So this one time, I started a princess party company.

Yeah, I know. Crazy. (Or not, depending on how well you know me.) I’ve been spending the past year doing plays, volunteering, raising babies, writing books, and now… a princess party company?

(Seriously, Dusti?)

Seriously.

Let me step back a second.

Earlier this year, I was volunteering at the local high school. This year, I’ve been getting back into theatre, onstage and off, and our high school’s program needs as much help as it can get since their funding was cut. Having offered to help with their spring musical, I ended up being the costumer for a cast of 50+ teenagers. (Not my most brilliant decision, but the kids made it SO fun.)

After the show was over, the director of the program wanted to clear out some of the excess stuff in the costume closet – which by closet, I mean giant hallway/alcove behind the auditorium where twenty years of costumes had accumulated. Oh, and don’t forget the actual closet upstairs. And the hats, prop, etc. in the props closet/stairway up to the grid.

It was a big job. With the help of many a willing hand, we sorted through hundreds of costumes. Afterwards, the director offered to let me take anything I wanted for the local community theatre before it was donated. So I started digging through the 20-foot long behemoth of a pile.

A lot of it really was in bad shape, but then I magically pulled out a pristine Snow White costume. Next to it, I found a Cinderella gown and a Jasmine getup. They were all my size. I saw them and instantly thought, “Dress up time with my five-year-old. Booyah!”

Clearly, my priorities are straight.

Later that night at rehearsal for a show I was in, I told some of my friends about my sweet find, and we started joking about how I might as well just start one of those princess party companies. That’s a thing, right?

Come the middle of July, it was not a joke anymore.

This summer was a lot of shifting for my family and I. With my husband starting school full-time for four months, the prospect of getting my daughter into kindergarten, and juggling everything else, it was a season of overwhelming. On top of it all, I was pretty disillusioned with my business.

I told my bestie about my conundrum, the desire once again to let it all burn and start anew, and just perform. Her response? Go watch Pitch Perfect.

Huh?

Her subversive logic was the reminder I needed of what it is I really love doing, and it’s not typing on a computer. Being onstage is it for me. Music, acting, all of it. I love it, and it’s terrifying.

So July 27th, I launched Princess Parties NW. We’re seven weeks in, and to date, it’s the most profitable thing I’ve ever done.

I’ll tell you more about why and how it became such a force soon, but for now, this is where I’ve been.

Other updates/news:

I’ll be doing a call with Nina Nelson from Shalom Mama on September 25th at 1:00pm PST. More details coming soon, but the gist is that we’ll be working through Conquer the Clutter on the call, among other things. (There’s also going to be a sweet giveaway.)