The Journey to Building a Successful Life-First Creative Business with Ali Edwards

[00:00:00] Kellee: Hello, hello all my friends and podcast listeners. I am so excited to be back with you for season two of the Made Remarkable podcast. I am your host, Kellee Wynne. Today is a double episode. How much fun is that? And there's a reason I'm putting these two episodes together because you're gonna see a very similar journey between the two guests that we have.

[00:00:30] Kellee: Now, in the previous episode, I had Roben Marie Smith telling you all about her entrepreneurial journey, and now I'm gonna introduce to you Ali Edwards. And I'm really quite thrilled about this interview because I've been a fan girl, a Ali Edwards, since the early 2000s. Isn't that crazy? So if you know a little bit about my journey, I was really heavy into scrapbooking in the period of time from my first child being born until my last one was [00:01:00] born.

[00:01:00] So I was a good 12 years of time. There was really, um, huge into the scrapbooking scene, and many of you probably can relate to that because a lot of people who went through that scrapbooking era have transitioned into mixed media and art journaling. So you probably relate to both Roben Marie's story and Ali Edwards story because they both started in that kind of scene as well in the 2000s.

[00:01:30] Well, Ali was somebody that I was following for what, a couple decades now, and watching her story and admiring her, and we connected on Instagram a couple years ago when I released my book, which was. Mixed media color studio, and when she shared it, I was just like floored. I'm like, oh my goodness.

[00:01:51] Somebody that I've admired for so long is reading my book and sharing it on Instagram. So it felt really natural to [00:02:00] invite her onto the podcast because she's a really great example of somebody who's set forth. Played the long game, taken it step by step and seen how it basically unfolded for her year after year until she built this really beautiful, thriving business and she's built it her way so that she can still spend so much time with her family and, uh, keep herself from being totally stressed out by the business, which is really essential in having a healthy, remarkable business, is setting those boundaries, setting your sights on what your goal is, what your big audacious dream is, whether it's just being able to live with freedom or if it's making millions of dollars and living in France.

[00:02:46] It doesn't really matter what your big, audacious dream is. And you're gonna find out what allie's big, audacious dream is in this podcast episode. So I hope you just tune in, soak it all up, and enjoy it so [00:03:00] much as I did my dear listeners. Here is the interview with Ali Edwards. 

[00:03:10] Hello, Ali. Ali Edwards is my guest today, and I am so like over the moon excited about this because it's full circle for me. So a little backstory, as many of you know. Before I went full on with my art career, I spent those formative years of my children's childhood doing scrapbooking. Very passionate about, still have a very heart-centered connection to it with the paper and all the ephemera and all the goods. And Ali Edwards was a prominent figure in my life at that time. Whether she knew it or not, that's the fun thing she didn't even know. I've been a big admirer, a big fan for a couple decades now. So welcome Ali to the Made Remarkable podcast. 

[00:03:57] Ali: Thank you, Kellee. That was very nice. Thank you, . [00:04:00] That was so nice. I can see your joy, that it's just, that's nice. Thank you. 

[00:04:05] Kellee: I do, I feel ultimate joy. When you shared my book that I had published a couple years ago on your Instagram, I thought I would fall over and die. I'm like, oh, Ali. Yes. Thank you. 

[00:04:17] Ali: Oh, your, your, your color vibes speak to me intensely so I have like a side. A side joy of doing mixed media stuff and art journaling that I kind of flow in and out of, like, there'll be sometimes during the year where I'll be like, oh, I'm totally into it and I'll do it for a couple months, and then I have other work I have to do.

[00:04:36] So it's always balancing that, the, the creativity part of it. But the color, I mean, even your background, I'm just like, yes, I, 

[00:04:43] Kellee: I just created this because these are my favorite colors and I, 

[00:04:47] Ali: they're very yummy 

[00:04:48] Kellee: having fun besides my busy shelf. 

[00:04:51] Ali: Yeah, I know. See I'm like, this is it. The people, this is what you get here.

[00:04:55] Kellee: I know. But it looks like you're just filled with joy back there with all the fun things you've been working on over [00:05:00] the last what? Yes. Well, I'm also decades of doing the this in this industry, huh? 

[00:05:06] Ali: Decades. Like I started. I know scrapbooking in 2002, that was when I first started. So I, my son Simon's gonna be 21 this month. That was the reason why I started. And then it became a business within a couple years, but not, it was, I am not an intentional business owner in terms of like, this is not, I did not have a dream of, of this. I don't know what I actually, I, I went to school to be an attorney, so I had, that is my background actually in American history and literature and I still love that also.

[00:05:42] Ali: And I love reading and writing and I ended up actually going back to school and got a graphic design degree. And so that I think is more in line with my like true skills and gifts probably. Um, Kind of led into, you know, the story that we're probably gonna talk about today? 

[00:05:59] Kellee: Yes. [00:06:00] We're gonna talk about it because this is, this is a fun thing about, like, sometimes we don't expect to end up where we're at, but look at the beautiful life that it provides for us.

[00:06:10] Kellee: So we can talk about those ups and downs and how you ended up here now with your own business running courses, you've had product lines, um, and a real major force to be reckoned within the scrapbooking and craft industry and still going strong today. Even though as we were s as we were speaking a minute ago, that industry's changed a lot over the years.

[00:06:33] Kellee: So I would love if you tell, tell our listeners a bit about how it, like, Took off in the beginning, like you said, you were scrapbooking because Yeah. You wanted to create something for your son's. 

[00:06:47] Ali: That's correct. Yep. I wanted to make a baby book for him. You know, some sort of baby book, some sort of documentation, something. Right. Maybe a little bit like, oh, this is what I think I'm supposed to do. You know, it was maybe a little bit of that. [00:07:00] Uh, and I actually just went to a craft store with my mom, um, on the Oregon coast and went in there and I was like, I wanna start doing this. And looked at baby books and most of the baby books that I saw at that point in time, so this would've been 2002, um, were really cutesy, you know, like a lot of ducks and stuff.

[00:07:19] Ali: Yep. Just is not, I would not choose that for myself, which everybody gets to choose their own thing, but that wasn't necessarily my style. And so I ended up doing a little bit of research and I was online looking for communities or just to see, um, you know, what. What other things maybe scrapbooking could look like.

[00:07:37] Ali: And I came across, and this is like pre-Facebook, pre-social media, you know, this is before any of that stuff, which is everything now. Um, 

[00:07:46] Kellee: this is everything now. Back in the days when we used to blog. 

[00:07:50] Ali: Yeah. This was, this was blog time. This was actually even probably pre, I mean, I started blog in 2004. So for me, this is still pre blog, but it's like chat [00:08:00] rooms. And, um, so I found a website that was called Two Peas in a Bucket, which isn't That's what I thought you were gonna say. Yeah. It's not around anymore. Book bucket. Yep. And what I saw on there were people doing scrapbooking and memory keeping with a more modern aesthetic. So a little bit more focus on the photos and photography and taking cool pictures and, uh, mixed with words that, you know, not just the product stuff, but actual. Interesting design parts to it too. I don't know. So that, that definitely spoke to me and I saw what people were doing and I was like, I'm gonna, I'm gonna do this. This looks fun, . 

[00:08:39] Ali: And, you know, I was a stay-at-home mom with a husband that was working and had a graphic design degree and was like, maybe I'll go back to work. Maybe not. Maybe I will just be a stay-at-home mom and I'll have lots of kids and, you know, scrapbook for fun. And that was really when I started. That was it. And I started, when I, when I first started, I loved it so much. I was [00:09:00] doing it every day, like great level of satisfaction from mm-hmm. Print, you know, getting photos printed and writing a little story and.

[00:09:09] Ali: Organizing it on the page and just like it filled me up on the inside and gave me something to do. Maybe, I mean, I had an infant, so it was, that was also something to do, obviously. . Yeah. Squeezed in between. 

[00:09:21] Kellee: Yeah, squeezed in between. 

[00:09:22] Ali: Yeah. It actually, that kind of plays into a part on the story later on, so I'll try to, we'll try to circle back to, to the, the child part at that time, um, with, with my son and it ended up being diagnosed with autism and, uh, young, like two and a half.

[00:09:37] Kellee: Mind you, I've been following you long enough that I remember that. Yeah. 

[00:09:41] Ali: Yeah. was a, it was a, it was, it, it changed my life, um, in a million different ways and cannot imagine it without it. And he's the best thing. Like he just is the best. But lots of fear, lots of, you know, all that mixed into that, um mm-hmm.

[00:09:58] Ali: And actually the fact [00:10:00] that I was scrapbooking helped in some of the conversations that we had with the doctors because I was able to say, look, I've recorded, you know, that he was, had all of these words and then some of those words have been lost now. Mm-hmm. . And so things like that. Anyway, that was a, that was a piece of that story.

[00:10:16] Kellee: That's okay. It's an important part of the story because he's the reason you started and probably a big reason why you've continued, huh? 

[00:10:23] Ali: I think so. Majorly. Majorly, yes. And really for me, what it's been about over the years especially. So he, I, he was my only child for seven years, so I had a second child, um, Anna, who's now 13, 14.

[00:10:39] Ali: Um, So that was my focus. Those were the stories that I was telling. So I told a lot of stories about Simon, stories about myself, stories about myself and my husband. You know, those were, that was my focus for a long time. And for the first couple years I was just sharing online. So just in the communities, sharing lots of sharing, um, kind of getting notice, I would [00:11:00] say, in that space.

[00:11:01] Ali: Mm-hmm. of people commenting and, um, emulating some of the things that I was making, which, you know, I'm always, I, I think I'm a teacher at heart in terms of like, If you see what I'm doing and you would like to do it exactly the same, you should do it exactly the same, because I hope that you learn something in that process, right? Like in scrapbook, nobody, nobody cares if you're copying somebody else's something. Like it just doesn't, your family's, 

[00:11:24] Kellee: I don't even care in my art courses. 

[00:11:26] Ali: Yeah, you, your family, that's how you learn, right? Is, is by doing it. So from, from there, I, with that, that little bit of recognition, I think then there were big scrapbooking magazines at that time, and that was kind of the beginning of, of me working, doing it in a more professional way.

[00:11:44] So I wrote a, an article for a monthly article for a magazine. I ended up writing a couple of books. Um, for that mag the magazine was the publisher books about scrapbooking, which I loved because I was like, oh, I can write more. Right? Here's more writing, more opportunity to, um, [00:12:00] you know, to do the writing and the step by step and all.

[00:12:02] Like, I did all of that. Part of those books in addition to the project. So some people that have done those, you know, other people write, um, for them, they have copywriters and other stuff. And so that was, I liked doing that part of it. Um, so that was, the magazine was kind of the beginning. Go ahead. I

[00:12:19] Kellee: remember you were like on design teams. You were, that was, I was gonna say that. Yep. You were always featured. It was really fun to see like, you know, yeah, you had an aesthetic too. That was pretty easy to pick out. There's like a clean graphic definitely style, which probably comes from your graphic design. Yep. Background. 

[00:12:38] Ali: Very linear. I'm very visually linear, I think too, like that's just mm-hmm. how my, how my brain works. Yeah. So, so design teams, just opportunities. . And again, still even in that early, those early stages, I wasn't like, I'm going to build a business around this. Right. It was, it, it actually was never really like that for me. It just kind of continued to evolve [00:13:00] where I was like, oh, here's another opportunity.

[00:13:02] Ali: Um, yes, I'm interested in taking that. Yes, I will do this one. You know? Yes, I will, um, write that book or yes, I will come to that event and teach a class or, you know, just kind of started like that to where, you know, would you like to design a product? Yes, I would like to do that. And so those kind of things were, that, that growth was happening parallel at the same time.

[00:13:23] Ali: Um, that my husband at the time was ready to be done with his job and run for office. So he was a, uh, Oregon, uh, house of Representatives in Oregon, and then a state senator too. But it was kind of, Over the, over a couple year period, I got to the point where I was making enough money, sorry, I have to think about how many years that was.

[00:13:44] Ali: 2005 is when I say that I official, like my official business date, you know, when I, when I actually probably got a, um, registered as a business. So before that I just looked, you know, less, more of an independent contractor where I was not making enough that it, that it [00:14:00] really mattered. I mean, probably technically it matters. So, you know, no know, know the Yes, but, but get an accountant, , 

[00:14:07] Kellee: you just claim it as individual income. Yeah, I get it. Yeah. Get an, you know, 

[00:14:12] Ali: up to a certain point and then you're like, okay, this is probably not that anymore. . Um, yeah. So what happened for me is I just ended up, I had, I had lots of different partnerships. So I did work for the magazine and I did, um, you know, I would partner with people. I would license my, my artwork to a digital company that would sell it. And then I licensed it to a physical company that sold products briefly. But I just had lots of different partnerships that kind of came together that created the income. 

[00:14:40] Ali: Including teaching classes too. So that was a, that was a big piece of that for a long time. Um, and that went on for probably. I don't even, you know, 10 years or longer of just me by myself, right. Going along, you know, doing all the stuff, doing the customer service, doing the, getting all the emails, um, never [00:15:00] sending out product. I never, I never did that.

[00:15:02] Ali: That was not something that I ever wanted to do, I still don't do now. So I partner with the company now that actually manufacturers and distributes all of the products because that is not of much interest to me. Right. Um, I like to just be able to do the creative part if I can. Um, so, so you free shipping all day long.

[00:15:21] Ali: I'm not shipping. Yeah. I don't that that I, and I, I think that, you know, if it, if it gets to the point someday here where we need to pivot and do that, like we would be able to figure it out, I think. Um, but. The partnership that I have now, which came about probably about six or seven years ago, um, was somebody that came to me and said, what if we pull all of these disparate things you have going on?

[00:15:45] Ali: What if we pull them all together under one umbrella? Um, and we would do the customer service and you know, we as in they, they would do the customer service. They would do the shipping and the manufacturing and provide some design work, help so that it's not me doing all of the [00:16:00] graphic design for all of the things.

[00:16:02] Um, and I said yes. And that's what we've been doing now for the last six years, is we partnered with a company called Ink, which is Studio Calico is the what? The a scrapbooking company originally. Oh, you are partnered with Studio Calico? Yeah. It's, it's so Studio Cal. So inked is their, is their overarching, um, okay. I'm trying to think of the overarching business name. It's the umbrella of the business. Yes. It's the umbrella. And so Studio Calico is how they started. 

[00:16:30] Kellee: Oh, believe me. I know. They took quite a bit of my paycheck. Yes. Well, my husband's paycheck. Yes. A good few years there. Yes. So my love will always be with Studio Calco. Yes. So this is a good conversation. Yes. Yeah. 

[00:16:44] Ali: Well, what happened was April, who owns Studio Calco, she was the one that approached me and said, what do you think about, you know, bringing this all under one umbrella? And I was like, I think that I'm ready to do something, something right. To bring it all together in one place.

[00:16:59] Ali: And it was, [00:17:00] it had been working fine for me, but it wasn't. There was like, there was kind of nowhere else I could go or nowhere else was I was going to go unless I wanted to do the manufacturing or those sorts of things. Mm-hmm. , which I really didn't necessarily wanna do. And so with her, that was the beginning, that's the, I was the first person that they partnered with in that way.

[00:17:20] Ali: Now they've done it with a wide variety of people, um, more of an influencer marketing company. So they partner with people in a variety of different, um, niches, I would say, where they are creating products for them and offering customer service support and doing some of those other things. Um, To create products for influencer influencers, , which I'm still like, you know, whatever.

[00:17:43] Kellee: Well, I mean if we wanna call it an influencer, somebody who just has a ha happens to have a really good idea and a big following. 

[00:17:50] Ali: Yes, yes. That and fair. Yes. Then that's so. Yes. So that's where we're at and that's what we've been doing for the last six years. And that's kind of been a giant [00:18:00] grand experiment of growing together and learning together and figuring out how, how do we make this work?

[00:18:07] Ali: And lots of lots and lots and lots of ups and downs and trials and successes and, you know, all, everything that you can imagine has been a piece of that adventure. And it, and it's been successful too. So that's also been, you know, a really positive outcome. ? Uh, 

[00:18:27] Kellee: well, I mean, I, I've always like, certainly back in the two thousands when I, I was always business minded, like I always wanted to have my own business, but at that point I'm like, okay, well first I was originally an artist.

[00:18:41] Kellee: Uh, well, a fine artist. Everyone's an artist who's making yes I, the way you're making for sure. But I was a fine artist then I had the family. My story is almost identical to yours. I had my first son, it was, it was actually 1998, and I'm like, I wanna make a baby album, but I don't wanna do the [00:19:00] traditional thing.

[00:19:00] Kellee: And I stumbled into scrapbooking as well. Yeah. So it took me a couple more years before I found the whole online forum. But yes, it was that. And then of course, once I discovered Studio Calico, I was no more good. Like I still have some of their stuff even to this day, and I treasure it because they're my favorite.

[00:19:17] Kellee: Yeah. My favorite stuff that I ever purchased during that decade of the 2000s. Um, so yeah, it was the same kind of venture into it, but it has evolved a lot and there are a lot of ups and downs with how I see that the, it, the entire scrapbooking industries changed a lot more to, um, bullet journals, daily journaling. Um, more simplified in some ways, maybe even we were really elaborate at times. 

[00:19:45] Ali: Yeah. I think it's, it's the way that I look at it, it's really more. It's kind of the evolution of memory keeping, right? Mm-hmm. , like it's, they're still scrapbooking in the traditional sense of someone taking, I'm looking at my desk, I'm like, you know, somebody taking a 12 by 12 [00:20:00] sheet of card stock and building something on top, right?

[00:20:03] Ali: Right. There is still a segment of the community that does that, but there have been. There's just been so many other things along the way, like mini books probably when you were around people were, I don't know if people were doing mini books then. So things, you know, just little, little books that are still scrapbooks, you know, with photos and I guess photos would be the distinguisher, right?

[00:20:22] Ali: In terms of what we would consider a scrapbook maybe. Um, photos and some story. That's the part that, that I care about the most. Um, yeah, but it, it, well it is memory keeping then if you really think about how we, how we track through our memory keeping. I like that you distinguish that. Yeah. I think like for people that, that w decorate planners, that's specifically what I'm thinking of, or that are using planners as a memory keeping tool.

[00:20:47] Ali: Mm-hmm. like that is memory keeping. It can be, you know, scrappy and memory keeping kind of, you know, it's just all kind of a mesh together. I'm pretty much of the, of the opinion that whatever documentation you [00:21:00] do is worthwhile. Um, I'm definitely somebody that writes a little bit more and I like to have, mine is more reflective often.

[00:21:09] Ali: Um, and I'm somebody that includes both the highs and the lows. So rather than it just being, you know, a scrapbook of the highlights, I wanna tell the, the different kinds of stories of our life to normalize it for myself and for our family too, of that this is what, you know, everybody has. Highs and lows in their life.

[00:21:28] Right. It's not just birthdays and Christmases and which those are all fun. They're nice to scrapbook to, but I'm way more interested in the everyday life kinds of stuff. Yeah. For me, for me as well. And I've watched that journey, um, with you. I mean, I feel a little bit like a voy, so I don't want it to sound like, well, you don't, you don't have to feel like that.

[00:21:50] What I always say is I put it out there, right? Yeah. So whatever you know about me is because I've shared that. 

[00:21:55] Kellee: And I love that about just seeing, I mean like, even as, as [00:22:00] recent we, I was just mentioning how thrilling it was for me to see Simon and all of his Star Wars adventures, partly because I'm a Star Wars nerd.

[00:22:08] Kellee: I have been watching all the Star Wars episodes every last one of 'em. We do that in my, I'm the mom. I'm a mom of three boys, so Of course, yeah. Yes. Um, but it's just fun to see like that. Joy and just even the transformation in your family as you've, you have a family now and, and 

[00:22:26] Ali: Yep, yep. That's been a, that's a huge part of the story. I mean, star Wars is a huge part of the story. So Simon. So Simon, that's one of his, I would say that is his passion. So Star Wars is his passion. So anything related to Star Wars, books, movies, the whole thing. He is up to date and knows exactly what's going on. Right. Uh, so we watch a lot, you know? Yes. Same, same sort of thing.

[00:22:50] Kellee: Um, so he and I could have a little debate over which one's the best one. Oh, he would love to have that conversation with you. Yes. Okay. 

[00:22:58] Ali: Yes. And then you could talk [00:23:00] about which order you should actually watch them in. Okay. Cause that's another thing. And then he would wanna talk about, um, you know, whether you've seen any of the newer shows that are on H B O, like, And or, and Obi One on Disney Plus.

[00:23:15] Kellee: Yeah. Yes. Oh yes. Can I tell you. Simon Andor is my favorite . That's

[00:23:21] Ali: because Andor is the best. Is so good. Yeah. Well that's cause Rogue One was the best. Yeah. So anyhow, we could go. Good job Kellee. Kellee you're in. 

[00:23:32] Kellee: I in like, I just like, I could see, like, I know my son's a little bit older than my first son is a little older than Simon. So it's fun to watch this whole thing and knowing that you've documented all of that and also shared publicly the trials, the divorce, meeting a new love of your life, having a new family, you know, his children, your children, and all your adventures that you're on now. Um, and I don't. You know, I haven't really kept up [00:24:00] with my, it's making me feel like, okay, maybe there is part of me that needs to get back into that memory. Documenting. It doesn't have to be the way it used to be. 

[00:24:07] Ali: 100% does not ha I mean, there's so many different ways you can do it. You can do photo books, you can do whatever is, 

[00:24:14] Kellee: I like the writing part. Like you 

[00:24:16] Kellee: Yeah, me too. I love the writing part. Yeah, me too. 

[00:24:19] Ali: Lots of people. So another thing you might be interested in too is like notebooks, people are like travelers'. Notebook style. Yeah. Of scrapbooking. That's a whole other, I have a whole bunch of those too. Um, that's another way I think that people have been approaching it that is not the same as that traditional, you know, you have to make it up from the. From the beginning sort of thing. But yeah, one of my, one of my things with scrapbooking and all along has been, uh, you know, it's been a tool for me to make sense of my life and to celebrate.

[00:24:51] Ali: So a lot of what I do, especially with Simon, is celebrating milestones along the way. Right. I remember when he was little, after he was diagnosed, um, [00:25:00] when he was two and a half, I stopped reading all baby books. I was like, I'm not gonna read anymore baby books because these baby books are not going to apply to this story, this chapter that we are embark on.

[00:25:11] Ali: And, uh, that was a, that was a very healthy thing for me, I think. Um, so then it was just focused on his development, right. And, and celebrating everything as he. Has, you know, hit different milestones later than other kids, or not at all in certain cases too. Um, it, it's just been such an opportunity for me to carve out the actual story, right?

[00:25:34] Ali: The actual story is that he's amazing and can't imagine, you know, life without him and how many things can we celebrate, right? Like that's the right, that's the actual story of Simon. And Simon brings so much joy to so many people. And that also, like, that part has been amazing. Yeah. Right? Yeah. Like people like you that seriously have been watching him since he was an infant, you know?

[00:25:56] Ali: Yeah, exactly. Which is kind of weird, but at the same time, it's also, [00:26:00] I think there's a part of, a part of me that has. Uh, and I'm very thankful to the community for this, but has felt buoyed up along the way. Mm-hmm. , um, you know, with him to have people that when I'm like, say, you know, when I tell a story about him, you know, something that shifted or whatever, and I always use this hash hashtag Go Simon, go.

[00:26:21] Ali: It's like people say that now back to me all the time. And it's just such a nice, I think that that has been a really, I I'm, I I'm very thankful, uh, to the people that have watched this story for that kind of feedback. Um, yeah. You know, it's, it is not easy to be a parent of a special needs kid. Like there's just right so many parts of it that are really challenging. And so having that little bit of support from people that I don't know, um, is kind of magical too. 

[00:26:49] Kellee: Yeah, it is. It it, I mean that's where the whole made remarkable idea flourished for me is just seeing, you know, that each of us have our own story, our [00:27:00] own path. The businesses we create, the lives that we create, and looking at it remarkable.

[00:27:06] Kellee: Even when it's not, it's still remarkable. It's still 100%. Yeah. I'm watching just even your personal journey and where you've been and what you've created since then, and, and I, you know, you can, you really sense that, that evolution of joy for you even over the years. Yeah. And, and I love the community that you've created around it too, and I know that it's ever changing, but one thing that seems to stay the same is our one little word, and I wanna ask you about this because I feel like you were the originator of it.

[00:27:40] Ali: Yeah. I don't know. I, who knows, I, I'm sure I, I don't, I never think of it like, this is my idea. Like that's definitely not how I think about it. And I, I started doing it in 2006, so like the concept of, let's pick a word and. Instead of, you know, having resolutions or anything else, [00:28:00] I think I just, I'm somebody that likes to have something to focus on, but I don't, I don't need a big, long list of things that I'm like trying to fix about myself.

[00:28:10] Ali: Right. Like, or, and, and so having one word I did it for, for five years, just each year I'd be like, oh, this is my word. I'm gonna do this. And I didn't do any documentation alongside that. But then in 2011, I started running a workshop and when I started running a workshop, then I was doing monthly documentation about my experience myth with my word, and like making it much more alive.

[00:28:35] Ali: Mm-hmm. for myself, because each month I was just coming back. Not like giant project, you know, this has to take tons of time. Remembering, you know, remembering what my word is, that helped to remember what my word is. And it helped me because it gave me, gave me lots of opportunities to write, um, to do crafty little creative things.

[00:28:54] Ali: We do mixed media sometimes in there. Um, so that's a class that has continued [00:29:00] on now where it's in the 12th year or however many years. Uh, and I did that by myself for 10 years. Yeah, 10 year, I mean, so 12 years. So for 12 years, every single month I've done something about whatever word I've been living.

[00:29:15] Ali: And sometimes that is when I actually stop to think about that. Like those are the things that I'm like, oh my God, that's actually been, that it's been that long every month. Yeah. I love having a word though. So my word actually this year is joy and, uh, I'm just trying. 

[00:29:33] Kellee: Yes. Embody, 

[00:29:34] Ali: bring it in, trying to feel it, trying to, no.

[00:29:37] Kellee: When you started doing the one little word, did, was it something that you, someone else gave you the idea? Or do you feel like that was just something you did for yourself? I think that it, I, I honestly don't remember. Yeah. So, and I, that's why I'm like, I'm not, not gonna ever claim that there, there's somebody else.

[00:29:55] Kellee: Ok. Cause I, I've been adamant in the past that you're the original . 

[00:29:58] Ali: Oh, well, well, [00:30:00] thanks Kellee. I just don't know if that's true and 

[00:30:02] Kellee: I mean, I can, I can see like, where, where does the unoriginal idea come from? 

[00:30:07] Ali: Yes. So I know that there was some, there has been, there's a whole community, like a, uh, a faith-based community mm-hmm.

[00:30:15] Ali: and which is not necessarily, that's not as, Not a part of my experience, but there is a whole faith-based arena and somebody that had written a book that's like, you know, living with a word, you know, it's very like biblical, biblically focused, which is not, again, that's not where I'm going. Yeah. One little word is not that.

[00:30:33] Ali: Okay. Yeah. I mean, it can be, it can be if you want it to be, but that's not like when you, if you take the workshop for me, we're not, I'm not coming at it from a faith-based or religious mm-hmm. just to be, just personal growth. Yeah, just personal growth. Um, and so I, I've looked that up before and that the person that wrote that, it was around the same time, like they were writing the book around the same time. I don't know. 

[00:30:56] Kellee: Today everybody talks about it when you just come and they just put [00:31:00] them in Everybody. Yeah. Things is, it was time to be part of the world. 

[00:31:04] Ali: It just was what it, I think it was what I needed at that particular point in time in, in 2006, you know, definitely like had been blogging for two years and that all 2006. Is that before Facebook too? That's when I try, try to remember these things. 

[00:31:18] Kellee: I don't, I don't think Facebook really became a thing publicly until maybe 2008 or nine. 

[00:31:23] Ali: Okay, that's what I thought. So it's pre that too. So it would've been just me blogging about writing about it and sharing about what I was interested in. Um, yeah. 

[00:31:34] Kellee: And now whether people know that that's something you've been doing forever and that you run workshops or not everyone loves the ritual of picking a word for the year. 

[00:31:45] Ali: This year seems like even more, like as I scroll through Instagram, I'm just like, it's like every. , which I think is great because I really do think that it is a fantastic way to [00:32:00] live, actually, is really what it is like to live throughout the year.

[00:32:03] Ali: To have something specific that you're focusing on rather than feeling like, no, we all have things we wanna change about ourselves. Or change Yeah, or adjust. Or improve, or whatever word you want to throw in there. Um, I really see it as like a, a getting back to myself, like an uncovering of who my true self actually is versus, you know, who my parents or what I was taught growing up.

[00:32:26] Ali: It's, it's continued to be like an uncovering of all of that each year. Yeah. As I've gone on, I'm like, okay, this is, you know, another layer gets peeled back of. I actually don't care about that thing, but I care about this thing like that, you know, me as a, me as an individual person. Um, so that's been a big part of it for me.

[00:32:45] Ali: It's also been something that has helped me through all of those challenges that you have referenced earlier, like going through a divorce. Um, and you know, e all through that time I was scrapbooking and I was running workshops and I was [00:33:00] doing all of the things that I still do now. And I really feel like documenting pieces of that journey were really helpful for me.

[00:33:08] Ali: Um, and I am not the person that's like. I hate you. You know, like it was not, it's, those are not the kind of stories that I would tell. Um, but I would talk about how it was hard, right? Like today was hard and this was hard. And here I am now with, you know, two little kids and what am I doing and can I support myself? And all of those kinds of questions. 

[00:33:31] Kellee: Which, and that was a question I was curious about, was the, the business base that you had created enough to sustain you and carry you through and support? 

[00:33:39] Ali: It was, yes. And so I, I felt very, very lucky for that fact, you know, that I had already, I was established enough that it was going to continue supporting us and, um, Yeah, I wa it was, I, it was one of the things that I was [00:34:00] probably the most nervous about.

[00:34:02] Ali: Like even I had an amicable divorce, so my hus, my ex-husband and I are still friends and, uh, we do things together with all of our, both of our families. But it was, it was very challenging. Yeah. 

[00:34:16] Kellee: Yeah. I definitely looked at you as a very brave soul continuing on and showing up through all of that. I mean, you have through all of your challenges.

[00:34:26] Ali: Yeah, and I think, so part of that is interesting because having the business, like I had to, yeah, right. I, there, there, especially because I needed, I needed to have an income. Um, I, I couldn't just, Doing it. I mean, I'm sure I could have pivoted and like gotten a real job or whatev, you know, which I don't, you know, that's my, my favorite one, finger rotation.

[00:34:47] Kellee: That's the card to imagine doing a real job. 

[00:34:50] Ali: I would never do a real job. Oh my God, I don't wanna do a real job. Um, but yeah, the flexibility that I had already built into the way that I was working, I've always [00:35:00] worked from home. That has been huge. So I've always had, you know, been able to organize my own schedule and, and make all of those kinds of adjustments within my working life.

[00:35:10] Ali: So that made things easier. Um, . And it also was the kind of thing where, because we shared time with the kids when the kids were gone, I did a lot of work, you know, when the kids were gone, I would work as much as I could so that when they came back, then I could do more of my mom things and have more flexibility in my schedule.

[00:35:29] Ali: But I was really scared, like in the very beginning, especially, I was really scared about whether or not the, the money was gonna work out and, you know, would we, would we be okay? And, you know, there was lots of pieces to that story too. Um, 

[00:35:43] Kellee: do you feel like there's still a lot of ups and downs and uncertainty with the way, I mean, everything?

[00:35:50] Ali: Not financially, no. 

[00:35:52] Kellee: Uh, you feel, you feel pretty secure with that, even with this looming recession and all the BS that they wanna like put over our head. 

[00:35:59] Ali: [00:36:00] I, I feel. Let's see how I wanna figure out how to say this. I, I'm always conscientious, , I would say that. So I think that we will, we will probably be making some changes this year to pull back a little bit just as a protective measure to make sure that we're being good stewards.

[00:36:21] Ali: You know, I don't wanna have extra in, nobody wants extra inventory. And, you know, so, so we do a, we talk about a lot of those kinds of things, and that's one of the things that the partnership has been great about is, um, you know, really being able to dive deep into all of those aspects of it and which parts are successful and which parts aren't.

[00:36:40] Ali: And how do we pivot from here? And, um, I also, I, I feel very comfortable in that if I needed to pivot, I could do something. You know, like mm-hmm. There would be a way for me to generate an income. And even in my situation now, uh, being remarried, I'm still the, the larger. [00:37:00] Earner, um, right. In our household.

[00:37:03] Ali: And so that requires certain things too, you know, to be careful about certain things and can't just stop doing them. There's Right. An evolution. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. 

[00:37:15] Kellee: I never, I never, in my younger scrapbooking days, never imagined that the creativity would lead to me also being the bigger earner in the house. That's just, it's sometimes mind blowing what's possible when you start your own business and you c and you can see the path in which you can make it grow. Yeah. But I never imagined that because when you're a homemaker, a stay-at-home mom, and you've spent the entire paycheck on scrapbook, supplies, , and for the support.

[00:37:46] Kellee: Yeah. Me, my pivot back into the art world was mostly because every time I. Was published or did something. I got paid in scrapbook supplies, which was nice, but I'm like, I would [00:38:00] really like to make something of this. So, yeah. Um, but it is beautiful. Also, the online world changed so much that gave us so many more opportunities, and I love that we can keep reinventing it.

[00:38:12] Ali: And even with one thing that I think, I've done a little research because I'm not really afraid of a recession. If it's happening again, it's happening again. Yeah. The thing that I think that's really cool that I've studied over the past is that when there's a downturn, the thing that people don't stop doing is making for themselves and being comforted by their own, what their hands can do, what their creativity can exude.

[00:38:39] Kellee: Because I even, I, you know, I even looked at the recession and even the depression. There were certain things that never took a downturn. Oh, interesting. So being in this creative field is, you know, when we still need connection, we still need community. We still need to be creative. I feel like there's just such a, you know, I mean, think it brought us through the [00:39:00] pandemic.

[00:39:00] I know I wouldn't have survived through that if it wasn't for. What we were able to create amongst us. Yeah. And even though I know we're all a little tired of online, it's still there. We know we can connect with people across the world. Yeah. 

[00:39:13] Ali: Yeah. I think that, for me, that resonates with me in lots of different ways too. And I, I think one of the things that I've done the last couple of years, and this was it, little bit pre pandemic, and then just through the last two years is kind of reevaluating, you know, what's working for me, for me, right. Not just for the business, but what is also working for me as a person. Mm-hmm.

[00:39:35] Ali: and social media, like, I can just, I, I try really hard to just ride the waves of it because there are so many positive things and, but there are also so many negative things. So figuring out the ways that we can exist in the space. One of the things that I've been continually trying to do and say is just normalizing that people disappear for a [00:40:00] little bit and then come back, you know, and, and not even disappear, but just take a break.

[00:40:04] Ali: Like, take a break from, it's like a second world really in so many ways, right? We have a world that we live in, in our, in our physical homes and our physical local communities. And then we also have a world that we live in that encompasses the literal world, right? Where we can connect with anybody. And I think the shift, our generational shift and, and this opportunity to be able to connect with the entire world is both wonderful and ridiculously overwhelming

[00:40:38] Ali: And, you know, just, and I know, I mean, you've probably experienced some of this too. I mean, the, the, the negativity, the things that people can say, people are just unkind, you know, they, for whatever reason, like that's been also a part. I mean, I think everybody that's online times suck. 

[00:40:57] Ali: Just the times suck. Just the scrolling. Just, I mean, I, [00:41:00] that's another thing I try to say to our community regularly is how much are you, how ma, how long have you been sitting here scrolling that you got to me and you could have been making something, you know, you could have been making that scrap up page that you're looking for inspiration for, but you've spent now two hours doing that.

[00:41:17] Ali: Yeah. Yeah. I'm continually like trying to navigate that and I don't have it all figured out whatsoever, but, Being able to take a step back a little bit for me has been great, and I've hired more people so that I can do that and, and be able to say, okay, I, this is really, like, this is distracting me from the other stuff that I actually wanna do.

[00:41:39] Ali: And the things that I, you know, the SCR pages that I wanna make and the projects that I wanna do. It's like a weight it can feel like weight. It is, it is definitely a balance that is taking me a really long time to figure out, like you, it's like, okay, there has to be a way that we can continue to run the business and be present in our actual lives.

[00:41:58] Ali: Yes. I think we are a living [00:42:00] experiment, right? Like, this is not, yeah. No one else has, this is not existed before. So there's no roadmap. There's nobody, there's nobody that's saying this is the, I mean, there's lots of people that are saying this is the way to do it. 

[00:42:09] Kellee: Right. But I mean, this is a lot of years of figuring it out and learning, and honestly just learning how to hire people you can trust. Hire people that can take over and exude the same kind of love and energy that you would. Yeah. And let your community know that they're part of that whole experience. Yeah. Cause I have just gotten to that point in the last two years where I can't answer customer service questions all day long because then there's nothing left for me to just show up and be me and give like my energy would be Dr.

[00:42:41] Kellee: Just drained completely. Yeah. So I think that's the evolution of the entrepreneur. Yeah. In our creative space, it's like, totally, we did all the things you got, you got hooked up with a great manufacturer company that can help run all of that kind of stuff. But like when it actually comes to like [00:43:00] showing up and being present, even if it's online or if it's in person, like how are we gonna do that if we don't have other people to take over? Yeah. Yeah. Parts of the journey. 

[00:43:08] Ali: Yeah. 100%. And that was slow. I mean, that was really slow for me too. So I, like I said, I think I did. Probably 10 years by myself. And then I had hired a nanny for Anna, my daughter that was, that was born in whatever, 2009. Um, I hired a nanny and she was getting ready to go back to school.

[00:43:29] Ali: And I was like, now I really like having you here. What, you know, maybe there's some other work for you to do. And so ended up, she ended up not going to, or not becoming a dental hygienist, which is what she was gonna do. And started working in my office with me and like doing a little bit of office work and then still doing nannying.

[00:43:47] Ali: And then, oh, she's worked for me now for 10 years. She's the boss. Like she's the boss of me. That's the thing, you got a boss of you, you gotta have a boss of you. I, I, I ha 

[00:43:57] Kellee: I had someone who was my virtual [00:44:00] assistant who became my executive virtual assistant. And then just this fall I was like, Lisa, can you just be the boss now, and I literally gave her the c o o position and said, you tell me what I need to do. And make it all run because we're creative brains and when we have someone who can run things operational, the amount of creativity I can, I can 

[00:44:23] Ali: you see me? I'm just like, naughty, naughty, 

[00:44:26] Kellee: changes everything. But I do recognize that there's a process in building your business to a point where financially that makes sense.

[00:44:33] Ali: 100%. Yes. I mean there, all of those things come into play and even, you know, with Katie, like when I first hired her, she was paid very differently than she's paid now. Right. You know, so that there's been an evolution along the way too of, of, as things have grown. You know, and as the need for additional, like, we've hired two other people now, and so she oversees the other two people and they take over.

[00:44:57] Ali: You know, they take, because that I am not [00:45:00] a, I'm not a good man people manager either. Like, that's not a, I know , you gotta, you gotta, you gotta know your skills right in the beginning. You gotta do everything. And then you gotta be able to, how to figure out how to let things go. And that was really hard for me actually for a number of years. Also because I'm me too controlled. 

[00:45:17] Kellee: Do you feel like you're gonna be able to grow your business better now though, with the right support now that you're turning things over, or, oh, for sure. Maybe you don't have a desire to continue to grow. I don't know. My ambition is always like, reach for the stars, but just to give space for growth, I think, yeah, space.

[00:45:34] Ali: I want just small space for growth. Like, I don't, I've, I've never, and I don't know if this is part of like, like we were talking about earlier, you know, when I, when I first started doing this, I mean, I really thought I was gonna be, you know, married to the same person for the rest of my life. And I thought that that person was going to be the, the, you know, very traditional right?

[00:45:53] Ali: Be the breadwinner. I thought I was gonna have five kids. Like that's really what the vision that I had for my life. And then as [00:46:00] shifted, you know, first with starting to do work stuff and then getting a divorce and then, you know, later on getting remarried and now actually having five kids, which is totally bananas to me when I think about it.

[00:46:13] Ali: um, you know, it's like we just don't know what's gonna happen and you gotta just, it's like one foot in front of the other and figuring it out as you go along I think is so much of the, of the process. 

[00:46:26] Kellee: For sure. All right, so on that note, I wanna know what. I, I, I have like a, a new mantra for the year. Like, what's your big audacious dream? Which spells bad? So how are you gonna be bad? Tell me your big audacious dream.

[00:46:42] Ali: Do you, you know, okay, so this is, this is, this is what I was, this is what I was trying to say before. See, I get sidetracked sometimes when I'm like, oh, where am I? Where am I going with this? So I am not a big audacious dreamer. I am just not, that is like not a part. And I don't, I don't feel bad about it. It's like, it's not a part of my personality. I'm [00:47:00] significantly more of a sustainer kind of person. So, and slow growth. So for me, like, you know, all of the years of just kind of going along and taking different opportunities and pivoting and change, you know, doing mm-hmm.

[00:47:12] Ali: being mindful as I've gone along, but I don't, like, I am not a conqueror. Conquer the industry, conquer the world kind of person. , I'm, I'm much more, uh, lifestyle focused also. And that actually comes a lot from Aaron, who's my husband now, is he is definitely more of that kind of person. Like, you know, what is your actual life like?

[00:47:33] Ali: Um, and how do you actually spend your time outside of, you know, being in your office all day? Which I'm very comfortable right here. This is a nice space. Like, I know, you know, I can, I could be here all the time and I could work all the time. Me, me too. Yes. But he is not like that, 

[00:47:47] Kellee: you know, big audacious dream doesn't have to be like, reach for the stars and, and make millions of dollars and beyond Oprah. What if your big audacious dream is just something, even like for me, one of my big dreams is to [00:48:00] have a cabin in the woods that I know my family can come to year after year, after year, after year. Okay. It's family. That's fair. Yes. 

[00:48:08] Ali: Okay, good. Okay. Thank you for reframing that for me, because as you can tell, I don't have big audacious business dreams.

[00:48:14] Ali: I j I mean, I would like to continue what I'm doing because I enjoy it and I would like to continue enjoying it. So I would like to normalize stepping back and stepping in and stepping back and stepping in. Mm-hmm. , that's kind of what my, my hope is. Um, I would love to, we have a camper van. We got a camper van a couple years ago, so I would totally love to go, you know, for a couple months even. And just do that, me and Erin and the dog. So we gotta, we have to wait a little bit long cuz we still have kids, um, that are in the house. 

[00:48:42] Kellee: I, I'm empathizing with you on this. I love the kids. It was fun while they were young, but as they're getting older it's getting a lot more fun to just go do fun things. It's completely, we live in a, I mean, I go to bed at nine o'clock and they don't go to bed until one in the morning. So , so then [00:49:00] I get up at five 30 and nobody try, it's 10 40, 54 here. We'll see who's up. There may be no one up right now, . Seriously, that's the same. Like Yeah, I relate. We have, well, again, all the way back to 2000 and whatever.

[00:49:14] Ali: Yeah. We've, I think we're in a similar life phase. Right. And that's a big, I mean, I, earlier on, I think I did a lot more striving, right. There was, there wa there was more striving, even if I wasn't like, I'm gonna take over everything. Like, that's never been, I just don't care about that. Um, but I think I wanted to be comfortable and I wanted to have a, you know, a, a level of success that, that was a good feeling kind of success.

[00:49:38] Ali: Mm-hmm. Right. That I, where I was making a difference. I think that, that, uh, matters to me. Making a difference in some sort of a way Yeah. To one person or another like that. It's more about that for me. Um, but I've also been able to, you know, have a successful business that has supported, you know, travel and, and, and school for our kids and, you know, that [00:50:00] kind of stuff too.

[00:50:00] Ali: Which, when I say it out loud, it's, I, I think that I don't, I don't spend, I, I don't, uh, I don't wanna say congratulate. I don't honor myself enough for what has been built. I think a lot of my time has been spent on like, what's the next, you know, we gotta move on to the next thing, right? What's the next thing?

[00:50:18] Ali: What's the next project? What's the next whatever? And so that's something actually that, that, that's something I would like to work on. Maybe that could that be a big audacious dream is to just like own, own my, own my own story a little bit. 

[00:50:33] Kellee: own the fact that you are remarkable and you've made something incredibly remarkable.

[00:50:39] Kellee: Thank you. And I do love how you said is that, Sometimes the big business dream is how many people you get to serve in the process. Yeah. And when you have good income goals, you know that there's financial security for your family. You like, like you, it's like, oh my goodness. You know? Of course my kids didn't have like Harvard University dreams, but their community college was [00:51:00] all paid for.

[00:51:00] Kellee: They have no debt. Yes. Yeah. You know, and so when you see those joys, you should absolutely give yourself a huge pat on the back. There's your next, there's your just next memory keeping is all the things that building this beautiful business has afforded you and the people that you've hired to be able to have in their life.

[00:51:18] Ali: I mean, like that's, thank you Kellee. 

[00:51:20] Kellee: Yeah. Very beautiful. 

[00:51:21] Ali: Yeah. Yeah. I'll take that. 

[00:51:23] Kellee: So I'm gonna tell you my word of the year. My word. Okay. Let's hear. It was something I thought was cliche, but it's been hitting me like huge. My word of the year is love. Mm-hmm. . And it's because I'm learning on new levels what love means.

[00:51:40] Kellee: and it's really quite powerful. And you know, it's something that I've put a big barriers up for so many years to protect myself. Even with, like my husband and I, we've been married for 24 years now, and he is a very giving man. I mean, we're both strong personalities, but he is a very giving man. And I still will put the barriers up, like [00:52:00] gotta protect myself.

[00:52:00] Kellee: But in this last year, a lot of those layers are coming down and like, I'm gonna pick something. Like I was thinking about joy and other things and I'm like, Nope, love and love might be my, my word of the year for the rest of my life. 

[00:52:13] Ali: But I think it's so interesting. I, I that's, I love, I love that love, love. I love love. Um, again, I think that you and I, like I said, are in similar phases in our lives too. Just like you were saying that the, the. I've felt over the last couple of years, this a, a le a layer, a letting go of a layer, right? Like that layers have been shed again. You know, whether it's just how, how I feel about myself, my level of comfort and whatever, um, you know, whatever my own weird stuff in my head is.

[00:52:45] Ali: There's just been, you know, shifts of things that I cared about before that I don't care about anymore. Right. You know? And, and that I think is, there's a lot of growth in that. But I also wanted to say, I think I, I mean, most, most years I haven't picked a [00:53:00] word that a lot of people have picked. And so this year picking joy, like there's a lot of people that pick joy.

[00:53:06] Ali: Um, probably like there's a lot of people that pick love, but I don't discount at all the power in your own life, right? It doesn't matter what anybody else is picking. It doesn't matter if it feels like it's a generic word. It's more about you and what is happening in your own life, and what are the reasons why you picked that word, and how is that gonna work?

[00:53:26] Ali: how is that going to work its way, you know, into you over the course of the year because you picking love is different than, you know, a 30 year old who picks love, like their experience and probably their focus is maybe something a little bit different just because they don't have the same life experience that we've had.

[00:53:42] Ali: Right, right. Up until the this point, 

[00:53:45] Kellee: would you say maybe sometimes the word picks us ?

[00:53:48] Ali: 100%? Yeah, 100%. Some years I have, um, been, it's been very, like, I've been very straightforward where I'm like, 100% I know what this, I'm, I'm picking, I am picking this [00:54:00] word. And there are other years where the, the words just keep, it just keeps like ticking in your head, right.

[00:54:06] Ali: Of like, wait, you should pick me. You should pick me. You should pick me. Yeah. Sometimes it's scary. Yeah, sometimes it's really fun 

[00:54:12] Kellee: and it's cool because if you do. If you are mindful of the word throughout the year, you really do see how much actually manifests from it. Like, like really shows up in your life.

[00:54:25] Kellee: Yeah. Remember the year that I picked abundance was the first year that my business went over six figures. That's awesome. And the year that I picked change was the year that we moved from one place to another and lots of changed happened. So in other words, my point being is, is your one little word has made a big difference in my life and probably almost everyone who's li listening knows that it's so important.

[00:54:49] It's a big, well,

[00:54:49] Ali: it's made a big difference for me personally too, and I think that, that this gets back to the, you know, the way that we work or the work that we do, and always trying. , make sure, [00:55:00] not make sure, I don't even, that's not the right language, but keeping the focus on the things that we really love, right?

[00:55:05] Ali: Mm-hmm. and the pieces, the parts of the businesses that we really love, and the, the, the, the, the projects that bring us the most joy. Like that for me, I mean, I have, you know, 12 going on my 12th year of an album that has every single month where I've written something down or I've done something related to my word.

[00:55:23] Ali: And so for me, in December of each year, I go back and I look at January and I see. , you know, oh, these are, these are the intentions that I wrote down. This is the things that I was hoping for myself this year. And I'm able to then, like, flip through the album if somebody wants to see them, they're on, you can see 'em on YouTube too.

[00:55:39] Ali: I do an end of the year flip through just to see what it looks like. Mm-hmm. , um, you know, where then I'm, I'm like reading back over the course of the whole year of what did I learn and how did I grow this year? Or did I even like this word, this z up being a word that I hated. Like, that happens sometimes, or you know, that it's like a word that I'm like, I just don't really connect with this word, which I'm always [00:56:00] like, just change your word if it's not, you know it.

[00:56:02] Ali: Yeah. 

[00:56:03] Ali: So manufactured 

[00:56:04] Ali: timelines of one year, right? Like this is a, I think you can learn something from every single word though. So that's, that's definitely my, my core perspective. 

[00:56:14] Kellee: I love it. Thank you so much for joining me, Allie. I could probably talk to you for another hour or two because we have so much in common. And, um, 

[00:56:24] Ali: Well, let me know if you wanna chat, Kellee. Just reach out. Well there. 

[00:56:28] Kellee: I would be happy to do it again and we'll probably need to bring you back on again on the podcast. 

[00:56:32] Ali: Have another check-in, 

[00:56:34] Kellee: have another check-in, have another moment of commiserating the ups and downs of, and, and beautiful life that having our own business can bring to us.

[00:56:43] Ali: So yes, 1 million. 

[00:56:45] Kellee: And then can everybody find you, Ali? Um, I believe you have two Instagram accounts. One for you personally, that's all. 

[00:56:52] Ali: Yeah, which is just at Ali Edwards. Yep. And then, and then the other one is the business. The business one is at Ali Edwards [00:57:00] Design Inc. And that's the one where we post more like project related stuff or, you know, promotional things.

[00:57:05] Ali: What's happening pro in the in product and project land. Mm-hmm. . And then my personal one is really. There. There have been years where I've shared lots of scrap stuff on there, and then it's the last couple years it's been more just pictures. And sometimes I'm there and sometimes I'm not . 

[00:57:21] Kellee: That's why. I know why, why all about Simon and his Star Wars.

[00:57:25] Ali: That's right. Lots of Simon on there. And actually I did a bunch of stories. Yeah, I mean this is, this'll probably come later, but just yesterday I did a bunch of stories, so I kind of go in like waves. I'm like, yeah, I'm super, yay. I feel like chatting and then just like in life, right? I feel like talking today, tomorrow. I don't feel like talking . 

[00:57:42] Kellee: There you go. Thank you so much for joining me, and I appreciate you so much. 

[00:57:48] Ali: Thanks, Kellee. You're the best. 

[00:57:52] Kellee: Hey, thank you so much for listening to the episode today. I hope that you enjoyed the conversation with [00:58:00] Ali Edwards as much as I did. We had a great exchange of energy and I felt like the ideas were flowing.

[00:58:06] Kellee: It was so much fun to talk to her. Here's my takeaway for the day again. The journey of entrepreneurship is long and you never know what's gonna come up. Allie allowed it to unfold for her and she built her business around her lifestyle first, and I really admire that about her, is that she was able to do something that kept her present for her children and and watch them grow.

[00:58:34] Kellee: And through the trials and tribulations that she's been through, she's been able to build the business around the lifestyle that she wants to live and continues to live, including her big audacious dream that someday she'll be able to ride off with her husband in the awesome RV camper, campervan, and travel around the United States and still be able to maintain.

[00:58:57] Kellee: Beautiful, remarkable [00:59:00] business. So if you found this episode inspiring, if you find where we're going with the Made Remarkable podcast, enlightening and lighting you up along the way, then please hit subscribe and give us that five star rating. That makes a huge difference of being able to show up in podcast search engines and help the podcast thrive.

[00:59:23] Kellee: It's really important to me that we're around for years to come so I can continue to serve you and bring you the very best in creative entrepreneurship. Strategy and direction and inspiration, and especially to help you know that you already have what it takes. You are made remarkable as you are, and I want to help you fulfill all those big audacious dreams yourself.

[00:59:51] Kellee: So I would love it if you would share this on Instagram and tag me. I'm at Kellee Wynne, k e l l e e w [01:00:00] y n n e. And I would love to see you like just putting this great, awesome energy out into this world so that maybe a few other people will discover the fact that they are too made remarkable. Thank you so much and I love you.

If you'd like to listen to or learn more about the podcast visit https://www.maderemarkable.com/blog  for our show notes and links to the main players.