09/01/2026
One year. Tomorrow, 9/2/26 marks one year of owning The Lamp Goods.
One year of taking the biggest leap of faith I’ve ever taken.
One year ago, I stepped away from a career I had spent more than a decade building as a pharmacist and walked straight into something I knew almost nothing about.
And when I say nothing…I mean nothing. 😂
It’s been one year of drinking from a fire hose trying to learn how to manage a website, two Etsy stores, an Amazon Seller account, an eBay store, and every other platform we sell on.
One year of learning the lighting industry from literal scratch.
One year of figuring out inventory, shipping, marketing, photography, customer service, bookkeeping, advertising, product development, employees, vendors, algorithms, SEO…and approximately 847 other things I didn’t even know existed when we bought this business.
It’s been a year of long days, late nights, mistakes, hard lessons, and plenty of moments where I questioned whether I was actually capable of doing any of this.
And if I’m being completely transparent, it’s also been one solid year of imposter syndrome.
There are still days when this all feels like some strange dream and I’m convinced Kroger is going to call me at any minute asking why I haven’t shown up for my shift. 😂
But then I look back at everything that has happened over these last 365 days.
Because this year has also been one year of challenging myself in ways I never knew I could.
One year of learning that I’m capable of far more than I ever gave myself credit for.
And most importantly, one year of trusting the Lord above everything else.
There is absolutely no way I could have made it through this year on my own strength. HE has opened doors, carried us through the hard days, provided when we didn’t know how things were going to work out, and reminded me over and over again why He called us here in the first place.
And somewhere in the middle of all the chaos of owning a small business, I realized just how much this leap of faith had given me back.
One year of being home for dinner every night.
One year of bedtime stories with my kids.
One year of helping coach their t-ball team.
One year of teaching them on Wednesday nights at church…and now getting to add Sunday mornings too.
One year of making my own schedule and having the flexibility to show up when my family needs me.
One year of not walking through the door after a miserable 12-hour shift completely drained, exhausted, and with absolutely nothing left to give the people I love most.
One year of being PRESENT.
And that word alone may be one of the greatest blessings this business has ever given me.
Then there’s our little Lamp Goods family.
A year ago, it was just me and Heather running the show.
Today, our team includes Heather’s two daughters, my two brothers-in-law, my sister-in-law, my best friend from college, our marketing guru Spencer, and — as of two months ago — FINALLY MY HUSBAND.
From basically one employee to a team of eight in one year.
What?! 😂
It has been absolutely insane to watch.
We’ve poured everything right back into this business this year because we believe so deeply in what we’re building. We want to continue growing, expanding, creating jobs, creating opportunities, and building something that will hopefully become a legacy we can one day hand down to our children.
Because The Lamp Goods has never felt like it’s simply about creating a livelihood for our family.
It’s so much more than that. We get to take a Christ-centered business into homes all across this country and literally shine His light through every light fixture we make.
Every package that leaves our little shop is another opportunity to plant a seed.
Another opportunity for someone to see His Word.
Another opportunity to remind someone that there is a Light greater than anything we could ever manufacture.
And THAT is the part that makes all of the hard days worth it.
First and foremost, all praise, honor, and glory goes to HIM. Every single good thing that has happened over this past year is because of His faithfulness.
Second, none of this would have happened without Jann giving us the opportunity to purchase this business and make it our own. Jann, there truly aren’t enough words to express our gratitude. You handed us something incredibly special, and we will never take that for granted.
Third, to my husband and best friend — the person who believed in this before I ever did. When the idea of buying a business was first brought up, I laughed. He didn’t. He heard the Lord’s calling from the very beginning and honestly annoyed the crap out of me about it until I finally stopped talking long enough to listen. 😂
And here we are.
Babe, I could not have done this without you. Your encouragement, faith in me, patience, wisdom, and willingness to jump into every crazy idea alongside me has carried me more times than you know. And now getting to work beside you every day is something I don’t take for granted.
And lastly, to our families — our parents, grandparents, and in-laws. You guys took this leap right alongside us. You’ve listened to countless ideas, worries, frustrations, plans, numbers, and “what do you think about this?” conversations. You’ve given us wisdom, encouragement, prayer, help, and unconditional support every step of the way.
We will never be able to thank you enough for always being in our corner.
And to every single person who has purchased a light, shared a post, told a friend about us, left a review, prayed for us, encouraged us, or supported this little family business in any way — thank you.
You are helping us build something that means more to us than I could ever explain.
So here’s to one year of The Lamp Goods being ours.
One year of taking the leap.
One year of learning.
One year of growing.
One year of trusting.
One year of being present.
One year of watching God do immeasurably more than I could have imagined.
And Lord willing, this is only the beginning.
Here’s to many, many more years of The Lamp Goods. 🤍💡
I truly cannot wait to see what He has in store for year two.
