Les Miserables and More! Part I
Well, if you've been at all following my Facebook, which most of you have,
you know that the last 3 months have basically been absorbed by Les Miserables
- my most recent theatrical endeavor at the Athens Theatre here in Deland. We
have had quite a bit going on aside from that, so the last couple of months
have definitely been a whirlwind!
In February we had a couple of visitors! Erica came to visit from California. A trip that I have absolutely NO pictures from considering we didn't do much but just RELAX! It was wonderful and so nice having her here. It was her first time visiting us so I had hoped to do some fun stuff. But given that I had rehearsals and work, and she just wanted to chill out, it turned out to be the perfect trip! Lots of Grey's Anatomy reruns! We also had a visit from one of Bart's best friends, Vic. He came down from New Jersey to spend a weekend with us. We also spent most of our time just relaxing, but we made sure to get him up on a skydive! He had an absolute blast, and Bart filmed his video for him. A fun time for sure!
We've had quite a bit going on at work, of course. We have hired yet another person who is already contributing so much to our business. The last month or so we have been working tirelessly on completely redoing our infrastructure. We've been operating using the same systems we used 4 years ago, when we were shipping maybe 10 orders a day, on a good day. Now we're shipping anywhere from 50-150 orders a day and some things needed to change! It's been overwhelming, to say the least. It's taught me why couples who own businesses together rarely work out. :) But luckily, we've been able to keep ourselves together, remember why we're doing this, and remind ourselves that our relationship comes FIRST, or none of this will matter. It's probably been the most trying time for us thus far, both from a business and a relationship standpoint. But we've weathered it, we've learned a lot, we're moving forward, and things are beginning to level out! Bart has been incredibly supportive of me during this time. Living with a stressed out Kimmy is no easy task. It's shown me what a wonderful man I have by my side. Cheesy, I know. But I found a good one. And that has been even more apparent to me lately.
In awesome news - we have a new building!!! Bart bought us a 7,000 square foot space that will hopefully be our new home base for TST Industries for the next 5 years or so! YAY! The downside is, it's about 20 minutes from our house versus the 5 minutes we drive now, and it needs a good amount of work. But we've learned lessons from past moves/renovations. We're hiring people to do the dirty work this time! Hopefully we'll be able to move in in a few months and begin the next chapter of TST Industries! We now have a total of 5 TST team members; all dedicated and hard-working people who really appreciate and value what we've built, and are excited to continue growing with us. TST is definitely going places, if we can only just keep up! :)
While we were dealing with new hires, building purchases, and rebuilding our infrastructure, I rehearsed and opened Les Miserables! I also started school at Keiser University to begin working toward my Bachelors in Psychology - something I've always wanted but never thought I could actually do. Someday I would love to be a therapist, and work specifically with addiction and eating disorders. Bart urged me to do it, and really helped me get the confidence to just START! It may take me 10 years, but who cares? I'm so happy I made the decision. But should I have started school while completely re-organizing our business AND rehearsing a show? Prooobbabbbllyyy not. :) We really learned the definition of BURNED OUT over this last couple of months. It's a darn good thing my Mom has totally taken the reins on planning our wedding. Otherwise it would probably never happen!
The upside to the chaos was, I so thoroughly enjoyed my time in the Les Miserables process. Every rehearsal was so much fun. Meeting new friends, learning this incredible music, working with the best director I've ever worked with, and just making memories. I will delve more into the Les Mis experience in Part II of this blog. But in short - it was one of the most fun and special times of my life, and I will never forget it. I was so sad that my family couldn't be here for opening weekend - that was a first! But Bart was there to support me. And Kristy and Alana came down mid-way through the run and got to see it, which was really special. It was so nice having her and Alana here for a week. I of course had to get school and work done while she was here, which is always tough. But I definitely took some time to just hang out with the two of them, watch some Homeland, and relax. (Kristy got through the first 2 seasons in 4 days!) I always feel so guilty when family is in town because I avoid doing work that I really need to get done. At the same time, it's always a nice excuse to just take some time off. :)
Well, there's my "short version" of Part I. Enjoy some photos and gear up for Part II coming soon!
In February we had a couple of visitors! Erica came to visit from California. A trip that I have absolutely NO pictures from considering we didn't do much but just RELAX! It was wonderful and so nice having her here. It was her first time visiting us so I had hoped to do some fun stuff. But given that I had rehearsals and work, and she just wanted to chill out, it turned out to be the perfect trip! Lots of Grey's Anatomy reruns! We also had a visit from one of Bart's best friends, Vic. He came down from New Jersey to spend a weekend with us. We also spent most of our time just relaxing, but we made sure to get him up on a skydive! He had an absolute blast, and Bart filmed his video for him. A fun time for sure!
We've had quite a bit going on at work, of course. We have hired yet another person who is already contributing so much to our business. The last month or so we have been working tirelessly on completely redoing our infrastructure. We've been operating using the same systems we used 4 years ago, when we were shipping maybe 10 orders a day, on a good day. Now we're shipping anywhere from 50-150 orders a day and some things needed to change! It's been overwhelming, to say the least. It's taught me why couples who own businesses together rarely work out. :) But luckily, we've been able to keep ourselves together, remember why we're doing this, and remind ourselves that our relationship comes FIRST, or none of this will matter. It's probably been the most trying time for us thus far, both from a business and a relationship standpoint. But we've weathered it, we've learned a lot, we're moving forward, and things are beginning to level out! Bart has been incredibly supportive of me during this time. Living with a stressed out Kimmy is no easy task. It's shown me what a wonderful man I have by my side. Cheesy, I know. But I found a good one. And that has been even more apparent to me lately.
In awesome news - we have a new building!!! Bart bought us a 7,000 square foot space that will hopefully be our new home base for TST Industries for the next 5 years or so! YAY! The downside is, it's about 20 minutes from our house versus the 5 minutes we drive now, and it needs a good amount of work. But we've learned lessons from past moves/renovations. We're hiring people to do the dirty work this time! Hopefully we'll be able to move in in a few months and begin the next chapter of TST Industries! We now have a total of 5 TST team members; all dedicated and hard-working people who really appreciate and value what we've built, and are excited to continue growing with us. TST is definitely going places, if we can only just keep up! :)
While we were dealing with new hires, building purchases, and rebuilding our infrastructure, I rehearsed and opened Les Miserables! I also started school at Keiser University to begin working toward my Bachelors in Psychology - something I've always wanted but never thought I could actually do. Someday I would love to be a therapist, and work specifically with addiction and eating disorders. Bart urged me to do it, and really helped me get the confidence to just START! It may take me 10 years, but who cares? I'm so happy I made the decision. But should I have started school while completely re-organizing our business AND rehearsing a show? Prooobbabbbllyyy not. :) We really learned the definition of BURNED OUT over this last couple of months. It's a darn good thing my Mom has totally taken the reins on planning our wedding. Otherwise it would probably never happen!
The upside to the chaos was, I so thoroughly enjoyed my time in the Les Miserables process. Every rehearsal was so much fun. Meeting new friends, learning this incredible music, working with the best director I've ever worked with, and just making memories. I will delve more into the Les Mis experience in Part II of this blog. But in short - it was one of the most fun and special times of my life, and I will never forget it. I was so sad that my family couldn't be here for opening weekend - that was a first! But Bart was there to support me. And Kristy and Alana came down mid-way through the run and got to see it, which was really special. It was so nice having her and Alana here for a week. I of course had to get school and work done while she was here, which is always tough. But I definitely took some time to just hang out with the two of them, watch some Homeland, and relax. (Kristy got through the first 2 seasons in 4 days!) I always feel so guilty when family is in town because I avoid doing work that I really need to get done. At the same time, it's always a nice excuse to just take some time off. :)
Well, there's my "short version" of Part I. Enjoy some photos and gear up for Part II coming soon!
Bart's Polish skydiver friends were in town for a visit and came by for dinner after a day of jumping. It's times like that I realize that I REALLY need to work harder on my Rosetta Stone!
Excited to skydive!
We've been shipping some orders!!
Theatre buds! Erick went to AMDA too! :)
Les Mis Rehearsal
One of many Les Mis parties at Davids!
A little relaxation out on the lake.
We will have an actual kitchen! Yesssss!
Our creepy, annoying realtor...hiding in the shadows...
The building was last used as a boy band hub for the "Heart Beat Boys." It seems like they just abandoned the place which I find super creepy. We definitely have some work to do in fixing up the place and de-creepifying it. We WILL be getting rid of the stage!
Bart's been spending a couple weekends a month blowing off steam at the track! I'll be joining him at the end of the month to learn how to ride!
Opening Night!
The dreaded hair extensions.
One of my fave people ever. Sara has been a wonderful addition to my life since we first met during Jake's Women!
At curtain call after one of the shows, Rachel's boyfriend proposed to her! She was completely caught off guard. Super sweet moment!
The whole gang!
Sister Ceviche
Alana discovered a new love for apples while she was here. I think she ate all 8 apples we had in our fruit bowl!
Just chillin' out watching some Homeland...
Flat Stanley even made it to the show! On the right is Donald, our amazingly talented director who I'm now blessed to call a friend.
Other than the show, this is the one time they made it out of the house during their whole visit!
A little dinner at sunset. :)
If you can't go home for Easter, Boca Raton is the next best thing!
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