With our 2 year anniversary coming up, I’m starting to really reflect on these last 2 years, or really 6 years since I started this journey.

I went to see my therapist this past week and she asked me what Yoga-urt means to me. It’s hard to summarize, but Yoga-urt IS me and it’s greater than me at the same time. I actually started tearing up when I tried to explain to her – it’s that deep.

It really is a summary of my life story and struggles so far. From suffering from chronic pain and back issues pretty much my whole life, to trying yoga at the urging of my chiropractor to help relieve it, to leaving a job I had for 11 years after a bad few years, to diving into a yoga teacher training, to a joke about yoga-yogurt with my cousin, all parts of my life lead me here.

The job I had for 11 years was my first job out of college and I remember that during my reviews, they would consistently say I needed more confidence, to speak up more, etc. Boy, have I come a long way. I think it was always in me, I was just too scared to speak up. 

My passion for Yoga-urt didn’t give me a choice – I had to speak up to bring it to life and to make it succeed. It was the only way. To my family, friends, potential investors, business people, consultants, and eventually to our customers.

I’m pretty sure that most of my family and friends thought this was a passing fad, and that I wasn’t going to do it or couldn’t do it. But I did!

Yoga-urt called to me like nothing else in my life. It got me to step out of myself and do things I never could’ve imagined doing. This still happens pretty much everyday. I’m constantly out of my comfort zone, doing the best I can, and learning as I go.

I’ve made a ton of mistakes on this journey and there are things I’d definitely handle differently, but I try to learn from them and continue to grow both myself and Yoga-urt. 

So what does Yoga-urt mean to me?It means everything. I’ve always said, whether it succeeded or not, I NEEDED to do it. 

There have been times I’ve questioned it, cried over it, felt like giving up, wondered what I got myself into, but I HAD to do it.

Two years is a huge accomplishment. I’ve been hearing a about some restaurants closing recently and can’t even imagine. It’s a hard business and it’s not for everyone. Takes over your life, your finances, and pretty much everything. If you don’t have passion and love for it, I don’t advise it, but if it’s your calling, then you must.

I’ve also been thinking about how risky it was to go all vegan. I still hear people outside or inside the store scared of the vegan word. It turns some people off for whatever reason. They don’t think it will be as good. 

It would’ve probably been easier for us if we were at least half dairy. But that’s not Yoga-urt and I think all in all, it was the best decision to go all vegan. And, of course, the product stands on its own. I think it is the best whether dairy or not.

I’ll probably post more reflections this week and next. I can’t believe it’s been 2 years – what a ride!

Our 2nd Anniversary is coming up in a few weeks. It’s really hard to believe as it feels like our 1st anniversary was just a little bit ago.

I’m trying to keep it a bit more low key than last year (we went BIG), but I still want to honor it and celebrate it. After all, this has been a 6 year journey for me and I have given everything I have to it. 

This last year has been the best and worst for me. The best – Yoga-urt is starting to stand on its own and the love and support from our customers/community has and continues to blow me away. The worst – I’ve been beat up this year in ways I can’t share and never saw coming and have hurt me deeply. In addition, my mom’s health has  continued to worsen due to her degenerative disease which has impacted our family greatly. 

It’s also been a year of exhaustion as I juggle both Yoga-urt and my job, but I am slowly making changes to make this more manageable and to try to have a life again (and sleep :).

No one said it was easy starting your own business, and it’s not. And when money is tight from the beginning, it’s even harder. But that’s what makes moments like these that much sweeter. 

I am so proud of how far Yoga-urt has come and how far I’ve come. There were many times during this journey when I felt like Yoga-urt was never going to see the light of day. But I never gave up, found some great support along the way, and here we are.

I’m going to take the week off from my day job after the anniversary so I can properly honor this journey. I want to soak it in and give myself some TLC. I won’t be traveling anywhere – staying close to home – but really looking forward to it. 

In the meantime, there is much to do. We are still working on a new flavor that will be introduced that weekend. There is a photo shoot next week for something exciting we are working on and hoping to launch in the next month. We are finally getting a storage unit on the property (it’s currently my condo) but it will need some work and will take time to transfer everything. And the list goes on and on. 

But one thing at a time. For this month, I want to honor and reflect on how far we’ve come and to celebrate it!