Greener Grass Relaunch: Creativity + Community

A few years ago I started this blog, and it was such source of joy for me. I love writing and telling stories. I loved documenting what David and I were doing and I loved connecting with people through the internet in a much more personal way than I really thought was possible.

When we found out that Ford was on his way, I had a bit of a crisis of self. I was feeling weird and sick and just not at all sure about being a mommy and what new shape our life was going to take. We were also in the middle of some big life changes that were a bit stressful and so slowly I quit blogging. It wasn't a conscious decision, but posts became more and more rare until they finally dried up all together.

I also slowly quit teaching my sewing classes (Ford was born the week after a Sewing 101 course finished up…Yikes!) And then, of course, after he was born I got swept away in the frantic sea of motherhood. I'm going to be honest with you- I didn't adjust gracefully. It was very hard early on for me to be a mommy and to feel like my true self.

I felt a little lost and confused, but also very much in love with my baby and getting to spend my days with him. Motherhood is all consuming. It's so easy to lose your sense of self- the things that make you feel like YOU! Or that's what I've found to be true for me.

Along and along I started to realize what made me feel most myself; I needed to be making things and I needed to spend more time with friends. Simple as that. I feel best when I'm social and when I have a project going. I think this is what people mean when they say, "Ugh. I just feel awful when I don't exercise." I think. I can't be positive because I have never felt that way about exercise in my life.

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I've learned that creativity and community are my driving forces. I need to be making things and I need to be in community with other people. I think a lot of other women want that, too, but maybe it's a little hard to put your finger on.

As I was coming to this realization, my friend Jessica approached me and encouraged me to be brave and really dive back in to Greener Grass as a blog and a serious business. She took me seriously and it made me take myself more seriously. She has now become my amazing business manager and constantly wows me with her spreadsheets, calendars, percentages, and overall general business savvy.

(By the way, most Greener Grass emails and billing are done by Jessica. Don't be confused if you see her name on something! She's nice. You'll love her. And you'll appreciate that she will email you right back, whereas I would probably accidentally delete your message!)

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We have relaunched Greener Grass not just as a sewing business or as a blog, but with the purpose of building richer lives through creativity and community.  We provide, classes, workshops, and information that teach skills to help make the grass greener right where you are. Classes are small, personal, and fun to help build relationships between women. We want to help self proclaimed "non-creative" people find their most creative selves. We want to equip people with experience, skills, and knowledge to create beautiful things all while cultivating encouraging relationships.

I'm a maker and a teacher and I'm so grateful that Greener Grass gives me the chance to do both of those things. I'm grateful for people like Jessica and David and my parents who push me to be brave and follow my dreams. And I'm grateful that the business helps to support my little family so I can spend my days with little Fordzilla as a stay at home mommy.

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I just wanted to give you a little behind the scenes look at what's going on with us. I'm so happy to be connecting with so many people again through Greener Grass. I hope that you'll take a class or schedule a craft party. I would love to hang out with you!

I think that sometimes when you feel like you're at the end of your rope, you may actually need to add one more thing to your plate. You may need to do something for yourself- not in a selfish way, but something that makes you feel like you. You'll be better for it and you'll have more energy for all the other things that need to be taken care of.

Love you. Mean it.
mel