Me bad girl!! It has been way to long since my last blog and I have no excuses again. It has been an interesting couple of months in the retail industry and not in a good way. Online sales have doubled globally, big box stores are popping up everywhere (Target is coming) and all of this means hard times for us small retail storefronts. So between being a mom, small business owner, sitting on numerous boards and breathing, I might be looking for another job. Let's be real here. We all talk about finding a balance in our lives. Reducing stress and taking more time for ourselves. Well I hate to bust the dream bubble but I have seriously tried it and none of the above pays the electric bill or puts food on the table. I am still trying to make this store work and I don't want to move on just yet. Does anyone have any advice for me? Hey Arlene (Dragons Den) can I buy you a coffee? :)

I met a girl today named Zoey. She is 3 months old and has a very serious blood disorder. Her mom and dad came out to the store today to get away from the house and she mentioned that she was taking her time to look around and to enjoy herself. She also mentioned that she read some of my blog and laughed because I dropped the F bomb in my writing. These are the people who touch my heart. Visitors who want to step into my store because they are drawn to it. My store has a soul, as big as mine, because my store is me and a lot of other women who I know and admire.
Dear Zoeys mom.
I admire you for the smile you have on your face when you are faced with such a serious issue.
I admire you for being able to give a compliment in an authentic manner.
I admire you for being a woman, wife, mother and friend.
I admire you for the strength that you have.
Hold on and just BE!

Xo
Ang

Holy &@^$#% ! It's fall and it's the largest inventory purchase of the year, as it is for most retail stores. This is the time when the stress levels rise for small business. We pray we have a good season in order to pay the bills. A bad season can hurl a small business into unwanted shark waters. This season I took a chance with my products. I have brought in a higher quality of scarves, clothing, hats and so on because I was tired of all the shit out there that is so marked up in the first place. Higher quality items means longer shelf life but it also means higher price tag. Globally, the economy is still down, locally we are doing OK. Lets roll the dice and see what happens. If I was in Las Vegas this gamble would be much more fun. I would be drunk and dancing on a speaker at the Palms night club.

I am giving out the best shopper award this week and it's only Tuesday.

First place goes to 3 fun and fabulous ladies that were"shoinking" definition-shopping while drinking. lol
Second place goes to the 40 women who were business leaders with the company lia sophia, these ladies made my week. Thanks for the great 40 minutes of powers shopping.

Last place goes to the man who walked around my store popping out his dentures, yes I just said that. Gross who does that!!!
It's only Tuesday...stay tuned for more interesting people.

Ahhh summer, it's finally here. We all look so forward to this season and in my opinion it is always a disappointment weather wise. So I took my sons and we went to Invermere BC for a week of heat, poolside relaxing, wine on the patio and boating on the lake. I had 2 girlfriends and their kids visit us and we had a blast. But now it's back to work. With summer being tourist season this is the stores busiest time and for 2 months I work my ass off along with my fantastic part-time staff. My days are long like all working moms. Start the day at 7am get the kids off to camp, work until 5pm, get home to go back into wife/mom mode until 9pm then I relax. I stare at my deck with longing wishing that mosquito's would become extinct and that the moths would die, so I decide to chill out on the couch and watch HGTV. Yup it's summer time...

Happy belated Canada Day. I had a fantastic Canada Day celebration. My community hosts a wonderful family event and my boys are at the age now where they can be on their own and only have to check in with me every hour or when they need food or cash. I volunteered this year to bar tend and my one hour shift turned into 3 hours and lots of wine while I was working. Great time I must say. After the party we ventured down to my girlfriends house for more cocktails and food. She had a diverse group of guests over and I found myself sitting and chatting with an eleven, twelve and fifteen year old, all girls for the majority of the evening. Wow!! I was so impressed by these young women and very willingly engaged in what they were saying. I remember what it was like at that age when it came to social dynamics but I don't remember the pressures they have on them selves when it comes to appearance, boys and sex. At 42 I don't even have those pressures, I never did. I stayed true to my beliefs and did what I felt I could emotionally handle (I still follow that system). At 11 pm when dragged our tired asses out to go watch fireworks at the local field, a great way to wrap up an amazing day. What's the purpose of this blog? Nothing, just chatting.

When a husband loses his wife he is called a widower. When a wife loses her husband she is called a widow. When children lose their parents they are called orphans. When parents lose a child there is no label because how can you label something so incredibly tragic. My friend lost her 12 year old son on Sunday night. As a mother my heart shattered for her. She and her family will never be the same. How do you wake up every morning and put one foot in front of the other. My God the pain must be so intense. Really just speechless and stunned! Bragg Creek is silent today. I'm closing shop early. Want to see my boys.

My Tuesday rant.
So tommower I am hosting a Business to Business networking event on behalf of the Bragg Creek Chamber of Commerce. A fellow director and I have started a sub committee that focuses on the small business of Bragg Creek. What I am baffled about is the lack of store front owners that are not attending. We have 40 small business owners attending and only 4 are store front owners. Do these people not realize that they are the commercial core of the Hamlet and that they are the ones that are directly impacted with all the shit that is going on. Most of these businesses are feeling the economic crunch yet are refusing help. As business owners and community members we are all responsible to help each other succeed. That is my unimportant rant. Besides all the crap I played in my first womens soccer game last night. It has been 25 years since I played goalie...can we say shut out!!! So much fun but my ass is sore today.

When you enter into a relationship it is very similar to a business agreement yet with a business agreement, papers are signed, and some type of contract is produced. However, with a intimate relationship nothing is written down. I think this needs to change. I would like to develop a quick contract that I wish I would have given to my husband, then maybe I wouldn't be in this situation. 1-I will always try to be romantic 2-I will pick you up when you are down 3-I will keep my health and fitness a priority 4-I will be accountable for any of my actions that affect my relationships 5-I will assume 1/2 responsibility for my marriage breakdown 6-I will be happy as I know I am blessed 7-I will take you out 1x at least a month 8-I will encourage you in everything you do 9-I will forgive 10-I will love unconditionally

The second most important relationship in my life is with my husband. This is a relationship by choice, we pick our mates and we choose to either make the relationship work or to end it. Completely different from the relationship we have with our children. I recently met a woman who was venting about her teenage son and honestly said "I don't want a relationship with him anymore but I am stuck with him". Stuck? Interesting choice of words I thought, because it is true. The most important relationship I have is with my sons. Everyday is a challenge, everyday there is drama and everyday I am in awe of my responsibilities. And because I am a good mother I too am "stuck" with them, meaning I will always be there for them, love and nurture them and never leave them. I like the word stuck, rhymes with fuck, and I like that word too.

It's another beautiful day in Bragg Creek, it's extremely cold but the sun is out and the ground is white. It's Friday afternoon and I have already had a slew of people in the store today. 3 sisters who were engaging and fun, a mother with 4 kids who were very well behaved. My girlfriend who brought me a coffee and a gift (for helping her) and a group of tourists from England who were in snow pants because they were so cold. One of the young ladies (mid 20's) from England was gorgeous and I asked her if she modeled. Her aunt responded by saying "don't you hate her, because she's so pretty"? Isn't that a funny response? Why would I hate someone because of how they looked? I would be hating a lot of women if I felt that way. We need to accept ourselves for who we are and work with what we got. I know the aunt was only teasing but I wish she would of said something like "isn't she beautiful, inside and out". As women we need to support, encourage and accept one another, and we need to encourage the younger generations to do this as well.

It's been awhile since my last blog reason being I was in one of my rant moods. Sometimes you need to take a time out from communicating. When I'm in that type of mood, it's best to keep to myself. As most of my friends know I lack a filter and sometimes I need to walk away from situations. What I find so surprising is how many people lack common sense and that's scary. I am constantly around people, all day everyday. I am extremely social in my community and sit on a few boards. I run a household of all men including my cat and by the time 9pm rolls around I have to shut down and focus on myself. This takes effort. So many of us are never "present" I mean really aware of our emotions, and mental state. After 9pm it's my time and I have explained this to my family, my boys know that I need my time in order to be the mom they need me to be. Regardless how you spend your free time, try to be present in the moment. Be aware of how you are feeling and honour those emotions. If more people were aware of themselves maybe they would have more common sense.

Another year has past and I am always blown away with how much living can be done in a year. 2010 was a very challenging year for me on a personal level. My professional life is strong and growing and this year excites me when it come to my little boutique in K Country. My personal life was filled with ups and downs, however it is no different from anyone esles year. Everyone goes through the same shit expecially as we age. My fathers wife has been through more medical crap that I believe should be allowed for one person and to ring in 2011 she broke her hip a few days ago. Come on, give her a break. So my shit might be different from yours but when it comes down to it, shit is shit. So as it stands right now my retail life is grand and growing and the personal life is always a work in progress.