How many hats have you worn?

I have been reflecting a lot lately on my life. It could be menopause, or I'm hungry or the fact that I turn half a century this fall. I keep feeling like I want to hurry up and live life. There is so much that I want to do yet and time is running out. It feels as though just a moment ago I was in agonizing labor for 23 hours. And yet yesterday we celebrated the 23 hour, ending in an emergency C-Section kid's 25th birthday. How does that happen? Where do the years go?
I have worn many hats in my life. My first real job was waitressing at Country Kitchen. I was fortunate enough to be able to work the bar shift when all the drunks would come into Kitchy Counchen for the breakfast buffet. I'm saying that with sarcasm. I was pinched, grabbed, and propositioned by many slobbery drunks who often would forget to tip before they passed out in the booth.
I was a pre-school teacher while I was in college. I enjoyed being around the littles but I remember being so exhausted at the end of the day that if no one was around I may have shed a tear or two.
Then I was a stay at home mom until my youngest started Kindergarten. I will never regret the time that I was able to stay home and just be a mom. The days were long and lacking adult conversation but some of my favorite memories are from those years. My husband worked long hours and often it was just me and my two kids hanging out, playing games, making messes or snuggling.
Once my youngest entered school, I decided it was time to put my elementary teaching degree to work. It was challenging re-entering the workforce. Especially since I hadn't been able to prove myself as an elementary teacher yet. I vividly remember a male teacher asking in front of a group of 30+ teachers "What the heck have you been doing the last 7 years?!" I felt so small and inferior. This was at one of my first district meetings after being hired to teach 3rd grade. What an ars that guy was. 
I ended up staying in the teaching profession for 15 years. Most of my time was spent as a first grade teacher. I absolutely LOVED my job for a long time. Until I got burnt out that is. I could give you a thousand reasons why I left teaching but it was one of the best decisions I ever made. It wasn't an easy decision but one that was best for my well being and for the children that would walk thru my classroom door. If you do not love what you do, you can't be good at it. You can only fake a smile and be pleasant for so long until eventually you start eroding away. 
So I left teaching, and joined my husband in our family businesses. He is the master of crazy ideas, taking on too much and unafraid to try anything. This means I have been trying on more hats. Some that really push me outside my comfort zone. In the 4 years that I have been away from teaching, I have been controlling inventory and invoicing for our business Supply House (a farm supply company). I learned how to plant corn and soybean with a tractor. That 25 year old kid I mentioned earlier is the one who taught me that new skill. I became a certified Food Safety Manager and deal with all the paperwork and audits for our organic operations. Eight hour audits still intimidate me. I've had to learn a whole new set of acronyms. BTW, acronyms annoy me. 
And then along comes the idea of Queen B oils. I was very hesitant at first. I mean how much more can we take on? Do we really want to invest a large portion of our savings? My hubby's answer: really it's no big deal. Well it is a big deal. It has become all consuming for me as I learn a new role. I've been learning about FDA regulations, working with brand ambassadors, contacting brokers, creating labels and products, purchasing equipment, meeting with potential customers, creating a website, making sales calls and taking on the craziness of the social platforms like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. It is a big deal but I wouldn't change it for anything. I have been meeting so many new people, I've reconnected with old friends and have learned so much in the few months that we have been at this. I believe in our product. I know that we are offering a quality oil that has many therapeutic benefits. It feels really good to know that you can help people with some of their biggest skin concerns. We don't need to make stuff up, use fancy words or create catchy advertisements. People have been willing to try something new and have found that it works for them. I am humbled by the amount of support we have already gotten from friends, family and community members. 
It turns out that in almost 50 years of life, a lot of hats can get thrown at you. Some fit just right, some are fun for a little awhile and others make you proud of who you are becoming. Who knows where life will take me next but I know that I'm enjoying the ride right now. 
A special thank you to everyone who has read a Bog Blog (new hat by the way), followed us on FB or IG , shared Queen B news, or even just asked us about it, or bought a bottle of oil!  Muwah! Much love!

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