My beautiful Elaine is all grown up.
Change is difficult and growing up is hard. I started making soaps when Elaine was 12 years old and full of opinions. She told me no one would buy them because they were boring and needed color. I wanted to include her in my soap business and had the idea to make a line of soaps for her. We came up with The Laney Line. I asked her to name each soap. She talked to some of her friends for their ideas and then we talked. She decided Lily was green and pink and looked like a lily pad, Skylar was blue and white and looked like the sky, Piper was a layered soap and looked like pipes, and Gwen was pink and she thought Gwen was a pink and feminine name. I was excited because the soaps reflected my daughter and she felt invested in them.
For a while now, I’ve been feeling that it’s time to make some changes. Elaine is now 29, married and going to be a mom herself. She has her own life and we don’t live in the same state. We don’t talk about soap anymore and I’ve always liked a more natural looking soap. The vibrant colors of the Laney Line were for the little girl who was excited to help her mom. I spoke with Elaine and we decided it’s time for The Laney Line to retire. Even though this is something I want to do, I’m a little sad. Change is difficult and growing up is hard.
I’ll bring them back each holiday season because I love how they looked wrapped in a simple cello bag. And if one of them was a favorite of yours, you can always request a custom order. For now though, when I sell the last one, it will be a bittersweet feeling.
Have you ever made a decision you knew was right for you, but still made you sad?
Yours in Gratitude,
Angela