57: Parenting and Entrepreneurship: Building a Brand and a Family
Behind Their Success: Ep 57
[00:00:00]
Stacey: Everyone wants to think they're good at everything. But the truth is you might not like something that you're doing. And even if you're good at it, is that what you want to do? Yeah.
Paden: Hello, everybody. Welcome back to Behind Their Success podcast. I am Padenn Squires, the host, and this morning we have on Stacey Wallenstein. She created the Mint Chip Mama Lifestyle and Mom blog for Long Island families in 2013. on that blog, she shares her passion for giving children. meaningful life experiences and helping moms navigate the challenges and benefits of raising children in the New York metropolitan area.
Good morning, Stacey. Welcome on Behind Their Success.
Stacey: Good morning to you. And I realize, you know, that I'm in New York, but I don't know where you are.
Paden: Yeah, so I'm in, I'm in Central Missouri, Central, uh, Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, right in the center of the state, University of Missouri, if you know, uh, Missouri Tigers, So very cool. So Stacy, tell us, uh, you know, tell us about what you're doing right now. You've got, uh, the Mint Chimp Mama blog. tell us what that is and give us a little more color about that.
Stacey: Sure. [00:01:00] So I started the mint chip mama. We moved out of Manhattan and onto Long Island, which is in New York.
and really when I was in Manhattan, I had. Everything in front of me, I had a daughter who was just about to turn four, so we lived the full, like, having a kid in the city experience. And when you live in Manhattan, there's so much culture and parks and beauty and everything in front of you, you know, just at your fingertips.
And so, I really embraced that when I was with her there. There used to be a class that we took at the Met every week. And every time I would walk in, I would think to myself, how incredible that I live in a place that one of the most famous museums in the world is a 10 minute walk and they offer free classes.
And I could take my kid to be educated. And, and her like textbook is the most famous art in the world. So that's kind of where everything stemmed from. Um, I love just doing all these really interesting, unique out of the box. things. And then when we moved out here, there's so much out here. [00:02:00] Not at that level, of course, but I just wanted to kind of showcase and highlight that.
And it really. I guess the blog itself kind of stemmed out of people always asking me what to do and where to go because I became this person that went places and did things. So much like everybody else, I'm sure when someone asks you about the same thing over and over, you're like, in the name of efficiency, I'm just going to have it.
and so because of that, I decided once we moved out here and I had my second child, I launched this site of my own stuff so I can kind of be all over the place in a lane. Going towards the commonality of like what does a young family do what is on like the mind of a young mom Yeah, and then it just kind of picked up from there and evolved
Paden: you know, I, I find it really interesting, you know, when, you know, people create blogs and stuff like this and, uh, you know, me the same, I've done this really, I would say intentionally the last couple of years of being out there and creating content and sharing, you know, kind of my expertise and live and being [00:03:00] authentic, but.
It is really amazing when you just, like, put yourself out there as, like, an authentic person. How much, how much attention you can attract. Or, or, I don't want to say attract attention, but, like, there's a lot of people you can inspire just by being a very authentic.
Stacey: I think also it's, like, attracting energy. And this was something that came out of a call I was on yesterday, right? Like, what exactly are we attracting? Like, I was speaking to someone and we were saying, like, where do you want to put your focus? You know, for the coming year. And I know you speak a lot about like how you have people on and it always ends up coming out to like, where's your focus?
Because everyone needs kind of a better focus. and so she was like, there's only a limited amount of energy. So I want to best utilize my energy to make it the best for me to make it the best for you. But what does that look like? Right. And it could look different every day.
Paden: Yeah. Yeah. And it's, you know, when you go back to talking, you know, talking about focus and whatnot, that's something I'm working through a lot in my, uh, just professional in my business currently.
And, you know, I, I built a business for a long time, got tons of [00:04:00] relationships, you know, tons of clients I've served for, you know, a decade plus. And, and as I transitioned and transitioned my business and growing and wanting to get involved in different things. I've had to go through a lot of conversations like that of, Hey, you know, I'm moving in different directions, having those hard conversations, um, you know, it's, it's tough when you, when you have to go down that route, especially me as a big social guy, relationship guy, um, you know, in some degree, my business has outgrown some of my clients and, and.
I hate to let them go, but that's part of the process and part of the, and the reason I say all that is really just me willing now to have all the hard conversations because then I can in turn focus on what I actually need slash
Stacey: want. Yeah. And I think also, and again, like, I really love the episode. I just listened to your podcast because it was talking about, I don't know if you said this or your guest said this, But one of you said, if you work on your weaknesses, instead of focusing on your strengths, you're just going to have [00:05:00] really strong weaknesses.
And I was like, whoa, right? Because everyone wants to think they're good at everything. But the truth is you might not like something that you're doing. And even if you're good at it, is that what you want to do? Yeah.
Paden: Yeah.
Stacey: I don't know.
Paden: Right. Yeah. And it comes back to, you know, It's it's probably the, the two main topics on this podcast.
Focus, focus slash clarity. when you talk about making your weaknesses stronger, that that can be a good thing, right? Especially if that's an area you want to focus on or move into. But in reality, the best thing you can do is double down on your strengths, right? Lean into those.
Stacey: And I think also that kind of, um, like to circle back to, you know, being a blogger and a content creator, I think one of the reasons that I really wanted to do this and launch this and keep with it, because it's 10 years and I can't believe that.
but I think that what I've learned is, I mean, I've learned many things that we could talk about, but what [00:06:00] I've learned as far as what we were just talking about is, especially as an entrepreneur and especially Weaknesses versus strengths, you can figure out what you're good at, figure out of what you're good at, what you like, and really push forward to that.
So it's not like, and I think that's one of the benefits of being an entrepreneur because you don't have, you know, uh, Person above you to say, well, you need to do this QED report or, you know, you need to do whatever it is. And you're like, but I really want to do this. Just do this. Like, right. I mean, I could wake up, but if I feel like it's a nice day and I want to make a video about like going for a walk, guess what I can do that day.
Right. And I think that's such a, I'm so beyond grateful that I've had that ability that I can kind of do whatever I want. And because my, you know, career is made up of this. Strange, new, non regulated, bizarre industry that day, I could just go [00:07:00] for a walk and make a video about it. Yeah.
Paden: Right. And you know, it's, it's, what attracts a lot of people to entrepreneurship is that freedom, right?
You know, entrepreneurs are generally that, very autonomous type person, right? They don't want to be told what to do. Um, often. Yep. You know, when I'm, I'm working with, I work with a lot of entrepreneurs. So learning, learning what they're like and be able to speak to them so they can, I can actually help them and guide them to get what they say they want.
Um, but many times, like when I'm speaking to entrepreneurs, I don't present stuff like it's my idea. Like I present stuff of like, Hey, I'm here. I'm here. Part of your team. You know, not that I'm like the leader of like leading this relationship. I'm here to be part of your team and all that kind of stuff.
Stacey: It's
Paden: just important, you know, in the just human communication of knowing like who you're talking to and what their personality is and what your personality is. And the more you understand that, the more, um, Just the more effective your communication can be. Um, you know, we, we do a lot of different personality tests I can tell, you know, some of the personality tests we can do. I can [00:08:00] do a 10 minute personality test on you and tell you a whole lot about you. Um, and how to speak with you and communicate you. And, and, and it's just, it's just powerful to be able to have that. You know, it's not used to like manipulate people, but to understand what's important to you and how, you know, what I should be communicating to you.
Stacey: Mhm. Do you do like an ideogram? Um, one of
Paden: the main one we use is, uh, culture index. Um, culture index.
It's super powerful teams too. Right? Like, so, you know, I got. My two right hand guys and other, you know, other members of the team and stuff here in the companies.
But, um, to understand each other of like, okay, here's a task that needs done. It's better to go to this guy or this guy. Like we just, and we all know each other's strengths. Right.
Stacey: But it's funny because I know you're a CPA by trade, right? So what I've learned as an entrepreneur and as somebody that has a lot of like 1099s and clients and one offs, I've learned how valuable it is to.
To like understand [00:09:00] taxes . Yeah. And so this is totally very unsexy and this is not to like do a plug for you, but like when, so one of the big things I've been grappling with is should I be an LLC?
Paden: Yeah.
Stacey: I have wanted to be an LLC for a very long time and every time I talk to someone about if I should be an LLC mm-hmm And when I say talk to someone, it's a lawyer or an accountant.
Paden: Yep.
Stacey: They say, I don't know. I don't think so. But then I think about like, do I need it for the liability? Do I need it to be writing off the tax things? Is it going to benefit me? Even though there's, you know, much like everything else, front loading of what you need to do and of course, but then does it help at the end?
So I feel like annually when I get to like the, you know, Okay. December mark. I always call my accountant and I'm like, well, so I'm starting to get stuck together. Do you think for next year I should do it? And then, you know, we always have the same conversation and we always decide no. And then I get off the phone and I say, but I kind of really want it, even though that might be irrational because I also feel like it's like big girl pants, right?
Like having an LLC after your [00:10:00] name is like saying like, I'm a business. I'm not just someone sitting in my living room, dining room, kitchen, you know, doing something.
Paden: Yeah.
Stacey: So I think understanding that stuff. And like, I've learned a little bit about S Corps, which is not for me, but like my husband as well, he is, he runs his own PR
Paden: firm.
Stacey: So my husband runs and has a PR firm. And when he started a couple of years ago, he went the LLC route and then immediately switched to the S Corp. But I mean, he, thank God, makes a lot more money than I do. So I think all of those classifications are much more important about that. But it's like this thing in the back of my head that I constantly think, should I do this?
Should I have this? Or is it just like the validation that I think I need to say you're actually doing something
Paden: real or whatever. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Stacey: Right. Right. So is that like the seal of approval that I made up myself to make it seem like it's what I need? But then, you know, I was talking to someone once who read one of my articles and said, You know, I'm an attorney, and did you ever think that you need to protect yourself so if someone gets [00:11:00] hurt doing one of the things you suggest, they can come after you?
And I said, I don't know, I mean, if I say, go to this place, and you know, go to this amusement park and go on this ride and your kid gets hurt, would you really think to sue the person that's like, hey, go to this amusement
Paden: park? we
Stacey: live in a world that p you spill coffee on yours it's hot, right? So, yeah
Paden: imagine they'd be going a that roller coaster.
Uh, that's what attorneys are Uh, legal advice, I know enough to be dangerous, but, um, like, when it comes to taxes, legal stuff, like entrepreneurs, so many of them are, they're just floating out there, googling stuff on the internet or even worse. Like asking questions in a Facebook group.
And I, how many Facebook groups I see people asking like tax questions in all of these confident comments, you guys have no idea what you're talking to. [00:12:00] Um, so yes, obviously seek, seek qualified professional advice in any of those areas.
Stacey: But this is like, I feel like that's the, the one question. If, if, you know, I feel like if you were to ask me the one question that I've really had the biggest problem with in the 10 years I've been doing this, it's been that,
Paden: and, you know, and, and this is what I battle, you know, I live in this world so much, I mean, every day.
Right. And to speak to like the industry, the industry is so, so dang broken, you know, the industry is made up of all kinds of mom and pop CPA firms, and they're all generalist and they do 10 million tax returns for, you know, a blogger, a manufacturing company.
I mean, just all over the place, right? They do anything and everything. And they have, um, They do so much compliance work where they're just filling out tax forms. There is zero time or space or ability to actually strategize with their clients and spend time to actually, Hey, you know, um, I'm not just a box filler outer.
Um, I'm [00:13:00] here to actually help you lower the tax bill, not just fill out the form. And, um, there's a real lack of talent and strategy going on in the industry.
Stacey: Yeah. Well, it's funny. I mean, when we lived in the city and we just had an apartment and we own nothing, I used to do it myself on TurboTax, which I thought was fun.
I'm a big dork. of course, when we moved out here, we bought a house and we have two cars. I'm like, well, now it's above my pay grade, but, uh, it's, it's. I feel like it's such a big part of your life that you need to know and trust the person that's handling it because it's really just your money and your livelihood.
And it's hard because you just like get a guy that your friend says is good. Or your parents used
Paden: or whoever. Right. Exactly.
Stacey: Exactly. Like, as you said, if my friend is a doctor and works for a hospital and gets the same W 2 every year and has one salary and that's it. That's so different than what we do where we have 1099s like coming out of, you know, everywhere.
So
Paden: You know, that's [00:14:00] that's why my firm has a new model to allow for space and tax planning and That's great.
Stacey: I think it's awesome. I know. I feel like we're going into a thing we didn't expect to talk about, but that's always what happens. That's where my mind is at at the new year.
Right? Yeah. Oh, I, I, I feel like I
Paden: feel tax season looming. Uh, absolutely. Looming. Yes. Yes. Anyway, let's talk, kind of turn the conversation, uh, about you a little bit. Not just everybody just start off the blog and do it for 10 years.
So tell me like, what, what do you think is your best skill that's allowed you to, um, accomplish what you have?
Stacey: So I think I really excel at organizing. we have like a joke in my house that the calendar runs our life. And I know many families, especially with three kids and two parents have to live by a calendar.
Um, I think that learning, again, going back to learning what you like to do, and, you know, I don't want to say what brings you joy, because I feel [00:15:00] like that's such a catchphrase at this point, but really, as I've aged, I've learned that what I want to spend my time doing is the stuff that I like to do, which sounds kind of silly, but You know, in a traditional career path, sometimes that's very difficult because you have to show up to work and work for someone else and do what they tell you.
And that's it. So, you know, I'm really trying to. branch out to stuff that I love. So like for me, before I had kids, I was a very passionate traveler, world traveler. I've been all over the place. So, you know, my thirties were like my baby making and feeding era, where I was either, you know, Thinking about getting pregnant, being pregnant, trying to get pregnant,
Paden: being pregnant again. Yes,
Stacey: feeding my babies as a result of being pregnant. So, you know, I spoke about having a calendar. I think having a plan for unstructured time with children is super important. I think obviously they need to play in the dirt and you know, not have a structure. But [00:16:00] when you have a lengthy time, like the summer, I think it's important to have like a calendar of what you're doing because also then your kid doesn't go, can we go here?
Can we go here? Can we go here? And you're like, we're going there on the 15th. Stop. But I think just kind of having a plan. Because I think it wastes time trying to figure out what to do in the moment. Whereas knowing what you're doing makes it more efficient. which I know is a gigantic tangent of what you asked me, but I think it all ties into, you know, I run my life on a schedule because I think that that's an efficient way.
To have the best of everything without wasting time in the moment of trying to figure out what to do.
Paden: That's great.
Stacey: That's great.
Paden: I'll let you in, you know, let, I guess, you know, listeners and all. So my, my wife, left her job two days ago.
Stacey: Congratulations.
Paden: So she's a long time nurse practitioner at the university here.
so yeah, I mean, this has been a long time coming, right? We have three young kids, you know, she's always [00:17:00] had that pull of I want to be home, I want to be home. And she's Yeah. I mean, we are, we're very aware, right? Like you, you know, we got kids that are eight, seven, and five and, um, time's not gonna be too long. Right. And
Stacey: is your 5-year-old in kindergarten? Uh, he
Paden: starts, he didn't start till like this fall, this coming fall, like fall of 25.
Stacey: Okay.
Paden: Um,
Stacey: okay. Okay. That's the big two.
Yeah, that's a good one. And that's, you know, I got
Paden: girl, girl, boys, and that's, you know, that's mommy's little boy. So that's, that's going to be an interesting one when that, when he walks out to go to kindergarten, uh, for sure. So it's, you know, it's, it's really interesting. It's, yeah, it's stuff that we've really talked a lot, you know, inside of my family of what's important.
What do we want? You know, what do we want our lives to be like day to day? Um, and what shifts do we got to make to make that happen? And leaving your job is a big one. And there's going to be some sacrifices that need to be made because of that.
Stacey: A hundred percent. And you know, it's [00:18:00] funny because I feel like your wife and I would get along that I've said I've been a stay at home mom for 15 years, but I have never not been working.
Paden: Yeah.
Stacey: Right? But, and honestly, I think, and I don't know how it is out there, but I feel that there's some sort of bizarre stigma attached to stay at home mom because it's a choice for some but not an available choice for others.
And I think for those who want it but cannot choose it, there's an element of jealousy which then manifests into judgment. Which is a whole psychological thing going on right, but I think if you want to be a stay at home mom you also have to defend that choice It's not to say that if you want to be a working mom, you don't have to defend that choice because there's a whole, what I've learned in this journey is there's a whole lot of guilt on either side and there's a whole lot of judgment on either side.
And when people say, Oh, no guilt, no judgment. You're like, uh huh. Bring it. [00:19:00] Right. And so, and what's interesting is when I lived in Manhattan and had my first daughter, It was like a badge of honor to be a stay at home mom. And then you would fight about are you breastfeeding, are you not breastfeeding?
How could you not breastfeed your kid? How could you? You're a terrible mom. And you're just But like, so much judgment. And, but, I will say, and I was talking about this the other day, that when I So we lived in the city for many years before we Had our daughter, you know, we went through the single phase, then meeting each other, then courting, then dating, then being young, married, then being all of our friends were young and married without kids, then everyone started leaving the city because they were having kids or staying in the city with a kid.
But that changes the dynamic if you don't have a kid and you know, I never thought I wanted to have a kid in the city and then we just weren't ready to leave and it was incredible. But then when we got pregnant with our second, we were like, okay, you know. We're ready to get out. But, um, when I was first pregnant in the city, and this is kind of how I [00:20:00] fell into this whole blogging world.
When I was first pregnant in the city, I started getting involved in all these amazing organizations that were having events for pregnant moms and new moms. And, and I'm sure, you know, your wife, the same, like the moms that you meet when you're pregnant with your first kid. And then when you have your first kid and that support group.
saved your life and you can have the best husband in the world, the best family in the world. But that other person that's going through the same exact thing as you, Oh my God, they saved her life. Right. And to this day, some of those people are still my best friends, but, um, You know, I always say that when you're, you're having your first kid, especially in Manhattan at the time, it was like freshman year of college, everyone's out.
Everyone's about, they want to know about you. They want to be friends. Like, Oh, you look like me with a giant belly. Let's go have coffee, you know? and so I had that for my first, I had that for my second. And when I moved out to the suburbs, it was the exact opposite. People were more judgy.
If you were a stay at home mom and not a working mom. And nobody talked to each other. Everyone went back to their house. And, you know, I was like, [00:21:00] I'm a pregnant lady. Is there anyone like this near me? Hello? And it was like crickets. Cause everyone's sitting in their house. And I'm like, okay, I guess I'll just watch.
On TV or do some work. Okay. And then when I had my third and we started talking about breastfeeding, you know, people were like, oh, you breastfeed. And I'm like, damn, I breastfeed. I could like have a PhD in breastfeeding. And out here though, it was like, oh, whereas in the city it was like, you don't, I think that you have to really own what you're doing and have the conversation with your partner that it's right for your family.
And what other people say it doesn't matter. And I guarantee you that your wife, the day your son gets on that bus is going to say, Oh, I'm so happy to have time to organize this one closet that bothers me. And then two hours later, she's going to say, I'm going to start looking for some consulting.
Paden: Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, that is, yeah, that's absolutely what she'll do. She's, she's already got all kinds of plans. When I go back to the culture index, I tell you, she's got a very high A, which autonomy she's, she has the personality of an entrepreneur. So [00:22:00] she, uh, she's not going to just sit at home.
Stacey: Yeah. Well, I was talking to my 75 year old father yesterday and he was telling me about something he was doing for a job. And I said, you are the busiest retired man I have ever met. I said, and so he was like. Okay. And I'm like, it's so funny how you retired. And I think it was maybe, maybe a day, if that long.
And he's like, all right, what am I going to do next? And I'm like, you're going to retire. And he's like, well, you know, Nope. Well,
Paden: that's what keeps him young and alive. Right? I mean,
Stacey: Oh, a hundred percent. I love
Paden: it. So many, so many old men, like, you know, they work till they're 65 and retire and just go sit on the couch and die.
Like, I mean, legitimately, you know, they'll sit there, you know, so many men. You know, diet like 68 after they, you know, work to 65 and then just sat there, right?
Stacey: No, I love it. And I love that he does it. And I just find it so funny because he'll be like, well, I have to do this and I'm like, you don't, but you're choosing to.
And, you know, I'll take that to help pay for college, but [00:23:00] yeah.
Paden: So Stacy, tell me, um, you know, give me one, like a challenge you went through as a setback you've had through your journey that you think would be good to share for us.
Stacey: Yeah. So I think that. In this world of, you know, the creator economy, which again, I think is so all over the place because it's really making it up as you go along and everyone has their different road that they follow. I think that creative burnout is like a really, really big thing. And I know that you've talked about that before with other guests, but I think when you're creating something out of nothing, it's really fun and exciting.
But then when you have to create something out of nothing, it's really challenging and exhausting and kind of, you know, you freeze yourself in your tracks. I know sometimes I have to do work for not so much for a client, but something that I need to do for myself. And I just don't know where to start because it's so looming and there's so much involved.
And, and I think something that people don't know about this world is [00:24:00] that there's so much work behind the scenes involved. I think that people often. Think, you know, you take a picture of yourself with a duck face in front of something, and then you have a million followers and you're the richest.
Paden: Right.
Stacey: Right. And what I've been saying, like, is in fact, if you hire me to, to, you know, promote your widget. You are in fact hiring a digital marketing agency where I am a copywriter and a photographer and a videographer and an editor and a marketing person and a branding specialist and, you know, everything under the sun and then some.
And sometimes that's just exhausting. And I think that. Sometimes just like the concepts come to me in two seconds and I'm able to do it. And sometimes I have to really sit and think about like how I want to present this. And I went on this great trip in October to Arizona and I have been trying to do my.
Paden: Tucson. I saw it.
Stacey: Yes. Yes. Yes. Tucson. But there are many posts to come and those should have all gone up three months ago. [00:25:00] But that's the perfect example because when I travel, I usually reach out to places that I want to go to a partner with them. And then I, you know, and I always do stories when I'm there because I want to make sure that I fulfill my duty.
But then I also need to produce all this content and need to produce all these blog posts more because I'm putting it on me than anything else. But. It's like this giant thing that I feel like becomes so big that I don't do it. And then yesterday I was like, Oh my God, it's already this far along. Like, I can't believe I haven't done this yet.
I'm just, instead of doing like 18 posts about Tucson, I'm going to go through my pictures and shoot myself in a different folder, the top 20, just write that I like Tucson, write about the top highlights of Tucson, and like get the hell out of my own way. And so I did that and I was like, I feel so good, but now I have to write the one about Sedona, which is like what I, you know, but I feel like instead of thinking, I'm going to write 15 posts.
Taking a step back and saying, okay, I'm just going to do top level. And sometimes as much as I get angry with myself [00:26:00] for waiting so long, sometimes I need that clarity of the time to pass, to understand. I don't need to do just one post of all the murals. I could do one post of Tucson and include the murals, that type of thing.
yeah. And I think also, I mean, look, as an entrepreneur, anyone that is an entrepreneur, no matter what field you're in. You're always chasing that carrot and it gets really exhausting. And I think just trying to figure out again, going back to like what makes you happy. And also, I gotta be honest with you really standing strong on saying no to stuff that doesn't, and also standing strong to fair compensation.
And I think that this industry specifically, It's so all over the place and made up that like I could charge hundreds of dollars for something because I know the value that I bring and I know that I bring 25 years of corporate America and I know that I serve as [00:27:00] my clients as if they were the most important client at one of my biggest firms that I've ever been in.
And then there are people that will do the same exact work that I do for a free bottle of vitamins. And, and I feel bad because I always use vitamins as the, there's like a, in this, but, but you know what, because there are some people that just want free stuff and as much free stuff as they can get, companies send them free stuff.
And then the companies expect that anyone they talk to will do this big job for free stuff. And I think, and I think that's also one of the big challenges that I have is. Making people believe that this is a job and I run a digital marketing agency and I don't just get free stuff, right? So, you know at this point, I'm on all these press lists and when you know, like a cool place opens I get invited to go there And like, sometimes they're like, Oh, grab a couple of friends and come have a couple's night out.
And I'm like, great. And then my friends are like, Oh, cool. You got this for free. And I started stopping and saying, well, I didn't get this for free. I am bartering my work [00:28:00] services for this as compensation. And we are going to have a really nice night in exchange for my work. And yes, it is a complimentary experience for you, but I am then going to spend several hours working in exchange for this experience.
Paden: Right?
Sage, I got one last question for you.
Stacey: Yeah.
Paden: What piece of advice would you give to that lady that first put that blog up in 2013? If you could give her one piece of advice.
Stacey: what's really funny and I'll tell you a full circle moment.
So I was talking about in the beginning how I wrote this. How I had this like blog post that I wrote about watching my younger son play at a playground that I used to bring my older son and having this kind of like, Oh my God, time passing moment. So I am a big fan of the play Our Town and especially like the third act.
And are you familiar with the play? Okay, so basically, it's a play that takes place in like the early 1900s, I think, in like a small town, and it's like, very small town, [00:29:00] every day is the same USA, and the same as like, and I think the success of it is because it's, it's uh, any town USA, everyone's life USA, and even though it took place a hundred years ago, It's like the relevant topics of today where it's like life is short and in the end, in the third act, one of the main characters die and, you know, they say to her, if you could go back to one moment, what would you do?
And she says, Oh, I would do the best day of my life. And they're like, it's so hard to realize that every day was, I'm going to cry. It's like, it's so hard to realize that every day is the best day of your life. I'm going to cry. Oh my God. Edit out the crying. But I wrote this post about, um, you know, standing there watching my son play and then I came home and like I said, I had this like explosive brain.
I need to write this down. And I was talking about like kids grow up fast and like the third act of our town and how like you could go back to one of those, Oh my God, I'm
Paden: crying, you
Stacey: made me cry.
Paden: Going back[00:30:00]
Stacey: to one of those days that was just like when your babies were little.
Paden: Yeah,
Stacey: and like how special that is and I guess what I would go back and tell that person is like really appreciate that your job is to chronicle their lives. So once this all passes, you can go back and see these things that you wrote and like realize that all of this is just like a love letter to your kids.
Yeah,
Paden: And you know, I've, I've. I've had some of the same thoughts, you know, as a guy that's, like I said, been pretty active on social media the last few years. Um, that's what I do see a lot of that is it's, it's for me and for my kids, honestly. because, you know, it's for me to look back to see what I was going through and just documenting all that.
And then also, you know, for my kids, you know, this stuff's going to live on the internet forever. Right.
And for them to see, like, what their dad was dealing with and struggling with and, you know, all the,
Stacey: yeah,
And it's funny because I think that as a parent now, and I don't know if you've had this [00:31:00] experience, you know, you look at your own parents in your own childhood and think about, like, why did they do that?
Like, that's not the choice I would make, but maybe if there's all this content that lives on, you'll see, like, the thought process, maybe it'll vindicate. Our generation from the blame that our children will talk about in therapy, but you know,
Paden: and it's like, you know, every generation probably needs to be in therapy, but.
It's like everyone's doing the best they can with what they have at the moment,
Stacey: right? Yes, yes. But I also think what's interesting, and, and, you know, your kids are a little bit younger, so I don't know if they've thought about this yet, but my daughter, who used to be so into doing all this stuff, she's now a teenager, and she's like, I want no part of this.
And she's like, I have my own social media footprint now, and I don't want to be on your videos, and my friends think, you know, actually, I think her friends think it's cool, but I think she thinks her friends think
Paden: it's lame. Yeah,
Stacey: But I think that goes along with the evolution.
And so I feel like, you know, to go back to my 2013 self, I would say it's a limited time of doing it this way, because it's going to evolve to [00:32:00] what am I doing and what am I thinking about and where am I going? And, you know, now I'm really talking a lot about perimenopause, which back then I wasn't, I was talking about toys, but that, you know, and we didn't even touch on this, but I think that one of the most important things In this world.
And I know you said authentic, but like really being authentic because I think that's something people see through and I always try to talk about what's in front of me because I want to, you know, I want to break stigmas of things and like perimenopause is an example I just gave, but like so many women my age, you know, in their mid forties are grappling with this and all these random things are happening and they have no idea what's going on.
And it's really powerful to realize that it's like, yeah. The anti puberty and it's like on the other end and like you wouldn't blame a teenager for having all these feelings. You'd be like, oh, it's puberty. So it's just really interesting to be going through this and having so many conversations with people about it and making, you know, these, these powerful realizations.
And I think that's [00:33:00] something that, you know, I never in a million years in 2013 thought that. The post that I was writing about a new toy about a truck was gonna evolve into talking about estrogen,
Paden: right? But it's it's it's you sharing your journey and people are just following along with you and they're going through the same things at the same time
Stacey: And that's why I think it works and that's what I think goes back to being authentic Because at this point my eight year old isn't gonna be wanting, you know to do a video about a truck
Paden: Well Stacey, great conversation with you.
Um, what's the best way people can get ahold of you? Uh, Mint Chip Mama, right? And by the way, Mint Chip is my favorite ice cream.
Stacey: Oh, I'm so happy. So usually we, it's funny because usually when I'm interviewed, we start with how did you come up with the name, the Mint Chip Mama? And the answer is always, it was my favorite ice cream and it just kind of came to me and I liked it.
I wanted something to represent me, but I also added in the mama to make it, you know, more of a mom blog. But it's funny [00:34:00] because that I found that Started blogs back when I did, they picked more of like a kid centric name and now the thing doesn't work,
Paden: they
Stacey: need to do right. They need to rebrands. And I'm always like,
Paden: but I really wasn't.
It just worked out
Stacey: so people can find me on, um, the mint chip mama. com. Don't forget the, the, and then across all socials at the mint chip mama. Um, and mama is M A M A. and I'm on all platforms, LinkedIn, Stacey Gish Wallenstein. You can find me. I'm, I'm really kind of leaning into LinkedIn right now. So if people want to connect with me there, you know, I would love to, I'd love to connect with you there if we haven't done that yet, and that's it.
Paden: Awesome. Stacey, I appreciate you for coming on the show. This was a great conversation. Listeners, we will catch you next time.
Thank you so much for listening to the podcast. If you found it valuable, please rate, review, and share it. That is the best way to help us build this and reach more people as we're trying to [00:35:00] accomplish our goal of help creating more healthy, wealthy, and wise entrepreneurs. You can follow us on social media by searching for me @padensquires or going to www.padensquires.com On the website and social media, we're always sharing tips of personal growth, and there we can actually interact. I'm looking forward to it. Thanks guys.
