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We’re Back…Bueller…Bueller

After a 2+ month blogging hiatus, we’re back with a vengeance John McClain style…okay…John McClain style without some form of public transportation destruction.  Anybody still with us?  Bueller?  Bueller?  The break was definitely not intentional (remember…intentional…my word of the year?!) but turned out just what we needed.  Why the break?  Well, pull up a chair folks it’s story time.  When we last left off, I was all gung-ho about finishing our master bedroom.  Spoiler alert…we haven’t made any progress.  Our closet still looks kind of like this except it’s piled full of those baskets.

Master Bedroom Closet Planning

Despite our Etsy shop going gangbusters and making a solid living off of it, I didn’t like running it full-time.  I missed working with people.  Poor Colby would come home after work and I would talk his ear off for HOURS because I was so human interaction deprived.  Poor guy.  It’s a miracle we’re still married!!  So I took a part-time job, we bought a boat, and life went nutty.  Let me clarify…nuttier…definitely nuttier.  So not only was I running a business who, mind you, was JUST featured in Country Living online and in RedBook magazine, thus going gangbusters, but I was always trying to blog “successfully” to support the business, work 24 hours a week in marketing at my new job, and renovate a house, all while trying to balance it with free time and living an intentional life.  Free time…what free time?!  It wasn’t working, I didn’t like it, something needed to change.

Roostic iPad Stand In Redbook Magazine

That’s one of our iPad stands in Redbook Magazine.  I still can’t believe it!  So I thought about what I wanted, what I REALLY wanted, not just what I thought I wanted.  And what I wanted was to fish.  To go for runs with the dog.  Go to more Zumba classes.  To read books.  To garden more.  To work less.  To clean my house more.  To bake pies.  To live my life.  Right around this same time my grandmother was in and out of the hospital.  And all I wanted to do was go home a visit her and my family but the Etsy shop kept me working crazy hours and I didn’t go home nearly enough.

How Colby Fishes

(Random side note number one…that’s how Colby fishes on the boat!)

To live the life I really wanted things needed to change.Β  And after one of those good, long, life assessment moments, I decided I needed toΒ go back to work full-time for someone else, not for myself, and ditch the Etsy business.Β  It took me awhile to be okay with that.Β  I mean, I built Roostic (my Etsy shop) and it was doing sooooo well!Β  I couldn’t help but think of all the Etsy shop owners who wanted nothing more than to be in my career position, who were working so hard to get where I was, and I felt like I was just throwing it all away.Β  But as soon as I made that decision, I felt lighter.

How Goose Fishes

(Random side note number two…that’s how Goose fishes!  And random side note number three…why can’t either of the men in my life sit in a bass boat the way you’re supposed to?!)

So my new priority was job searching.Β  Job searching trumped everything, even manufacturing iPad stands for our shop.Β  I didn’t quite know exactly what I wanted to do job-wise, my background is in marketing, but I started applying for jobs.Β  I landed an interview for a local non-profit downtown and was offered the job.Β  I can now proudly say that I am a Business Services Specialist at Eastern Maine Development Corporation.Β  I am a small business consultant helping small women and minority-owned businesses in Maine grow.Β  How appropriate, right?!Β  I’ve always been a believer in God’s plan and purpose for us, that we have a path, and that things happen for reasons.Β  While running Roostic full-time was definitely not my favorite job, I wouldn’t have landed the one I have now without that experience.Β  And after a month on the job, I am already loving it!Β  Helping my clients with marketing and general business practices is so rewarding and my Etsy experience really helps me relate to my clients and my clients relate to me.Β  It’s refreshing for them.

When I first took the job, I still wanted to run my business (and blog) but more on a part-time basis.  I know, I know…that really was the exact opposite of why I was taking a full-time job and continuing to run Roostic wasn’t helping anything out.  But then my grandmother, affectionately known as Grandma Bo, took a turn for the worse.  Thankfully, I got a great last visit in with her before she died.  A visit on one of her good days where she asked us about the boat, all the fishing we were doing, and about the “bog” (her term for the blog).  It was after that visit that I wanted Etsy gone for good.  One job is enough.  We didn’t need the extra income but we needed the extra free time.

Grandma Bo

(Grandma Bo during Christmas a few years back.)

So Etsy is gone…it’s the end of an era…kind of.  It’s currently in vacation mode but we’re likely to bring it back this fall to get rid of the last of our supplies/inventory before we shut it down for good.  And the blogging is back…just a little differently.  I never intended to treat the blog like a business.  I always wanted it to be a creative outlet and a fun place to share with our friends and family what we were up to.  But as soon as Etsy came into our lives, the blog turned into a promotional space, with plans to grow it and monetize it.  Seriously?!  What was I thinking!

Glass Jugs At Brimfield Antiques Show

(During our blog hiatus we had some time to explore the infamous Brimfield Antiques Show in Massachusetts.  Popular phrases coming out my mouth at the show included “must bring home ALL the things”, “do we have to go home?!”, and “Colby, when I die, I must be buried with Faddy’s Donuts”.)

Sometimes I feel like Etsy was the root of all evil for us.  I was miserable for most of the year I ran our shop.  It was stressful, I put so much pressure on us, and lost focus of what was really important.  But Etsy taught me alot…about business, entrepreneurship, and myself.  I appreciate the learning experience it provided and the personal/business growth I’ve made, but I’m also glad that chapter of our lives is past…or close to past.

Valspar Fluorescent Lime

(A new paint color coming into our home…Valspar’s Fluorescent Lime)

So the last two months have been like a fabulous vacation for us!  We hadn’t even picked up a paint brush until this past weekend.  And I also had to re-learn what the password to the blog was.  We’ve been busy living and having random adventures.  But we’ve missed our DIY ways and have legitimately missed the blog.  I was planning on axing the blog at the same time I decided to axe our shop, but I just can’t do it.  I love blogging…and house projects…and all of you…so we’re sticking around.  We may not post 5+ times a week, more likely just two or three times, but we’ll still be here.  We’ve got a few fabulous DIYs in the works, many of them are just finishing projects we started before, and even dusted off our paint brushes (and paint gun) this weekend.  Man I missed painting!  And I also missed you dear readers…if there’s anyone left out there!!!

Comments

    1. I missed you too!!! Haha…I was worried I would write this post and hear crickets. So glad you’re still following along!

  1. I missed your blog posts too! And I’m so very sorry about your Grandma. Grandma’s are such special women, I have a very special grandma myself and I love her (and all her precious eccentricities) to bits.
    And I hope I’m not being tacky but I’m curious, are you selling your Etsy shop or just closing it? I imagine you could sell it. And maybe buy some fancy boat accessories or really sweet fishing gear? πŸ™‚

    1. Awww…thanks! You’re so sweet. And no, you’re not being tacky. We actually looked into selling our shop as we had a few offers for it, but the “Etsy rules” state that a shop can’t be sold. The new owner (and myself) could get into trouble and risks being shut down right away. But we were thinking it wouldn’t be a bad thing to keep Roostic in our back pockets, maybe bring it back every Christmas season for a little extra Christmas gift money (and boat accessories…haha!!!).

  2. Welcome back!! I definitely missed you guys and lately have been wondering where ya been?! Good for you on deciding to ditch your shop. It sounds you made the right decision! I’m so glad you didn’t ditch the blog too because I love it! Also, I’m so sorry about your grandma, she is in a better place!

    Can’t wait to hear more about your DIY misadventures in the future. Bring ’em on Angie! πŸ™‚ πŸ™‚ πŸ™‚

    1. Awww…thanks so much! You’re so sweet! And we definitely made the right choice. Crazy how you just feel suddenly lighter (and happier) after making one of those!

    1. Hahaha…thanks so much! Goose is certainly a keeper…weird…but a keeper, Colby on the other hand…uber weirdo!

  3. Welcome Back! Totally happy to see you back to blogging, you’ve been missed. Cannot wait to see more of your projects and such. Your blog is such an inspiration, which I need right now…with a half done bathroom remodel and a baby on the way I’ve been lazy with projects. Sorry to hear about your Grandma, just remember all the wonderful memories you have of her.

    1. Oh my goodness! How are you rocking out a bathroom reno pregnant?!?! You’re my hero! And thanks so much for the sweet comments! It definitely feels good to be back…I missed it!

  4. Welcome back Angie,Colby & Goose. You have to know how happy I am to have the blog back. Your blog was the one thing that started my day (wake up, do personal things, eat breakfast, turn on the computer, go straight to Angie’s Blog). Thank you for mentioning Mom. That was very nice. I was so worried I would not be able to see the finish of your kitchen and the rest of your home. Take care and happy DIYing (is that a word?).

    1. Thanks Aunt Pat! And I don’t know if you’ll ever get to see our finished kitchen! Hahaha…at this rate it’s never going to be finished. Minor victories…it’s all about minor victories. And DIYing is totally a word…one of my faves!

  5. Yay!! You have no idea how excited I was when your post popped up on facebook! I was getting worried we lost you guys! So very very happy you’re not giving up the blog, and so glad you guys took a much needed reprieve to figure it out.

    1. No worries, no worries! We’re back and I’m glad you’re still with us….your comments always light up my day!!! And the break was definitely good and needed. But I missed all you guys and couldn’t stay away too long!

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Angie's Roost Campbell Family in front of home in 2021

Hi there! We're the Campbells. We traded in Maine city living for the country life in Vermont. You'll find us here fixing up a circa 1781 historic home, growing our own food, and filling this home with the memories and things that matter. Read more about us...

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