Monday, November 13, 2017

Oh Fudge!



            As a homeschooling mom, I have the pleasure of spending a lot of time with my children.  Although there are days when tempers flare and attitudes are the pits, the struggles are worth the blessings. Right now, I am blessed to be in the midst of a new endeavor with my 10-year-old twin sons.  We have gone into the fudge business for the holidays!

            You just never know when inspiration will strike.  A few weeks ago we did a unit study on Judy Blume’s classic Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing.  It was so much fun!  We capped off the unit by making a batch of chocolate fudge since one of the main character’s nickname is Fudge.  If you haven’t read this book we highly recommend it! 
The boys have been my trusty fudge making assistants for years. This time they did it all by themselves with my supervision. I asked if they would like to try to sell a few batches during the holidays.  They readily agreed.  I posted a couple of photos on Facebook of the boys making the fudge and asked if anybody would be interested in purchasing some fudge from us around the holidays.  We were encouraged when five people expressed interest.  
            The next time the boys and I went to the grocery we priced all the items needed to make the fudge.  We priced them at two different stores to make sure we got the best prices.  One evening while waiting on the boys at soccer practice, I calculated how much it would cost to make chocolate fudge and peanut butter fudge.  I also looked online to see what fudge is selling for in candy shops nearby.  I realized that we could sell an excellent product well below retail cost while making a nice profit. 

            When I shared this news with the boys they got really excited.  They decided that our earnings should be directed to our Disney fund.  We’ve all been dreaming about going back.  I didn’t really know how much we would earn, but thought it would be a fun endeavor and an awesome learning experience for all of us. 

            Last week I got the word out through social media, texts, and emails.  We chose three dates and gave only two flavor options to keep things simple. The response we’ve gotten has been overwhelming! As of this writing, we have around 30 batches to make!

            What started out as testing the waters at the edge of the pool has become a cannonball off the diving board.  The boys are getting a taste of what running a business is like.  We created a name and are in the midst of crafting a logo.  Out of the blue one of them came up with an incredible slogan.  We’ve ordered packaging.  We’ve created a shopping list that includes 60 pounds of sugar! Today I announced we only have room for a few more orders and they are filling up.  Holy cow! This is getting real!

            As we make our way through this journey of fudge making I know that we will hit some roadblocks.  I know that it won’t all be smooth sailing. But no matter what happens, I will have two boys beside me building memories each step of the way.  And that’s what the journey is all about.




No comments:

Post a Comment

Connected

  In my cold, uninviting basement, as my legs took me nowhere, spinning like a hamster on a wheel, my mind went to deep places only found ...