10/18/2026
I was listening to a podcast the other day about owning a business, and it reminded me of some of the crazy things I did when I had my cake business—and why I feel so much more regulated now that I’m no longer in the baking business.
I used to stay up really late some nights working on cakes, trying to get everything done because, as you know, everything had to be fresh and made within a certain amount of time. And these were often very detailed cakes and cookies. Sometimes I was up until 2 or 3 a.m.
When my son was around 10 or 11 years old, he started having severe stomach pain. We took him to the hospital at the doctor’s recommendation, and it turned out he had appendicitis.
It was a Friday morning, and I had a cake due the next day. I didn’t have time for life to interrupt my schedule!
Of course, my son was more important than a cake, so I stayed with him all day while he had surgery to remove his appendix. When my husband was finally able to get there, I actually went home for a while to finish the cake. It was late, and I don’t remember all the details exactly, but when I finished, I went back to the hospital and slept in a chair next to my son.
I look back at that time now and wonder why I didn’t just cancel the order. Life would have gone on. But I never wanted to disappoint my customers, and at the time, that pressure felt very real.
As a mom, I was always grateful that owning my own business gave me the flexibility to go to all of my kids’ activities and games. But what I didn’t always realize was that as soon as I got home, I was often right back to work.
Painting has given me a different kind of freedom and flexibility with my time. Don’t get me wrong—I can spend an entire day painting. I get into a flow state and the hours just disappear. But it doesn’t come with the same kind of pressure.
There’s a big difference between losing track of time because you’re completely absorbed in something you love and staying up until 2 a.m. because something has to be finished by tomorrow.
I think I’m only now realizing just how much of a difference that makes.
