From Stay-at-Home Mom to Creative Entrepreneur

Life takes you all sorts of places you never imagined. What’s that saying about the best laid out plans? When I was little, I wanted to be an architect or an interior designer. I could hear the sound of angels singing when I daydreamed about fabric samples and kitchen layouts. I did NOT want to be a teacher…gross…or a stay-at-home mom…double gross. I knew from being the daughter of a teacher that teachers had to work on the weekends without pay, and SAHMs were so blah and basic. Carrie Alene was destined for more than weekend work or a basic lifestyle.

As I grew up and realized I probably wasn’t cut out for architecture or interior design (apparently there’s something called math and extremely good taste involved), and I started to panic. What was I going to BE? How was I going to fill my days and pay my bills? Everyone I knew had it already figured out, but I was just good at a lot of stuff and not great at anything.

Just so you can get to know me a little better, I’ll list off a few areas of interest I considered as I finished high school and graduated from The University of Texas:

1. Professional Trumpeter in the Dallas Symphony Orchestra
2. Human resources professional
3. Business Consultant
4. Non-profit Program Director and eventually Founder/CEO (I might still do this one)
5. Dean of Students at a local university

Turns out I’m not a good enough trumpet player to be in the DSO (boo!), human resources is boring, and I don’t have a degree in Business. Things were looking dire in my early to mid-20s (thankful I married a brilliantly smart engineer who paid for groceries and my Mustang convertible), and then motherhood stole my heart. Never did I dream I would be a stay-at-home mom! If you remember, it was on my anti-goals list. My two girls have been my career for the last 19 years, and I thank God I didn’t have to be an architect or in human resources…although, being a professional trumpeter, CEO, or Dean still sound really cool.

After a couple of years of being super mom, I needed a little something that involved adults. Enter Mary Kay. Well, not Mary Kay the person but Mary Kay the opportunity. I had been a part-time Mary Kay consultant for several years and started doing small projects for a Mary Kay National Sales Director. She shared my work with other Mary Kay ladies, and I’ve been providing business strategies and event planning, and creating graphics, websites, t-shirts, newsletters, invitations, logos, and so much more ever since.

Carrie On Creative is my next step as I transition from SAHM of two little girls to SAHM of a high schooler and college student. My vision is to provide creative solutions and services to Mary Kay Directors and non-pink businesses with the broad spectrum of skills I have learned over the last 20 years. I love to do custom projects and want to maintain a one-on-one connection with my clients. I’m sure God has a plan bigger and better than I ever imagined once again. Check out my services and let’s get creative together.