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Hey friends! We survived Silobration with all four kids, watched Lacey absolutely shine at checkout, and learned that fluffy back-of-car nap plans don't always work out as planned. Now we're home, exhausted, and so grateful for massages and Mondays off.

This past week in a minute:

Silobration Recap.. We did it, y'all! All four kids, five days down in Waco and back, setup, three days of action-packed sales, teardown, a huge rainstorm, another huge rainstorm... and everybody's doing okay.

We're absolutely exhausted, but we're so grateful. Grateful for the people who came to see us—lifelong customers, dear friends, and brand new faces. Grateful for our family who stepped in to help. And I got to do it all with one of my besties, Korie, one of my lifelong friends.

We’re grateful that we get to do this at all. Small business ownership is hard work, but events like this remind us why we do it.

There's always a magic with these markets, and this one was no exception. It's amazing watching all these different businesses from across the United States come together in one place. Families working side by side. Moms and dads pulling together for one shared goal. It's super fun, super inspiring, and Waco becomes this magical hub of creativity and community during Silobration. And, I got to

Plus, Forrest Frank, Switchfoot, and NEEDTOBREATHE all performed in one weekend, which created a buzz around town that was impossible not to get swept up in.

Our booth was no exception to the family effort. We ran it together, and we specifically let Lacey, our 9-year-old, shine during this event. And shine she did.

She handled the entire checkout process on the iPad like a pro, despite having almost zero screen time at home. It seemed like she intuitively knew exactly what to do. She even caught me when I gave the wrong change to a customer and corrected me on the spot 😬😬😬. Our customers were genuinely shocked to see a 9-year-old running point, and we were beaming with pride. You should have seen her face when we told her how much she earned over those three days. She didn't want to stop… she loved it! And we were so happy to see her thrive like that.

We think it's incredibly valuable to involve your kids in your business when possible. Give them real responsibility, let them learn, make mistakes, and also discover what they're capable of.

I'm honestly so proud of all the kids. They each contributed in their own way. Evie hung out in the booth most days, helped encourage people to flip through the books, and handed out stickers like it was her full-time job. Isla was the "booth baby" this year and paraded around like a little queen, getting passed from friend to friend and soaking up all the attention. She couldn't help but be the center of it all.

Ducky hung out with my parents most days, and we got to celebrate his 7th birthday while we were there! Just wait till I show you his cute little birthday surprise.

An outdoor show wouldn't be complete without some crazy weather, and we definitely got some. The rain came down down down, just like in Winnie the Pooh. At one point, Isla and I were getting absolutely drenched, and I felt like we were about to float away like Piglet. Luckily, Jordan sent us to the car just in time!

That's the Silobration recap for now. Follow along on Instagram…. I'll be posting more behind-the-scenes, introducing you to some incredible new friends and their amazing businesses and products.

Have you ever worked with your kids like this? I'd love to hear how it went!

❤️ Tabitha

Respite an Recovery Gone Wrong

I had such glorious plans for this week. As I mentioned last time, I was going to build in plenty of respite and self-care time during the chaos of Silobration. Little pockets of rest and recovery throughout each day.

And honestly? It just really didn't go according to plan.

I set up the back of my Yukon to be a fluffy wonderland of napping potential for myself and Isla during breaks at the show. Pillows, blankets, cozy vibes. It was supposed to be my little sanctuary. And it was absolutely hilarious how badly it failed, y'all.

It was way too bright in there, even with the windows covered. Isla was just difficult in general this week… either teething, fighting off some illness, growth spurting, or a combination of all three. She was crawling all over me, crawling all over the car, getting into everything she shouldn't. And then Evie didn't want to without me in the booth, so she'd come join us and make noise or ask a million questions. It was quite comical in hindsight, and such an epic fail in the moment.

Nights were even harder. Isla was restless, waking up constantly, and I think I got maybe one truly good night of sleep the entire trip. Jordan was equally exhausted. Setting up and breaking down the booth is his domain, and he said it nearly killed him this year. The rain didn't help. Neither did the four kids and all our inventory packed into one vehicle.

We're honestly just wiped out.

But we do have one saving grace. As you're reading this, I'm probably getting a massage, and I am so excited about it. Back on our own home turf where we can actually control the variables… dark rooms, nourishing foods, quiet spaces, familiar beds.

We're making recovery time happen today. We don't have anything planned, and we're just going to enjoy this Monday. Something most people don't get to do… control their own schedules and invest real time into health and recovery. We have to remind ourselves of this sometimes: we just worked 7, 8, 9, maybe 10 days straight with long, intense hours. Today, a typical working day for most, is our rest and recovery day.

There's so much energy buzzing in our business minds right now. So many ideas from the weekend. We may sneak off to do a little bit of work, but today is mostly about relaxing and restoring our bodies. Jordan and I are both getting massages, and then we're planning to just be still for a bit.

Sometimes the best thing we can do for our business is absolutely nothing at all.

 — Tabitha Paige, Author/ Illustrator, Speech Therapist & Mom

What y’all loved this week 📱 

Every time I share what I'm cooking or baking on Instagram, y'all immediately ask for the recipe. And honestly? I rarely deliver. But this week I actually did!

Here's an old family favorite that I made a couple months late for my dad's birthday. (Better late than never, right?) It's been a go-to in our family for years, and based on your responses, it's about to become one in yours too.

What recipes do you want to see next? I can't promise I'll share them all, but I'm feeling generous lately. 😉

Sometimes I make books & other pretty things…