote that out. As bizarre as that was I did that. And then I at this point, things are always changing and always evolving. I have like a five-year goal, I just kind of have a vision for the next five years. And then within that I have I would say, and I write them almost as affirmations kind of as if they've already happened or as if I'm already in that place, so that when I read them, it's just really Affirmative. Not that like I hope to do this, or I wish to do this. It's like no, I am an exceptional life and blah, blah, blah, like whatever, whatever that is. And so yes, I definitely have goals and I usually read those once a week I kind of have this time I've just reset once a week I'll read through my goals. It's about 10 of them, and it's just kind of my way to just realign myself and Make sure that I'm on track. But everything that I do in the day to day, like every habit and time block, and kind of the way I try to keep organized all support those goals and all push me towards that.


25:14

If that makes sense, I need you to teach me a class like we need to sit down together. And you'd be my little guru on this because no funny because again, like things are always changing and evolving. Yeah, I'm actually having, I'm actually in a big shift right now. It's so funny, because we're talking here, reflecting on 2020. The last year specifically, you know, last couple years, I've been very consistent. I remember last New Year's about that time, I was going over my goals and looking at it, and it was kind of like, well make a few tweaks here. But it was kind of one of those things, it's like, continue the course like just press on, keep going and so then COVID happened. And it was there was a shaking, and it sped everything up. Everything just went fast pace. I've been in a really deep working season for me, in my life, and it's been okay, because the home has been an order because for me, like my greatest successes to my family first if my marriage isn't right, if my children are not okay, like, if everything is not an order in the home, like nothing else matters. It's not because that's my priority, you know, and everything's been in great order. And there's just been a grace for this season. So I've been very focused on work and forward motion. But now here I am, at the end of the year, and looking ahead to 2021. And the Lord is shifting things around. So I am in this kind of, kind of just turning over and it just so much good, he's always moving life is evolving, businesses evolving, and we just the most important thing is that we want to be where he wants us to be, we have to be true to what we're supposed to be doing, whether it's a season of work, or a season a rest, we need to know that and we need to stay faithful and consistent to that process, whatever that looks like. And there's not a right or wrong because, again, everybody's different and unique. But I think the whole point is that it's important that our flow in life isn't determined by the circumstances around us. But that is determined by what God is leading us in. Right?


27:21

Yes. That's so great. And so much harder, said so much easier said than done. Am I right? Because you do in a sense. You know, there's the verse in the Bible, it talks about being tossed to and fro by the waves around you if you're not set on solid ground. And thankfully, you know, we do serve a guy that never changes and the circumstances of life always do like you're saying, we're in change, or do you like how, like, do you typically like change? Or do you resist it?


28:01

I feel like it depends on the thing that's changing. So like we moved, we bought a house and moved this year, that's a really positive change. It's our first home, like, so amazing. And that was such a blessing that we got to experience that this year of all the years like we know that just people have not had such a great year and like didn't change for us. That was one of the things and obviously that's great. Of course I could name you 100 things that change that I didn't like to so um, you know, it really just depends but I think I'm, I adapt well to change and I'm open to it. I don't know about you, but for me, it's like if I know God's in it, then I can handle it like I can I have a much better obviously like attitude about moving forward and that change if I can, like see God in it. It's those things that I don't want to deal with or I don't want to change that. That obviously become a little bit harder to to handle. So through all of this, you've got five right five kiddos at home, tell us their ages, and how are they handling the season?


29:23

Great. So I've got one boy and four girls. So we are just having birthdays, like right now. So my oldest is just turned 13 and the youngest is nearly three. Okay. We are hitting some preteen stages. And yeah, we're just growing even as a family. This has been a really transformative and transitional year for us. And they've done really, really well and I told them this is the thing, like whenever COVID happen. I'm really open with the kids because we're a family like we're a team and I think it's so important to have unity I think it's important to be vulnerable and real with your kids. You know, like, if you're struggling if you're scared, like, it's okay to let them know like, hey, Mommy, mommy struggling, like we're having a hard like, we're, we're figuring things out. But at the end of the day, like we're together, we're a family. We're a team. Like I refer to us on the daily as Team Hiatt, like, that's who we are. And I let them know, I said, Hey, guys, we're at, we're in a weird spot. We don't know what's gonna happen with business, and mom needs to work, and dad's gonna be working, and we're gonna be figuring things out, and we need you guys to help us, we're in this together. And so we need you to step up when it's time to step up and give grace when it's time to give grace and whatever that looks like. Like we're in it together. And it's a beautiful thing, because it's in these moments as parents, you know, I think if you're a mom, or a dad, and you're looking back at the year, and you're almost just feeling guilty, like man, I feel like I failed my kids, or I feel like I haven't been there I've been to, like, whatever it is, it's like, no, it's these are the times if these circumstances, it's the challenges of life, that forge character in our children, if we're willing to be real with ourselves and be real with them, and just embrace it, you know, so I'm just a big believer and walking this out together. And so they knew like, this is a working season, and they stepped up, we all stepped up together, because it was just one of those things like as a family, we just had to rise up and work together and do what we had to do and, and my girls help stir the vitamin C, when we're making it, like everybody plays a part in a role, because we're family. And that's just, that's just how we roll. And it's good for them, it's good for them to work good for them to be a part of a bigger vision. So they've done really well. And this is the thing too, I just, I said this a lot as I was sharing on Facebook or on videos, I just felt like this was a season of grace, you know, we need, we needed more grace. And we needed to give more grace to others. It was just a season where more grace was needed and required. And at night, when I would tuck my kids in bed, I'm just praying, like, Oh Lord, just would you just cover any areas that I'm failing them or their holes, you know, or weaknesses, or whatever cracks are, whatever it is their Lord, I just just cover it with your grace Lord, and just cover this season. And I felt that so strong, like he's so faithful, like, I knew that there was everybody I went to bed every night with peace, knowing that everybody was okay, and everybody was taken care of. And ultimately, it was because of God's goodness and his grace. But as 2020 progress, I felt like there was a little bit of a transition to a season of grace to like, all right, like, it's a season of courage. Like, it's time for us to like, like, let's get real. This is where we're at. Let's not like, mix words with where we're at. Like, we got to step up and have courage because I think they both just work together. And so, moving forward, and courage is so important in life always. Life takes so much courage. Don't you just feel like that, like every day, whether you're in a season of rest or work, like every day, you know, one of my affirmations is that I rise up daily encouraged, no matter how I feel, because it's never a feeling. It's not a choice. Courage is ultimately a choice. And there's even a quote that I was reading recently, it just said, Oh gosh, how did it go? Yeah, train your mind to be stronger than your emotions, or you'll lose yourself every time meaning that like, you know, courage, our emotions, our responses to all the choice, right? We can't be led by our emotions. And so I just feel like looking back at 2020 and just in general, Grace and courage were absolutely essential.


34:00

Yeah. Do you have a specific example? Or was there a conversation you had with your kids or something around this courage, this idea of courage because I know and you know, me like I've been a little bit bolder this year in my beliefs and what I feel is right and kind of standing up for what I feel is justice? Even doing this podcast is like a huge leap forward and courage for me because I did feel like it was something that God has been calling me to that I've been too scared to pull the trigger to worry that it's not perfect like making all the excuses as to why I can't do it, especially this year. So did you have a conversation was there a moment when your kids were, you know, fearful or where you had to explain like what's going on in the world to them, you know, I know as a mom this, I just kept telling my kids like this is unprecedented like this. is not normal. Like, this doesn't happen.


35:03

I'll tell the kids He's like, guys, we are like living history right now. We are, we are living it. Yes. So there, I mean, they're definitely aware of it to be aware, but they filter everything through us, you know, they're very protected. We don't have the news on all the time, they're not inundated with the world or not, you know, and I don't want them to be, we get to choose what they understand, and we just, we just get to be their filter, you know, as their parents, we get to help influence them. And I feel like, if there's not, I can't think of one specific conversation. I think it was just regular conversations, daily conversations, you know, I homeschool the kids so every morning, we have Bible time together, it's kind of that time where we it's almost like a huddle. And I just honestly, this is, to me, the whole heart of homeschool, it's so much more than a grade and that kind of thing because I never thought I would homeschool never wanted homeschool kids were weird. I wasn't homeschooled. But it was it's just been a great fit for us for so many different reasons. And now that I have older ones just to see the fruit of those choices, and how it served our family and who these young men and woman, my son Mike is a young man and these women are It's amazing. But it's it's really about the influence. And I feel like this is why it's so important as for us to keep growing and to digging deep into pushing. Because our children are watching us, they're watching us and there is that phrase, you know, more is caught than taught. And we have to lead by example. And I get to be their number one influence, I get to be their number one mentor, their coach, everything that I'm learning and growing up, I get to pour into my children. And even though they don't personally know a lot of hard things in life, and a lot of struggles and trials, they understand their mind is open to that. And I hope that whenever they deal with the real world as they get older and are set on their own, that they'll have the resilience and the strength from the conversation that we've had and from the experiences that they've had as a family.


37:09

I love that. More is caught than taught that is something that is kind of a new to me phrase. And it has resonated very strongly with me this year especially because I think from the aspect of fear and all the like you said drama news, whatever swirling around this year, I mean, like you said, you can only really protect them to a certain degree, like they're gonna say no, right? Like you. At least like we have we've had these conversations with the kids, they're aware of what's going on in the world to a degree. But they see how we respond, they see if we're you know, allowing the fear or allowing the circumstances of the world around us to dictate or define how we act or how we respond. They do watch my oldest as you know, is 16 and it's really it's actually really fun in the stage and I'm sure you're starting to find that with your oldest as well seeing them becoming adults and becoming these people that you know will go out into the world and will interact with others and hopefully be a light hopefully be Jesus to other people. It's really fun actually to sit back and kind of get a front row seat to watching them blossom into these really cool individual people have their own, you know, their own world. Through Yeah, how have you and your husband kind of navigated I know you said you guys were doing date nights? How's marriage life during quarantine? Have you guys gotten sick of each other yet?


39:04

No, thankfully that I think I would maybe have I think I'd have some stories to tell if he was like stuck at home because I don't think that that would have been hard. He can't like sit still. But fortunately, he can. He was able to continue working. This is a thing in business. Like from the beginning. As soon as we realized what was going on, we realized that we had to pivot and adjust and shift this whole year has been wherever you've been, you've had to shift and adjust in some way. And the quicker you did that, the quicker you were able to adapt and shift as needed, the better for you for that circumstance for that business. So that means one of the things my husband did is he was like well, like he has a retail store and he started selling essential he started selling hand sanitizer and gloves and, and things that were essential to people so he kept his doors open and Kept serving the community and kept rocking along, but man, it's it's a lot I mean, it was very it was it's been, it's been a really good year for us, but it's definitely been a lot of there's definitely been higher levels of stress, you know, and we have been really faithful with with our date nights this year. And like I had mentioned in the very beginning, I mean, we've never really made that commitment to go on regular dates ever in all 16 years of our marriage until this year, and it was really him pushing that. And I'm so thankful because there's not one week where we don't have excuses, or we don't feel tired, or there's not a reason why we could not do it. But we've been faithful with that there was a time You know, when everything shut down. That time we were at the restaurant, and I looked at him, I'm like, What are you gonna do and he said, we got to, we got to rise up, we got to be the cream, when he said that, that was the last week before everything shut down that week, I mean, everything shut down for at least a month or two. I mean, there was no restaurants, no nothing. But we continue to, we just got out of the house, and we would, you know, get some kind of food. And we would just get out and spend time together. But that was really, really important for us to connect in that way, because during the week, we were working really hard. And then we would just stop everything, just laugh and have fun and hang out and just reconnect on every level. And that is one of the most important things that kept us grounded. I think that when you're in a season, like this year where there's just a lot of chaos around. And just a lot of a lot of stress, a lot of extra stress, no matter what even good stress is stress, you have to be more intentional about the things that matter most. And I'm so thankful that we've been very intentional about that, because I know that, that this has been a very, for relationships, it's been a very revealing year, it's been a year that's made people and it's it's broken a lot of relationships as well. Because, you know, in these times, it's like everything just rises to the surface. And again, I think that as as things come up to the surface, it's our opportunity to take it and work through it and deal with it. Because if we don't, it can really cause harm it you know, to those relationships. So it's been for our marriage, it's been honestly, amazing. We've gone on more dates than we ever have in our lives. we've, we've gone on a ton of mini trips, we've had a lot of fun made a ton of memories, it's been the thing that's kept us so grounded, because in marriage, unity is everything. And when you're going through uncharted territories, being one and being unified is really it's everything.


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