Back At It!
Michelle Burke
Hello! It’s been a while!
You may not have noticed, but I took some time away from Uniquely Michelle. Life got crazy and I decided to step away from Uniquely Michelle for a few weeks back in August. Well, a few weeks turned into a few months and here we are now at the beginning of 2020. Read on if you want the details of what life has held for me over the last 5 months!
My 2-week break started because I wanted to spend time with my daughters - this summer was the last time my husband and I and our two daughters would all be living under one roof together. Our oldest daughter, Megan, graduated from Kansas State University with a master’s degree in architecture in May. She started her job at an architecture firm in June and lived at home until she could find an apartment of her own. Sarah, our youngest spent the summer break from Colorado State University at home.
Megan with her very large, 8-month-old goldendoodle puppy, Lucy. I also spent some time puppy-sitting this very loveable pup the last few months.
August 17th was moving day with Megan, moving into her own apartment about 45 minutes to the south and Sarah, moving back up to school a couple of hours to the north. Needless to say, we spent all day loading the truck, driving, and unloading the truck repeatedly. After all that I decided I needed one more week to get back to “normal” life - little did I know normal wasn’t returning anytime soon!
Sarah and her fiance Brad.
A week later, Sarah and her boyfriend got engaged! Sarah and Brad won’t be getting married until after she graduates in the spring of 2021, so a long engagement with plenty of time to plan - thank goodness!
Around the same time we were rocked with another surprise of a different kind - rumors of impending layoffs at the company my husband, Brian works for. It was a lot to take in all at once, so my break from Uniquely Michelle continued. In the following weeks, Brian and I relaxed a bit about the layoffs as the company historically didn’t lay off employees who had worked for the company for many years and especially those who were known as hard workers and much-loved bosses. Well, we were wrong - after an almost 28-year career at the same company, Brian got laid off. This happened a month after moving our daughters out of the house. Brian and I both needed time to get used to this news and to figure out what our next season of life looked like, so more time away from Uniquely Michelle for me.
That brings us to today, 3 1/2 months after Brian was laid off. Brian and I are still figuring out what’s next, but I am more than ready to get back to Uniquely Michelle! I am even more excited about moving forward with my work given that I have a partner who is excited to help me! You will be seeing more of my new business partner, Brian at least over the next couple of months and maybe longer - who knows!
I have missed interacting with all of you. I have at least seen some of your Uniquely Michelle creations over the last several months and I am excited to share some of these beautiful creations over the next few weeks! I appreciate those who have stepped up to answer questions posted in the Uniquely Michelle Facebook Group! I also appreciate everyone’s understanding as I stepped away for a bit! Sometimes we are thrown curveballs in life, but I like to think of them as the next great adventure that God has planned for us! I feel refreshed and ready to sew, create, design, and get back into the conversation! Stay up to date as Uniquely Michelle gets back at it on Instagram, the Uniquely Michelle Facebook Page, and in the Uniquely Michelle Facebook Group. Sign up below to receive the Uniquely Michelle newsletter - yet another way to stay updated on Uniquely Michelle.