LIFE UPDATE – SHARING AN OFFICE, PODCAST STUDIO, PAUSED REMODEL & BUSINESS SHIFTS

The past 2 months have been such a blur. So many changes and updates. There were a lot of moments where we waited, and moments of hustle. While most of the things that occurred these past two months have been good, they still came with chaos and a little bit of anxiety.

Two weeks ago Chris started a new job working from home! He loved his old job and the people he worked with but he felt a tug to pursue the next step. For us, that next step included working from home.

Now that we are both working from home, we share an office. (Nadine Stay is my full time gig and I’ve worked from home since 2014 in case you were wondering.) I didn’t think sharing an office was such a weird idea but the more we tell people that we work in the same room everyday, the more surprised faces and words of caution we are given in return. Maybe it’s still early or maybe we’re oddly happy with each other, but we genuinely enjoy seeing each other across the desk.

In the midst of converting our guest bedroom into an office, we still are working on our podcast recording studio. Getting the space ready has been taking significantly longer than we anticipated. Of course initial deadlines are rarely met, but this project has been progressing extra slow because we primarily only have weekends to work there. Our new game plan is to work at the studio almost every evening until it’s done. So wish us luck that it can happen before the summer ends!

Lately we’ve had a lot of questions about our house and what the next home renovation project will be. Our answer for the last 6 months has been, “You know, we’re taking a little break for a while.” Our next project requires a new roof (not just shingles…but ripping off half of the house’s existing roof and replacing it with an entirely new pitch). And since that will require a good bit of $$$ which we have yet to save, it may not happen this year unfortunately. We have some siding to repair so I think our goal is to complete that small project this summer and call it good.

As for me, I’ve been feeling a shift with Nadine Stay that I wasn’t anticipating. This business started as a product based business and I’ve always viewed that as the core of my business – a home decor shop with offshoots like the blog and our upcoming podcast. But ever since I started blogging last year, I’ve noticed that the majority of my time is spent creating content and my audience’s attention is showing interest in the blog. At the moment I don’t anticipate eliminating my shop altogether, but I do feel the need to reevaluate the core of Nadine Stay and start considering how I can treat the blog as an integrated source of income.