Life and Shop Updates

Whew!  What a whirlwind the last two years have been. Am I right?

If one thing the pandemic has taught me it's that being able to pivot is essential.  In life and in business.  We didn't know what was happening week to week, month to month or sometimes day to day when we were having to quarantine while waiting for test results or while quarantining because we were sick.  

As 2021 drew to a close and 2022 began I spent a lot of time reflecting on my why.  I've been through a lot of life changes in the last three years, even pre-pandemic and am finding and appreciating myself and my time with a new outlook.  For the majority of my adult life I have known only one thing.  The hustle.  The hustle was, at certain times in my life, a thing of pride.  I was working so hard to keep my family afloat, making sure my family was taken care of, making sure all ends met, even when it was a monthly struggle to see the end of the bills to only start over again at the start of the next month.  I've recently been reflecting on how much I sacrificed.  I sacrificed my health, my happiness and my dreams for what life would look like.  I also realized even though I was taking care of my family financially, I was sacrificing being the best parent to my kids because I was burnt out and a literal shell of myself.

In the last six months, my focus has shifted to my doula work and continuing and completing my herbalist trainings and certificates. I have a new, super supportive partner, something I've never had in the past.  He helps keep things in perspective and makes sure I take care of myself, and helps take care of me when I can't do it alone.  I am so grateful.  I have a new support group of doulas surrounding my work with families in the birth world, through Madison Doula Collective and my birth work has started supporting my family all on it's own, which I am truly grateful for.  My hustle is slowing down, I'm able to spend time reading, painting, journaling and playing with my kids.  All things I have felt guilty for setting the hustle aside for, in the past. These things make me a better partner, a better parent and better at supporting the families I work with. 

This year, and in the future, I want less hustle and more slow mornings, slow days.  Time to get outside, hiking, camping, playing and laughing with my family. I want more time for learning and hands on herbal preparations.  I want to be a better partner, parent and be able to better serve my doula families.

With all this being said, I am putting Shade Tree Naturals in the background and putting my doula work in the foreground.  This, by no means, means that Shade Tree is going away, or that I won't still be working on this business.  What I envision it will mean is that from time to time things will be out of stock.  Product inventory will be prioritized for our wholesale customers and my time will be prioritized for our private label clients.  I imagine this looks like more education on ingredients, herbs, featured private label clients and wholesale customers.  Perhaps a new way to search our website on where you can buy our products local to you if our website has something out of stock.  I'm envisioning a new line of products for new families, pregnancy, postpartum and expanding our baby line to meet the needs of my birthing and postpartum families as well as teas, herbal tinctures and herbal remedies. This will also mean pairing down our offerings and only offering our best skincare sellers with a smaller variation of products seasonally.

I would love your input on what you'd like to see us keep year round or what you'd like us to add to our product line as we shift our focus more towards new families and herbal health support. What products would be helpful for you to get from a local small business focusing on sustainability and chemical free ingredients?  Please reach out, as well, if something is out of stock that you are hoping we will re-stock so we can put that product on the top of our priority list.  I'm envisioning a better and closer relationship with our VIP customers and I'm very excited about it.  

Thank you so much for being here, supporting my little family and your continued business.  This business is very close to my heart and is still a significant part of my family's income so your continued support is so appreciated.  

With so much love,

Tara & Family