Purge
I've spent the last week "destination parenting"—what a friend calls vacationing with children. You're not really vacationing because vacations are supposed to be relaxing. Instead, you're actively parenting in a new destination, which is work, but make it picturesque.
The new family pic that I’ll be sending to people when they ask for a picture of me with my family. Can I make this our holiday card picture? Who am I kidding? I’m never getting them out in time.
We went to Chicago for the week to explore a new city because our kids had never been. Our plan was to discover the Windy City through food and touristy sightseeing. Nick's mom met us there so we could spend quality time with her, since we usually spend the last week of August at her house. We had a great time!
Last week I wrote that leaving the city during peak season means something crazy inevitably happens, and this week did not disappoint. I was definitely distracted and still fielding calls and writing emails while we were away. However, being away to experience a new place together overshadowed the work that was happening during the mornings, evenings, and on occasional walks from one destination to the next.
Nick and I with the husband-wife duo behind the ice cream company Shawn-Michelle’s on the Southside of Chicago. Nitaki and I are in a Whatsapp Group that I started a couple of years ago for Black Ice Cream Makers and Operators, so it was great to meet her and her husband Yahya in person.
There's nothing like taking time away to reset your mind. Even though Nick and I were still very much connected to what was happening at the stores, having new scenery and the opportunity to explore a new place with the kids allowed me to gain needed perspective about how to close out this year, which still feels like it just started.
Between the vacation and school starting this week, I'm primed to get rid of all the stale and stagnant energy that's weighing me down. I came back from Chicago with new ideas and decisions regarding work and a little pep in my step to do a home purge of all the things cluttering our apartment corners. Staying in well-kept hotels that you don't have to clean is such a motivating force to get rid of stuff that's adding unnecessary noise to an already crowded brain.
The fall breeze is starting to creep in, and brownie sundae takeout orders are on the uptick. These are usually my indicators that the last quarter of the year is here and it's time to hunker down and hibernate.
But I ended up getting into the Goldman Sachs 10KSB program that I applied to. Did we talk about this already? I'm excited to see where the wind will take me now that I've had an energetic purge thanks to my week of destination parenting—I mean vacationing.
I'm looking forward to more time away next year and earlier in the season. Hopefully, this year's vacation and all the application of my learnings from the 10KSB program will help make it so.
Hope you have a great start to the last quarter of the year!
Petrushka
Your Local Ice Cream Lady & Life/Business Coach