Hello, 2024

Good and happy new year!

I am going to keep this post shorter than most in the past because candidly, I don’t have a ton to update you on this month! January is notoriously a hard month for me because it has this weird dichotomy of slowing down from the holidays but also gearing up for a brand new year ahead. I want to lay down the foundations for a great 2024 by goal setting, business planning, working on house projects, and so forth, but I sometimes struggle with finding the motivation to do so. The days are still short, it’s cold, COVID and Flu are spreading, and most of our town has shut down for the season! So that is the kind of push and pull I have felt internally. Going into the latter half of the month definitely feels better though. The first week coming off of holiday break was a little dicey reestablishing routines & finding my way being self employed!

In terms of business objectives, I have curated a cute Valentine’s Day Edit that I am happy to debut that will hopefully spark up some sales. I also have reached out to a bunch of places looking for more pop up opportunities, but those are kind of few and far between these days (likely due to the aforementioned reasons above). I have a few more creative product concepts in the works too, but I definitely don’t feel the same level of momentum that was happening in November and December with launching the shoppe and the abundant holiday market opportunities. It’s tough to stay confident on this new career path but I am trying to be patient because I know that what I have created is solid. Building anything takes time, especially during this season in a small coastal town. The idea of a PT job is definitely not off the table either to stay comfortable and keep our cash flow going, so I am looking around in that realm as well.

On a more personal level, I am still SLIVING for Facebook marketplace and decorating our house. It has definitely been a bright spot and is a wonderful creative (and budget friendly) outlet for me! Despite the ups and downs with entrepreneurship, I truly love living at the beach and do not regret our decision to purchase a home here. It is so beautiful and peaceful at every turn, and friends and family in the Philly area are very accessible to us. Over the holidays, Tommy, Luigi and I spent a day of exploring the lesser beaten paths around Cape May Courthouse and it was lovely. Here are some of those hidden gems that you should check out - not a soul to be found during the off season at these locations, but I am curious how they’ll be in summer time.

Reeds Beach - home of the famous buoy house that transports you to a New England beachscape.

Pierce’s Point - untouched bay beauty that was great for birding.

Woodcock Trail - a nice, easy 1 mile trail that is comprised of both wooded and open prairie type landscapes.

Now we are on the hunt for our favorite year-round spots since most seasonal businesses are on short hiatuses or are off until spring, so perhaps I’ll dedicate the next post to highlighting those!

Until then, hope you have a restful remainder of the winter season,

Laura