Adventures feed my soul and recharge me.
There is something with travel that gives me permission to stop, breathe and enjoy the little things. I can do them at home, but I always have my business in the background and a deadline of how long I can relax. It truly takes an airplane or car trip to allow me to let go.
The first trip I took where I allowed myself to shut off from the life that I had and everyone close to me was Bali in 2016. I wanted to immerse myself in the trip 100% because, who gets to go to Bali?? I knew it would be an experience of a lifetime, I had no idea how much it would have an affect on my life the next 3 years. I literally shut my phone off and lived In the present the entire time. WOW! What an eye opening experience. Not only did I live in the present, I decided it was time for me to make traveling a priority in my life, Lucky for me, I was paired with an amazing roommate, Joyce, who was full of life, travel and adventure. We bonded immediately.
Bali was a dream come true. The lush, stunning greenery of the resort we stayed at was exquisite.. The path that lied ahead was wide open. The rice fields were breathtaking. You could see a worker with their signature hat in the fields. I remember seeing the first few fields and seeing how beautiful and the beauty just increased at every turn. I try to remind myself that the beauty of the dream can remain in tact if you take the time to reflect, soak it up and let go of what doesn’t serve you anymore.
The reality is that having money to travel to Bali or travel is all is tricky. I have to be aware of how to save money in order to go on adventures. I am living paycheck to paycheck as I grow my business on my own.
Travel to me can also be a road trip. I love being In the car, the windows down, music up and an open road! Singing loudly and living life. Music is anything from Eminem to Justin Timberlake, to Pink, Imagine Dragons, David Gray, Carrie Underwood or old school hip hop or rap or 80’s rock bands!
On the plane, packing the “essentials” reminds me that I carry too much baggage most days. How can I carry less baggage and still be able to enjoy life to the fullest, It is not always about the amount of things that I do in a day, it is that I am enjoying the days as much as possible.
No day is perfect, they are all pretty chaotic in my life. I strive for the chaos because it keeps me on my toes. I refuse to get sucked back in to the monotonous days of being a machine. I am a badass baker and this baking life is pretty crazy all on its own.
As I grow in this life and in this boss babe life, I am reminded of how important structure is. Not structure as in every detail planned, but structure in having some stability. I fear being “stuck” in life. I have never wanted to feel like I had to do something or stay in one place or stay in 1 job for the rest of my life. I have a mind that runs a mile a minute. It is hard to gather all of my thoughts and process them. I am a doer, an over thinker, a dessert addict and a badass baker.
I love being a fun aunt where I can enjoy getting to spend quality time with my kiddos and laugh with them, get dirty with them and truly soak in their love for life, the simple things and live in the moment as much as possible. They want to tell you something and show you something in that moment. They don’t think at all about 5 minutes from now, they need to be present all the time. I feel like that is why I crave that in life. I tend to go, go go and try to find that moment to pause but it is hard to stop and then focus.
I have had trouble sleeping because I have had A LOT on my mind. The future of Annie’s Signature Sweets, my future, my dream, what possibilities lie ahead for me. As long as I am smiling, and surrounded by people who make me smile, laugh and support me on my crazy roller coaster ride, and desserts that make me happy, I will be good.
xoxo
Annie