When I was a
freshman in college, I went to Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato. I
transferred in over winter break and decided to attend this college because 1:
it was a Christian college and 2: I wanted to play college basketball. While I was there I spent a lot of time with
the ladies on the basketball team and made a few other friends here and there….but
always felt like it was sort of hard to jump right into making friends during
the middle of the school year since everybody seemed to already have their
group of friends.
I was taking a
general education class that spring and now when I look back on this I just
have to laugh. Everyday this girl would
come walking in and I didn’t have any idea of who she was—but I remember
thinking to myself that I felt like we would be great friends. She always had sweatpants and a basketball
t-shirt on—and so did I…She also always had her hair up on top of her head full
of messy curls…and So did I.
One of the
spring afternoons there was a BLC baseball game and a few of us were hanging
out together watching the game. Here
this girl came up and sat down next to us and began talking. She knew some of the girls that I was talking
with…but she and I had never actually been introduced before. As soon as she sat down we began to talk and
got along instantly and I felt like I had known her my whole life!! The conversation led to plans and ideas for
the summer…and both she and I didn’t really have anything planned. She brought up the fact that she would love
to go work at a camp for the summer—and I agreed with her about how much fun that
would be. She explained a little bit
about the organization she had come across and we agreed to fill out the
information. It was SO crazy! We had
just met…and then all of a sudden we were agreeing to work at a camp and live
together for the whole summer! It really
just makes me laugh because we had no idea what we were doing or what we were
getting ourselves into!:) We hadn’t
really thought it through—or knew if this was actually legit…We just totally
went with it and before we knew it…we found out that we were going to be
lifeguards for an Armenian camp in Massachusetts!
Here we are...taking our first step towards Massachusetts!
On the plane...a little sad to leave Minnesota but excited for what God had in store for us!
We spent the
WHOLE summer together…and when I mean whole summer…I mean, we seriously were
attached by the hip!! Everywhere Jess
went…I went…and everywhere I went…she went….There was never a time that the two
of us weren’t seen without each other. It was SO much fun and although some
days at camp got a little long—it was the BEST experience just because we were
together.
Exploring on our day off in Boston!
In front of our Cabin
Bowling in Franklin, MA.
Jess--Shanna--Kayla...Down by the beach where we spent most of our days.
While we were at
camp, there were many mornings and nights that we would go for a walk or a run
together…and these were the moments that I absolutely loved. Jess and I have SO much in common…The way we
look at life…the way we dream and have high hopes about our futures…the way our
faith and family are important to us…the way we have always been passionate
about sports and about helping others…We seriously are just SO much a
like!! Something that cracked us up ALL
summer long is that we always got asked by all of the kids at camp if we were
SISTERS! ….And then there was so many times that not only did the kids ask if
we were sisters….but they would ask if we were TWINS. We would always look at each other and just
LAUGH because we got this ALL the time and it just blew our minds!! Right away when we first got the question it
was like, “What?? Sisters? Twins?? Us??”
….And then after we got asked this for the whole summer it was just a
laughing joke—we couldn’t get over it! I
have dark curly hair and at the time she had long red—blonde curly hair, so we
felt like we didn’t really look alike, but I guess we always wore the same
style of clothes and always had our hair the same. :)
During our walks
we would share our hearts with one another…we would talk about what we got
excited about in life…and how we both wanted to CHANGE the WORLD. We imagined ourselves going on family
vacations together…we imagined ourselves having kids at the same age so they
could be the BESTEST of friends…we also talked about how we wanted to help
people…We both never really saw ourselves working a 8:00—5:00 type of job…just
because we felt like God had something MORE…something BIGGER planned for us. We
really had no idea what it looked like…or what we would do…we just knew that we
wanted to change the world….we wanted to make a difference…and we wanted to
enjoy our “job” whatever it was that God had in store for us. We talked many, many different times about how
awesome it would be to start our own non-profit organization…something to do
with sports…or helping children in need….or reaching out to moms or women that
were in difficult situations…whatever it was…we didn’t know…but we were confident
that God would someday show us…and that He would someday use our hearts to help
others who were in need.
Here we are...waiting in the airport for our flight back to Minnesota.
After our summer
at camp we still stayed very close…she lived a long ways away from me…and we didn’t
get to see each other that often…but what we shared that summer was so touching
and it truly was a one of a kind type of friendship—the friendship that only
God could have arranged and planned to better glorify His kingdom.
Last March, Jess
came to visit me and she was so excited—I remember looking at her and laughing…thinking
what in the world is this lady thinking?!:)
She just signed-up to be a Mary Kay Beauty Consultant and she needed a
few faces to practice on. When she told me how much she loved it and she wanted
to do this for the rest of her life…I seriously was so confused? She was a sporty type of girl…a girl that
would always wear sweatpants and hardly NO makeup…the last thing I could see
her doing was selling Mary Kay…But I will admit…when we met together and she
did a facial for me…I remember thinking how this would actually be sort of
fun. She was SO excited about it…and
although I had never really heard anything about Mary Kay and didn’t even know
what it was all about…If she enjoyed it…I certainly would enjoy it too—right?
Here we are...Jess was pregnant with Macoy...And all she wanted to do was stay at home with him once he was born--and NOW she can! Because of MARY KAY she is at home with her BABY!!!! :)
Jess called me a
few days later after we met and just told me how she thinks I would absolutely
LOVE Mary Kay and that she would LOVE for me to join her team. I seriously didn’t think twice about it—She loved
it and was SO HAPPY with it…that I knew I would feel the SAME way. I hung up the phone and decided to sign-up
right away! We really had no idea what
God was doing or what His plans were…but we felt great about this and decided
to JUMP right in!!
Here I am at Seminar last year in Texas--With my DREAM CAR!:)
I would just
like to tell you that Mary Kay has truly been a BREATH of FRESH AIR in my
life. I had heard SO many great and
wonderful things about the company…and I remember thinking, “How in the world can this company be THAT
good? …How can it be THAT successful? Is
there some type of a catch?” After I
had heard about some of the great things about this company, I found out that
this company was a Christian-based company…AND THEN, the light bulb went on!
Mary Kay Ash always believed that when she had these priorities in order: God
first, family second and career third…that everything in her life went well and
she was blessed—and if she ever lived her life out of this order, it didn’t
work and she was downright unhappy.
I just want to
share a little bit about the company of Mary Kay so that you can really see the
HEART of this company. Mary Kay Ash was
such a hard worker and 1963 she quit her job because she was working SO hard
but wasn’t getting paid for it…Men would come in whom she would train and they
would just pass her up…they would get promoted and they would get an increase
in their income. Mary Kay didn’t think
that was fair and asked her boss what the problem was…He responded with, “Mary
Kay you’re in the wrong body.” She
couldn’t believe how rude that was and decided to quit that day. She went home
and found herself frustrated and upset with how men were treated with so much
more respect and had so many more opportunities than women did. She thought to herself, “Someone needs to
create a job or a company where women can be successful and achieve all that
they want.” After she thought that
thought, she decided that SHE would be the one to CREATE and DESIGN this
wonderful opportunity for women. She had
$5,000 in her savings and invested all of her money into her DREAM JOB…she also
had 9 of her coffee drinking buddies that supported her. As she began this process and this dream, she
had many—many people tell her that “Mary Kay, that is impossible. A company like that would NEVER succeed….Mary
Kay, you are dreaming.” But she had her
faith and she had her heart—She knew that if she truly believed in herself and
this company—that she could and WOULD SUCCEED.
I am so happy
and honored to be a part of this company and to share that Mary Kay Company is
coming up on their 50th Anniversary!! There is truly SO many wonderful things about
this company but I just would like to share a few things—otherwise this blog
post could go on and on and on!
♥ The Company
was also built on the Golden Rule, which is to treat others and you would want
to be treated.
♥ The Company
is international and is in 38 different countries!
♥ The Company
is passionate about GIVING BACK—Our Company gives millions of dollars away
every year to help women and children who have been affected by cancer and also
women who are affected by domestic violence. We also give to SO many different
organizations and areas ALL around the WORLD.
♥ We are a
multi-billion dollar company!
♥ Harvard University
teaches our Marketing Plan.
♥ We have
been listed in every printing of the book, Top
100 Companies to Work For.
♥ Wall Street
Journal has published articles written about us.
♥ Mary Kay
was chosen by Baylor University as the greatest female entrepreneur of all
times.
♥ Our product
is the #1 selling product in the Nation and has been for the past 18 years!
Now I would
like to share our TOP 12 BLESSINGS we receive when we start our own Mary Kay Business.
Money--In Mary Kay you can make a little bit of money…and you can make a lot of money!
It is totally up to you! If you want to make some extra cash to pay off debt—save
up for a wedding—go on a family vacation, etc.
You can use your Mary Kay for any of these reasons! Otherwise, you can
work Mary Kay full-time which is about 20 hours a week.
Purchase
at Whole Sale—Anything products that you wear from your head to your toe, you
can get 50% off!
Tax
Breaks—Things that you are doing and paying for anyway, now become a tax break
because you are running a home-based business!
4.
Job
Security—You are your OWN BOSS! It is
YOUR Company and you don’t ever have to worry about getting fired or losing
your job.
5.
Company
Cars—Mary Kay gives every person the opportunity to earn a FREE CAR! You also
get a new one every 2 years!! We have 10’s of thousands of women who have been
driving FREE in Mary Kay! Mary Kay pays for license, tabs & 85% of car insurance!!
6
Advancement
at Your Own Pace—YOU get to decide how much you would like to advance! It is up
to YOU! If you want to earn a free car—the decision is ALL up to you and how
much you want to work!
7.
Prizes
& Recognition—We are constantly cheering each other on and giving prizes
for your hard work!! You can win SO many great prizes from small things to big
things! The nice thing is, you don’t compete with anyone else but yourself!! If
you work for it and earn it—you WILL get it! We work together and encourage
each other to reach our dreams!!
8.
Personal
Growth—You learn so many things in Mary Kay, such as business management, time
management, personal skills, etc. You
are constantly growing and moving in a forward movement! When you grow
personally you can pass that on to your family!
9.
Friends
& Fun—We meet so many inspiring and motivating ladies! You also get to
select who you would like to work with—so we are always positive and
encouraging each other! We ALWAYS have so much fun together!
1 Flexibility—If you do Mary Kay as a hobby
you get to select your hours and income. But what is really great when you do
Mary Kay full-time. You can pick exactly when you can work and you can fit your
life around your Mary Kay.
Fulfillment of Helping Others—You can
power and change women’s lives as working as a Mary Kay Beauty Consultant. If mothers want more time to stay at home
with their children or to leave a crabby job, we can offer them that with this
Mary Kay Opportunity! Mary Kay really is the vehicle to help reach out to women
and to change their life for the better. And of course, I want to use my own Mary Kay money so that I can help children in need.
1 The Ability to Dream—As a little girl you
grow up wishing and dreaming of big things…Or when you find your sweetheart
that you’re going to live forever with, you think about all of these wonderful
things that you would like to do together. But something always seems to happen
when we commit to working a full-time 8:00-5:00 job. We aren’t in charge of our
schedules and we can’t decide when we would like to work and when we would like
time off. Other people tend to be in charge
of our schedules which then ends up
being that they are in charge of our lives.
In Mary Kay, you have the opportunity to DREAM BIG. You have the
opportunity to make extra money and you have the flexibility to take vacations—to
explore and try new things. I am SUCH a
BIG DREAMER—most of you probably know that!:)
So with Mary Kay this truly is such a blessing that I will be grateful
for!
Now,
I am HAPPY and EXCITED to announce my GOOD NEWS with Mary Kay to YOU!! The
Month of May I was “Praying for a Miracle” and I was able to move up into my
Red Jacket and go ON-TARGET for my WHITE CHEVY MALIBU!!! I am SO excited
because God was in control of every little detail and has blessed me with such
a wonderful team and group of customers! I really am o truly grateful for each
and every one of you!!! I want you to know that I really do appreciate all of
your support and love!
I’ve
explained this to a few people before, but I would like to share with you in
case you don’t know where my heart is at.
I always thought growing up that I would become a teacher simply because
I have such a HUGE heart for children—so it was simple, right? I would be a
teacher. But the more and more that I
have thought about it…the more and more I have realized in my heart that God
has created me to be a wife and a mother.
I have always felt so strongly about this and I am certain that this is
what God has in store for me. I’ve also felt very strongly about staying at
home with my children once Patrick and I have a family—After all, they are OUR
children…why would I send them to Day Care to have somebody else raise
them? It just doesn’t make sense to me.
So, I have pretty much come to the conclusion that I will just finish my Early
Childhood Education Degree so that I have the degree and can always fall back
on it if need be. BUT—My main focus and
excitement is Mary Kay. I picture myself
being a Beauty Consultant for the rest of my life! This company is truly a CINDERELLA COMPANY
and has SO much to offer for every single girl! I strongly believe that! So my goal is to work my Mary Kay business
right now as much as I can so that once I am married and have children, I will
be able to afford to stay at home with them.
I
also want to share—that all of you pretty much already know about—but I have a
HUGE HEART for going on mission trips and for reaching out to children in
need. I went to Africa for 2 weeks last
summer…I went to Ecuador for 1 week in the fall…and I am getting ready to go
BACK to AFRICA this summer for 3 weeks.
I absolutely LOVE going on mission trips and I love sharing my love with
the many children that God places in my path.
And although I love being able to do this, I realized that if I do work
a 8—5 job, I won’t have the flexibility to just get up and leave for a few
weeks if I want to. I also realize that it would be so hard to keep a job when
I am constantly wanting to travel and take these trips throughout the year. So,
when the Mary Kay opportunity was presented to me, not only did I realize that
I would be able to stay at home with my children because I would be able to
make enough money to do so…I also realized just how FLEXIBLE this job would be
for me—which is exactly what I need.
Another thing is that I have always said I would adopt and so I prayed
for God to bless me with a man that would also be inspired to love on orphans
and to adopt—and God surely did that.
Patrick and I have been together for over 5 years and it is only a
matter of time before we will be getting engaged…planning our wedding…and
praying about our future children. So, adoption is spendy—there is no way
around it…it’s just expensive. BUT, I have always said that I don’t want to let
money stop me or slow me down from fulfilling the CALL that GOD has placed on
my heart—to go on mission trips and to adopt.
Both of these two things are very expensive. My mission trips cost around $4,000 and
adoption is around $40,000. This is a lot of money—isn’t it? It is to me…but I have found that this is
where my heart is…my heart is for these children…so I won’t think another thing
about it—I will simple DO IT...I would also like to say and that though God has continued to BLESS me...I mean ABSOLUTELY BLESS me with people that have such a GIVING heart and are willing to donate for my trips...it is still hard to ask others for money. So I would love to be able to get to the point where I can afford all of these trips on my own.
Okay
friends…I know this post is getting long…but this is such a long journey and
experience to try and explain in a few short paragraphs! SO…here is something else that is BIG and
EXCITING. As I mentioned I am ON-TARGET
for my WHITE MALIBU. First, I want to
explain to you that the car that I am currently driving is slowly falling apart.
Ever since I came home from Africa I have had the hardest time purchasing nice
things for myself…If I see a t-shirt and it cost $30…I think to myself, no way,
this is way too selfish—this $30 cold provide food for a FULL month for 1 child
in Africa, etc. So I have had such a torn heart when it comes to spending money—I’m
praying for God to show me the difference between NEED and WANTS. So anyways, I am in need of a new car---it really
is a matter of time before this car doesn’t work anymore! So, Patrick and I have talked about what the
smart thing to do is and I just had the hardest time thinking about having to
spend all that money on a car—when all of a sudden, it CLICKED. I can EARN my
Mary Kay car—which will help me in the LONG RUN by building my business and by
working full-time…and I can SAVE the money that I would have had to spend on
purchasing a new car for things that are MORE IMPORTANT.
It
is JUNE…and I am making this month a “JUST JUNE IT” kind of month. I leave for
Africa in 5 weeks!! So I have A LOT of work to get accomplished before I leave…AND…I
need YOUR HELP!!! I need to meet with 30 ladies in the month of JUNE! This is my goal that my director gave me and
I am SO excited to work hard and to achieve this goal. So, I need a minimum of 30 ladies that would
let me borrow their face and to do a facial with them…but I actually have a
goal to meet with 45 LADIES!!
Is
there anyone that would be willing to help me out? It’s already JUNE 4th and I need
to get to work. I am FREE and willing to
COME to you if you’d like me to! It
could be you and 2-3 friends and that would be AWESOME…because if you invite
any of your family or friends…that will help me get closer to those 30 faces!!
We’ll be able to meet and play with makeup! I’ll also be giving you some great
skincare tips!!:) It’s SUPER FUN…It’s
FREE….and if you would be able to help me out I would give you an extra little
bonus!! I am IN NEED of your HELP and
would be BLESSED if you would let me give you a facial—besides, who doesn’t
enjoy getting pampered and having a little girl time?
As I mentioned I can come to you--or you are welcomed to come to me. If you come to me here is my Mary Kay room where will do our facials! :)
If you would like to get together and get pampered--please let me know! I would absolutely love to make this month a POWERFUL month so that I am one more step closer to growing my business and to earning my White Malibu! Contact me as soon as you know of a day/night that would work to get together!:) I would be every so GRATEFUL for your help!!
P.S. If you read this blog and you found yourself wondering about Mary Kay and wanting to learn and find out more about this company...please let me know. The beauty of this company is that we are able to PASS IT ON to other women who are looking and wanting more in their life...so if there was anything that got you excited--or if you are interested in any of the 12 Mary Kay Blessings...just let me know...I would be more than honored to share more information with you. Also, can I just tell you something--It only cost $100 (a Wal-Mart decision) to start your very own business...and you really have NOTHING to lose! This business could certainly...and most likely WILL change your LIFE! ...Just like it has changed mine! I would be blessed to pass this business along to you because I think to myself, "If Jess wouldn't have passed this Cinderella opportunity along to me, just think of what I would have missed out on!" ...And now, the two of us are changing the world...with one facial at a time...we are inspiring ladies and helping them feel better about themselves....because when a girl feels pretty on the outside...she is truly more beautiful on the inside...and with that positive attitude and with a giving heart...she can make the world a more beautiful place. ♥
This opportunity has changed my life...and I would absolutely LOVE for it to change yours!! What are your hopes and dreams? What would make you happier? Share with me...I'd love to listen & help you get closer to your dreams!!! :)
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