An Alaska Baker's Journey

 One of the biggest challenges I have had as I operate a bakery from my home is time.  There is just never enough of it.  This is not a foreign concept to anyone.  In this day of convenience food and high speed everything from internet to transportation; we all feel the pull of time and sometimes our lack of managing it.   Time, or the lack of, is a challenge every week; but this week seemed to be harder than others.  I work Monday - Wednesday as a project specialist for our school district.  Those are also the days that I focus on my school work for my degree.  This usually means that Thursday and Friday are devoted to my bakery; shopping, prepping, and baking for preorders.  Thursday is my prep day while Friday is massive production.   In any given week I will have 70+ items to produce in one regular home oven.  Timing is the magic that makes it all work.  On a good week I will have all the orders collected and crea...

  What does a person with passion look like?  They come in many shapes and sizes, but you can identify them by how they use their time.  A person with passion and drive will use their free time to create, to improve, to learn.  When that person is persistent, they achieve more. In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People , Stephen Covey teaches how we move from being dependent on others to become independent, and lastly interdependent where we become symbiotic in our relationships whether they be work or personal, creating a cohesive unit working together to create and preform.  Of these 7 habits, I find the final habit to sharpen the saw to be the most influential for me.  What does it mean to sharpen the saw?  It means taking time to practice, to gain additional tools, and to sharpen our abilities.  This is a person on the path to mastery.  My days are full, often too full.  By day I am a mild-mannered project specialist for the homesch...

  Each week I get bogged down with schoolwork, bakery orders, my job at the school, my family, and my church calling.   It can all be a lot .   Why do we try to do everything?   Should we do EVERYTHING?   Some might think that I can sacrifice one or two of these things for now to work toward a better future.   I DISAGREE!   I would not be successful without each piece in my life.   More than anything, I rely on the Lord to guide me through this time, and to help me clearly see the things that are most important, and to give me strength when I think that I can’t keep going.   Early pioneers of my church faced great hardship as they traveled often pushing handcarts across the plains of the United States.   Many on this journey recognized the angels that helped them carry on when they felt they couldn’t go another step.   If God cares about their journey, He cares about mine as well. I have faith that with Him and a will to work hard, ...