My middle child…my first daughter…is having a monumental birth year.  She got married last September, she gained a four year old son and now, she is starting her own business.  Big Mama’s Pizza Truck…it is an exciting adventure that I am happy to be a part of.

For years, I have written business plans, thought up ideas that I thought would be good, written the plan to implement them, but that’s when I stop.  I stall in the implementation phase.  I am awesome at ideas, but my fear of failure keeps me from jumping right in.  I used to say that my job deserved 100% of my attention, as long as they were paying me, they deserved everything I had.  Then I retired and eliminated that excuse.

Now I sit back and wait, still not sure and able to jump in with both feet, I hesitate.  I still have awesome ideas, but I can’t seem to find the motivation to work on them. I like my life how it is and fear changing it for the worse. Along comes my daughter, Kayla…”mom, I have an idea.”  Not only does she have a great idea, she isn’t afraid to dive right in.

She first approached me in April with her idea, the school year was coming to a close, and along with it, a long summer break…she works at the University.  The prospect of another long summer without work, or trying to find a part time job I think was more than she could stand.  I thought her idea was fleeting, Kayla has never been known for following through, she is more like a flash in the pan, good idea now, but will it last.  I gave her some suggestions on how to begin and dropped it.  In May, she came to CedarCity to see me, she brought dough and sauce for me to taste test and a list of things she wanted to make happen.  I was impressed, she was still working on the same idea.

Kayla continued working on her plans, we met and made up a full list of what had to happen and everything I suggested, she followed through with.  She made calls, researched equipment, we created a budget.  What would it take to do this?  Before the month was over, we bought a used catering truck.  The truck has since been stripped and re-built, on Friday, the outside paint goes on.  Every roadblock I threw up, she countered and found a way.  When I limited the budget, she found used.  When the quote for the wrap came in over what we could afford, she hired a graffiti artist.  There is nothing stopping this girl.

The truck is due to be inspected this week by the health department, all other permits have been filed, we have insurance, we have equipment, next step is the Point of Sale system and she is a go.  There are moments I wish I was 26 and believed in a new idea so completely that I could let go of my fears.  I’m proud to have raised a daughter who throws caution to the wind to pursue her passion.  Happy Birthday honey, I’m proud to be your mom, I believe whole-heartedly in your plan and your business, good luck to you!