Reflections & Goals
When I was a youngster, I never understood nor believed when my mom and dad would say, “the older you get, the faster time goes by”. Yes, I reached the age some time ago where that statement rings true. In the midst of a busy year, I did not do a good job on writing my “Why. I can honestly say that ‘23 felt like one of the busiest years of my life with the hardest part of saying goodbye to my 15 year old, best dog ever, Sadie. It was filled with a college graduation, a wedding, building a home in Utah, a few long weekends in Mexico along with making products and attending markets. With that being said, I’m very proud of Hidden Treasure Soap, and very proud to say I met all of my goals for the year.
So what does this new year bring for Hidden Treasure Soap? There are a few things I have been pondering. First, I want to focus on improving my packaging. Did you know that is one of the hardest parts of my small business? Prior to starting HTS, I never once thought about how a company decides on a box, a label or let alone where to source them from. Two thousand custom soap boxes arrived last week and yes, this took a significant amount of time to finalize the size, the color, the window and a vendor. Secondly, I have a few new products I am working on, but first I want to make sure my existing products are at their absolute best. This doesn’t mean big change, this means looking at “can I improve them or they just right”. Every ingredient is carefully sourced and certified cruelty free by the Leaping Bunny Organization.* Keeping my certification with them will never be comprised. Lastly, I am in the process of a logo facelift. If you haven’t read previous posts, Hidden Treasure Soap was named after a favorite and game changer of a ski run in Utah. My new logo ties in more closely this theme. This year I am not including my ‘23 goal of “working on Kristi through nutrition, physical workouts and spiritual workouts via Bible study. That habit is in place and is why I can love what I do each and every day.
I’d love to hear what you dream and hope for this year!
* https://www.leapingbunny.org/brand/hidden-treasure-soap
2023 - I’m ready for it, are you?
2023. Wow, just wow! The older I get, the more I consistently am reminded how fast time goes by. Many of us are thinking about New Year’s Resolutions and contemplating if we were too bold, too creative, too crazy, too meek, too conservative and any other questionable thoughts about our resolutions. Maybe I’m a premature for publicly sharing my New Year’s Resolutions for Hidden Treasure Soap but I hope you will hold me accountable by December 31, 2023!
1. You will see 2-3 new products within the year. Research is in place and thankfully my family dutifully agrees to be my test subjects!
2. You will see Hidden Treasure at more markets than in 2022. I am lining up new venues, fun markets both indoor and out. They will be added to my site as they are confirmed.
3. Giving my best to Hidden Treasure soap, means working on me too. This includes workouts at the gym for my physical body, spiritual workouts through Bible study and prayer and quiet time to just breathe.
None of these goals are taken lightly and to be honest, none of them are easy. I challenge you to find 1 goal that you can commit too and at the end of 2023, we will celebrate!
Love,
k
Life is ever changing…
This blog is dedicated to my mama, Christine Ida Schorsch. My mamasan went to heaven on Monday, March 28, 2022 and now resides with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I know my dad as well as other family and friends were in her cloud of witnesses as she met Jesus face to face.
The past 6 months have been what feels like a whirlwind. Little did I know that Christmas 2021 would be our last one together with all of our family. Parkinson’s Disease may have plagued my mamasan’s body but I cherish the impromptu trips to Brainerd and every moment we spent together over the 55 years of my life.
Fast forward to Easter Sunday and Chad and I spent it with 3 very special people. Avery and Shayne were home in Utah but Katlyn, Carolynn (daughter) and her fiance, KJ spent the day with us. Katlyn and Carolynn came into our lives in November, 2016 on a cold and snowy day as they embarked on picking up some Christmas decor she had searched out via Face Book. I met them in my driveway and the Holy Spirit gripped my heart as I have rarely experienced. As I gazed upon the adorable 8 month old redhead buckled in the backseat of an unheated car, I knew “this” would go somewhere. The only sense I can settle on is that God gripped my heart and led me to follow my heart. This played out with some trips to the store for formula, diapers and anything that a single mom could need, checking in to see if we could help and even babysitting a time or two. Katlyn recalls me and Shayne stopping at her apartment building with groceries and entering as someone was on their way out. Obviously, we were unannounced; as much as I thought I was helping, I didn’t realize I was intruding (a bit). Thankfully Katlyn saw my heart as much as I followed my heart. We were granted the opportunity to have Katlyn and Carolynn live with us for 6 months and again it was a God thing. As she was getting on her feet, it gave her and Carolynn and my family so many great opportunities to connect, share meals, holidays, and draw even closer. In the meantime she and KJ found each other and got engaged (we love him too). Come Easter 2022, Kat found out that you can legally adopt an adult in MN and surprised us with a request to become a Dockter. Through our tears, the answer was YES! How ironic, that Easter Sunday marks the day the resurrection of new life and for us it also marks the day of new family.
June 2nd, Shayne graduated high school from Innovations Early College High School in Salt Lake City. We had the chance to celebrate with Chad, me, Avery, Shayne, Katlyn, KJ, Carolynn along with Chad’s dad, Ray and stepmom Kathy. Not only did we celebrate Shayne’s graduation but we also celebrated by signing adoption papers for Katlyn. Kathy Dockter reminded me that when my girls were little, I had said to her that I didn’t want any more biological children but I would like to adopt. How wonderful that God planted a seed so many years ago that would come to fruition in 2022.
The only limits God has, are the ones we place on Him. From experience, open your heart, open your mind and open your hands. God cannot fill a fist, but he can fill open hands.
Sometimes you need to make popcorn
How do you like your popcorn? I like mine with a tad of butter and LOTS of popcorn salt. You might ask what does popcorn have to do with a new business. Well, my mind works in a round about way and what currently has my attention. Tonight I was craving popcorn; pretty simple!
I had a free weekend to look at recipes, look at inventory, look at goals and how I can grow my business. Hidden Treasure Soap recently wrapped up our first official full Christmas season and I’m finding my inventory nearly depleted. That makes me happy! With working full time, Hidden Treasure is my side gig and I LOVE it. Chad is out of town this weekend so I had ample time to work on catching up on inventory. Some may wonder why I would want to work all weekend when Chad was out of town. Reason is, I crave time to be making products, increasing my inventory, looking at new products and finding ways to improve what I already create. I spent the weekend making 80 lip balms in 4 flavors, experimenting with goats milk soap for the first time and making 2 batches of bubble blocks. At this point I have 2 things on my mind - Chad getting home tomorrow and when will I have more time in my soap studio. With that being said, I am grateful for every order, every in person purchase and every review. Thank you to every person who has encouraged me, made a purchase, suggested product ideas and found a way to inspire me. I have customers that I wonder how they sought me out, customers that have tried my products and love them and those tried and true repeat customers. I am excited about 2022 and thank you to all who have been on this journey with me.
How do you treat the largest organ of your body?
I tend to have a lot of random thoughts: some productive, some humorous and some that just entertain me and me alone! Last night my husband I were enjoying a night out and having dinner with some old friends. As we were catching up on the latest and greatest with our families, business ventures and overall fun friend details, the conversation switched over to my new soap business. The question was raised, “what is soap made out of”. My answer came quick and easy as I rattled off my recipe. But after we got home, that triggered my brain to focus on do we really pay attention to how we treat the LARGEST organ of our body? I am so keenly aware of how I fuel my body as many of us are. I know what foods I avoid due to allergies, foods I know are important but not my favorite, foods to build muscle, foods keep my body in top top shape. How is it we tend to think of the inside but not the outside - even though it is the largest organ we have?! My goal with Hidden Treasure Soap is ultimately to give you all natural and all nourishing products to be the best you. Look at the ingredients in all of my products; you will find that you recognize them, can pronounce them and can trust that they bring pure and natural goodness to your body. It is up to you to take care of you, because no one else will!
Musings on a snowy day
I’m watching the snow fall as I update my website and it has created a soft and peaceful picture outside my window. My dogs are snoozing on either side of me and add another layer of joy to my view. Although the forecast supports a light dusting, I’m hoping for several inches. The wonderment of winter is probably gone by now for many Minnesotans, but not me. Crisp weather, skiing, the crunch of snow beneath my feet, shivering as I dash out in flip flops to get the mail, are some of the wintery things that I love. Not to mention, long winter days give me time to get lots of product made for upcoming shows. Stay tuned and I will let you know where you will see Hidden Treasure Soap in 2021!
Holidays 2020
What a whirlwind the past 8 months have been! As we are a one week from embarking on the 2020 holidays of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s; we do so in the midst of a pandemic and an election. UGGGG! It is a first in my lifetime and I pray we can resume normalcy soon. Like most, I have done my fair share of whining, fussing, venting and last but not least-praying. Why do I pray after I exhaust all other actions? I wish I had the answer to that question, but I do know that only I can change the way I respond to life. I know many of us make resolutions or set goals for a new year and recently I have felt God impress upon my heart that I need to react in kindness. What does that look like for me? Kindness is not just how I treat people but how I react in situations that do not necessarily go as planned. (I am super impatient, jump to conclusions and tend to find the negative.) I can have kindness in my heart and be positive, or I can get anxious, fuss and vent. I know what God wants of me, and my 2021 goal is to first be kind and then respond.
In the meantime, the giving back blessing for Hidden Treasure Soap this year is to donate gifts to the residents at my mom’s assisted living facility, Northern Lakes Senior Living in Baxter, MN. COVID has restricted much, but especially our seniors as they are so isolated, denied human interaction and most of all physical touch. I understand the need to protect, but as the daughter of a resident, I know the despair and loneliness they experience. Nothing takes the place of hug and personal interaction. Growing up, my mom always said that we needed 3 hugs a day to be healthy. This obviously isn’t a scientific fact, but physical touch is critical no matter your age.
This holiday season, I hope you can see kindness in others, respond to the lonely with compassion and most of all, see the beauty in the birth of Christ.
Do it scared.
I love listening to Christy Wright from The Business Boutique. There are so many “take aways” from her podcasts and her new book. One that truly stuck with me is “sometimes you have to do it scared”. I compare a lot back to my skiing experiences over the years. When I encounter a steep run, I don’t stop to survey the slope, the snow conditions or the traffic. I have to just go, get over my skis and point them down the hill. A couple of weeks ago, I did the same thing with Hidden Treasure Soap. I called my husband and told him that I was doing my first crafting event. Naturally he wondered when it was; I told him 4 days. There was no time to waste, not much time for sleep but instead, time to do it scared. I borrowed a tent, loaded up my car and off I went. It was so much fun! I know there is much to learn, but I had a great turn out, sold more than I could have imagined and met so many encouragers on all sides of me. I encourage you to set a goal and do it scared. It may be a success or it may be more of a time to learn but either way you will grow!
Priorities…
Do you ever feel like you can’t handle one more thing on your plate or your list of things to do? That seems to be the theme of the past several weeks for me. It has been difficult to quiet my mind, quiet my body, quiet my emotions and quiet my schedule. How and why does this happen? At 54 years of age, shouldn’t I be able to navigate life better? Well in reality, I let it happen. I scheduled myself and I let my priorities slip, because aren’t we supposed to be too busy? It’s easy to justify; I recently started a business, my first born headed to college, my baby starts her junior year, I have a full time job, I am a wife, I am a mom... It doesn’t matter how old you are, how much money you have or how many hours you work; many of us tend to overfill our days and neglect the little, yet big things. This past week we took our oldest daughter to college, 1,000 miles away. All of a sudden, I wanted more time with her, I wanted another hug, I wanted another chance to just be together and to just enjoy her company or to simply listen to her voice. I wanted the little big things. We crammed a lot into a week, a lot of hugs, a lot of conversation and a lot of “I love yous”; because it was our priority. Tomorrow I will do better with priorities, determine what is important, reflect on what truly matters and work to make a difference and not just a longer list of things to do. It is up to me to make the best of the life God has blessed me with, to be the best mom, wife, business owner and everything in between. I will strive to be the “best me” because only then can I give my best to my priorities.
Dream Big!
Hidden Treasure Soap began initially out of the love of creating bath and body products for my family and friends. As interest grew, my hobby evolved into a business; this is beyond my wildest dreams. What do I learn from this? I need to have bigger dreams!
It is a God-infused business and I believe in giving back because so much has been given to me. I currently donate gift bags to Cornerstone Women’s Shelter in Bloomington MN, gift baskets to various local fundraisers or silent auctions and will always consider new ways to share my craft. If you would like to share your ideas for giving, I will gladly research and consider them!
My First “Why”
Although not typically brave or self assured, God can use a willing heart and open hands. When we ask, He is ready and able to give us courage beyond our wildest imagination. After making soap for several years and with the help of encouragement from my husband, family, and friends, I decided to push myself outside of my comfort zone…actually, way outside. The name “Hidden Treasure Soap” holds a deep, personal meaning to me for this very reason.
My family loves to hit the slopes. I had enjoyed skiing for many years at my own pace, although I couldn’t help but notice that there was still a little something missing. Perhaps if I had new skis… then I would ski faster, braver, better. I bought new skis, and yet I was wrong. They weren’t the answer. The answer lay in my ability to set my mind to the fact that I was ready to fight for the fun to be greater than the fear. This “fun” opened up on a ski run in Utah called “Hidden Treasure”. My husband and friends still reached the bottom before I did, but a whole new world was suddenly sprawled out before my eyes. From then on, I have challenged myself on the slopes, skiing black runs and even adding a little speed, all without so much harmful self doubt. “Hidden Treasure” was a game changer for me; now I attempt to apply “faster, braver, better” in as many areas of my life as I can. Life has much to offer; be faster, braver, better and go chase your dream!
I am pleased to introduce my company - yes, my company - Hidden Treasure Soap.
Love, Kristi