I have this song on repeat in my head right now. Does anyone remember that song by Anita Baker, “You Bring Me Joy”? It was one of my favorite songs growing up and I remember my mom dancing around the house drinking wine and singing it. Sometimes she would kiss me on top of my head while she was singing and then stare at me in the eyes and make me feel as if she was only singing it to me. I think, as an adult, that Anita Baker was singing it to her husband, boyfriend, man-friend, but I completely understand as a mom now how you could take a song like that and sing it passionately to your child. I have four children, and I love them all equally, but admittedly I look at my son, my only son, and I say, "you bring me joy."
Birthing my son was not easy, and I know a lot of women can relate. Whether the struggle of getting pregnant, having a miscarriage, or miscarriages plural, to having his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck and then needing an emergency C-section, I look...
I wake up some mornings and I look at the man next to me, my husband, and I ask myself “how did he get here?” I don't really say that out loud, but I do ask myself “why am I married to THIS man?!!” He’s always snoring, sometimes had gas and takes up too much space in our bed. This can’t be the same man that I fell in love with 20 years ago, can it?
I ask myself this and then I chuckle because I know he could be saying the same thing about me. I mean, in his head, he thinks: “how did I marry this beautiful, well-put-together, loyal, dime-piece cook who's a nurturer for my children? Once upon a time, all she wanted to do was be in the club and dance until her feet hurt so I would can take her home to rub them."
My husband definitely won the wife lottery, but even when I'm jokingly looking at him and saying, "I kind of wish I married the Rock.” I do still say “I love you."
Why do I love my husband?...
Starting your own business sounds sexy. As a culture, we throw around the words “entrepreneur” and “creative” very easily and while it’s incredibly admirable and downright necessary for most people to create and sustain their own businesses, it is not a task for the weak.
Now, try adding on being married and raising a family with your business partner! Again, while it may sound cool and it does have its advantages, there are also many, many challenges.
The “new mom and pop” model of couples doing business together is taking off. In a variety of industries, married folks want to be just like Will and Jada, Jay and Bey and Michelle and Barack: a power couple. And for that to happen it takes dedication and discipline.
My wife and I have started four businesses together and have learned a lot. One failed, one is in a holding pattern, one we are reviving and one is our mainstay that still feeds the family. We have never had venture capital or any...
