Seven

If we're connected on Instagram, it's possible you saw a recent IG Story that I shared about Nico turning seven and the significance of that number in my life. Seven years ago, I was a newly minted mom of three, entrepreneur, and work from home mom. The day Nico was born was my first day at all of these jobs. Nico's life marks my evolution into the chapter of my life that I desperately craved when I first became a mom–a life with more autonomy, more growth potential in professional and monetary senses, and more opportunity to create an ecosystem that gave to others and also nurtured me and my family.

Nick presenting Nico with his birthday cake on his actual birthday with one of my best friend's and my mother in the background

Something that comes up from time to time in our New Mom's Group is the concept that first time moms are reborn adults who are only the age of their kids. The expectation that they should have the wisdom that they possess in their childless life is not a reasonable expectation once they become a parent. The same is the case for entrepreneurs.

Building a business for the first time with an infant strapped to you and two other younger kids who need a ton, is hard. It's akin to being sleep-deprived for years after many failed attempts at sleep training your child. It's a tremendously physically taxing season. Sometimes I think back to the first few years of us starting Sugar Hill Creamery and I am exhausted thinking about all that we needed to do to keep all of our plates spinning with small children and no dedicated childcare or nearby family.

We had a Beyblade-themed party for Nico and his classmates, which ended with the kids beating a Beyblade pinata with a golf club. We call this kind of fun "risky play."

Nico's birthday marks a new lifecycle for us all. As a business owner, I feel like a seven year old child. I'm very capable of feeding myself and attending to many of my physical needs, but there's still so much that I can't do yet, so much more that I need to know, and certainly more growing for me to do to realize my full potential.

In a recent conversation with Nick, he expressed being frustrated about having to deal with certain aspects of our business as we approach our eighth year. Perhaps, it was my position that we are actually equivalent to a seven year old child that I did not share the same sentiment.

For me, the number seven represents renewal, and deeper knowing and understanding. This definition applied to my life as a mother and business owner, I feel clearer about how I want to show up in personal and professional contexts. But, I had to put in a lot of reps to get to this place.

Nick cutting one of our ice cream cakes for guests. Our cakes include equal parts cake and ice cream and I cannot more highly recommend them...and I'm not just saying that. 

I'm running again and all I could think about last week, as I walked to the starting line for a race, was that all the fit bodies passing me were in great shape and I was embarrassingly far from it. But then I caught myself. Instead of being self-judgy and critical of my attempts to get back into shape, I told myself that the key to accomplishing what we desire is showing up, putting in work, and continuing to do so. While I was not in a position to run at a competitive pace, I knew that by committing to completing the race, I was doing the right work that would ultimately lead me to my own defined finish line. The same is the case in our professional lives, and even our parenting lives. There are people who are further ahead in their respective journeys towards the goals we desire, but if we commit to showing up and putting in the work, rest assured we'll get there.

I'm not sure where you are in your journey towards a big goal, but if you're just starting or seven years in, I hope you're proud of yourself for showing up. Keep going.

Petrushka
Your Local Ice Cream Lady & Life/Business Coach