Cookie Shop - Week 15!

What a difference some drywall makes!

We've been busy this past week....and the transformation of the space is undeniable.  It is so exciting to really start seeing the vision come to life....all of the measuring and planning and re-measuring, and changing the plans again and again and again is starting to make sense...and really pay off.  I love my walls!!!!

I am so extremely thankful for my family and for all of their help.  We had some fun times and good laughs over the weekend while hanging drywall.  One thing that we all have in common is that we like to irritate my dad...and that's hilarious.  But seriously, everyone worked so hard and all of their hard work paid off because we passed drywall inspection and now it's time for the finisher to come in and prepare the drywall for paint.  I have to pick paint colors and I'm so stressed about it....wish me luck!!!

Some updated pics for ya:

the 1st piece!

I love to help!

2 brothers working hard :)

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the windows!

parent of the year award for me....giving Mia the ipad and she curls up on the floor

...she looks pretty happy to me!

the one 4-inch piece of drywall that Neil and Rob were allowed to cut/place on their own. Such pride.

love this picture!  Father and son-in-laws

we made Rob go up in the attic....

he wasn't happy about it.

Mia loves the walls, too!  She can't wait to paint them!

There's me making important decisions.  My brain hurts...too much thinking sometimes.

Mia made a big slide for her dolls out of a ladder and a roll of paper....  

it kept her busy for at least 19 minutes...which is an eternity in my world.

me and my Mia on the day of drywall inspection....one step closer to opening the doors to our cookie shop!

Cookie Shop - Week 14!

The stuff I've been fearing the most....the expensive parts of the renovation that are really intrusive and not so much fun.  The part when all of the $ I'm spending will be hidden inside the walls in the form of pipes, cords, and a grease trap that I never wanted to own! (Bet you don't want to own a grease trap either!)

So the first stages of the plumbing and electrical are complete.  We really dodged a bullet with the plumbing because we were able to access a sewer line that was miraculously located under the floor 6 feet closer than we thought it was.  So we didn't have to trench across the floor and really screw up the existing flooring.  Thank goodness!  And the electrical went really smoothly, too. All of my diligent planning is really starting to pay off because I know every single inch of those walls and floors....and I know exactly where stuff is supposed to go.  

So here are some updated pics of the remodel. Tomorrow is inspection #1 with Bethel Park.  We already passed county plumbing inspection and electrical inspection.....but this next one will give us the go-ahead to drywall this weekend.  And then the fun really begins!   Paint, countertops, fixtures, tables, chairs....the pretty stuff!

shiny new bakery case is a perfect fit!  Traveled all the way from WV :)

Drywall is nexttttt! yayyyy!!!  walls!!!

During these past few weeks I've also been working like crazy on website content, ordering supplies,  making signage decisions, designing uniform shirts, mugs, stickers, bakery bags, just so much stuffffff.

And I've been trying to nail down my grand opening date.  It's tentatively scheduled for Saturday January 4th.....but I'm still considering some things before I commit to that date....so I'll keep ya posted!

Mia is really being a trooper every day as our schedule just gets crazier and crazier each minute.  She loves going to the shop to check on the progress of things....but she's 3....she doesn't understand why everything takes so much time.  I'm with her....I'm all about immediate results and this game of waiting on contractors, waiting on inspections, waiting on permit....after permit....after permit.....is exhausting. But we'll get there!! "One step at a time" we keep saying to each other!

Thanks everyone for following along with my journey!

omg I've aged during this process.  :(

IMPORTANT information re: 2013 ordering

Unfortunately, I will not be taking any Holiday/Christmas cookie orders for this season (2013)....and I'm really sad about it! Here are the specifics:

With the timeline of the store opening being very up-in-the-air for the past few months I have been continuing to take cookie orders through the first week of December.  But now that we have an anticipated opening date of January 4th, it's unrealistic to think that I'll be able to be able to accommodate orders for the busiest cookie season just 15 days before the grand opening.   This is the exact timing-issue that we were trying to avoid....but delays with permits, etc. have put us in this position...and now it just is what it is.

I know it's probably very difficult for you to understand.....and trust me, this was a very difficult decision to make. If you've ever worked in a retail store during it's grand opening weeks then you KNOW what I'm facing here.....days and days of preparation and training.....plus time needed to work out any operational kinks to make sure that things will run smoothly.  There will be last-minute demands and tasks that I'll need to be present for.....and it's important that I focus my time and efforts during the month of December on these types of things.  On top of all of that....it's logistically impossible to run this business from 2 different places.....so even if all of my deliveries of equipment and supplies arrive on time then I'll still need to be moving everything to the new location once the finishing touches are done on the remodel.  And there's absolutely no way to know when the finishes will be complete.....we've got weather that could be an issue....plus normal delays with inspections, permits, etc.  If you've ever witnessed the building of a home or business then you understand how these types of delays can be completely out of your control.  And I've gotta roll with it.

I only get one shot at opening my dream-store up to my own personal standards(which are extremely high!).....and I have to give it all I've got!  So I hope you can understand....and I can't tell you how much I appreciate your support thus far. This has been the hardest thing I've ever done and every decision has been painstakingly thought through.  So here are some important things to know:

• October and November cookie calendars are completely booked.  If we have emailed to confirm a date then your spot is held.   Otherwise I am so sorry, but there are no more openings for orders for these months.

• I have orders booked for the first weekend in December, and if you and I have emailed to discuss these specific events then of course I am honoring that confirmation.  Please contact me if you have any questions/concerns about your confirmed booking.

• I will not be taking ANY orders from December 9th through January 13th.  If you are interested in placing an order for a date after January 13th then please email me.  Original pricing will be honored for all currently confirmed orders.  All orders beginning in 2014 will fall under the new pricing structure, which will be posted on the Give Mia Cookie website once it is ready. 

There are so many exciting things that will come with this store opening.  I have special ideas in mind for all of my loyal customers who have supported me thus far.  I promise to update you just as often as I can.  

Thank you Thank you Thank you!

-Katie

Cookie Shop - Week 12!

A lot can change in a few short weeks!  Construction at the shop is well underway and I couldn't be more excited.  I finally received my building permit on October 2....after 7 weeks of waiting and a stressful battle which I thought was going to result in a lawsuit.  I had completely hit an emotional low on the morning of October 2nd....I had ended up at my neighbor and good friend's house just crying on her shoulder....seriously thinking that this whole project had hit a wall and wouldn't go forward.  I was devastated.

But I picked myself up and fought for myself and for my business.  I found strength to stand up for myself and like Rob says...."I turned into a pit bull".  Right now I'd like to focus on the positive and not remember the rough road that it took to get that permit....eventually I'll have time to tell the whole story...but for now let's focus on what's been going on since that day!

As soon as I had that orange permit in the window things just kicked into overdrive.  I immediately ordered all of my plumbing supplies and some of my equipment.  We bought the lumber and started on the framing....we set up the starting dates for the plumber and electrician.  I finalized the contract for the signage and we are pretty close to finalizing the designs for that, too!  The framing is now complete and the plumber is starting this week.  Here are some updated pics!

always an adventure when an 18-wheeler arrives to make a delivery!

here comes the refrigerator!

hmmm.....how do we get this thing inside?  2 hours later Rob and I managed to get it in the doors and off the pallet.  NOT an easy task!

shiny new things!

1 sink...

2 sink.....3 sink.....4 sink.....and there's a 5th sink that wasn't photographed!

huggggge refrigerator!

Mia fits in the sink!  Perfect for when I'm working late nights at the bakery....I'll just bathe her there!  KIDDING!

This little lady thinks that she's the boss....

she'll show you exactly what needs to be done....

she's just so proud of the store already!

I have the best family ever!  There's my dad and my Uncle Tim!

hard at work!

the walls are finally going up!

measure twice, cut once!

there's Neil! (my cousin-in-law)

Neil and his father-in-law.  Love the family bonding going on here :)

Neil is so excited about cookies I guess!

this is part of the counter-top area....which caused a huge family debate by the way....when Mia finally chimed in amongst all of the yelling and said "It's MOMMY'S bakery so build it the way she wants!  That's the point!"

framing the half-wall

Tom's super great at bossing people!

the new back wall.....this is where the big oven will go!

there's Rob! 

the 2nd entrance to the kitchen....extra wide so that all of the equipment will fit!

this is how I show up to build.  Flip-Flops are super-safe, right?

Mia hates the loud noises sometimes!  

Mia is a really great helper!  She sweeps the floor and loves to peel up the blue tape.  

And this picture pretty much sums up the situation....trying to build a bakery while having a 3 year old around!

Cookie Shop - Week 9!

Not much more to say this week. 

Trying to stay positive and hoping for some good news soon!

Thanks for checking in!

-Katie

Cookie Shop - Week 7!

You know that saying...."No news is good news."? I totally used to be a believer in that. But let me tell you something....when you're waiting on a building permit, NO NEWS is DEFINITELY not good news.

So we're still in the same boat that we were in at the time of my last post. To say that I'm frustrated is an understatement. I am trying so so hard to stay positive but I feel a little bit like I've lost my momentum. I know that once the construction gets underway I'll get back my feeling of excitement....I'm just trying to be patient and wait for that moment. Every day I'm contuing to do work for this store. Setting up accounts left and right, meeting with vendors and technicians, and salespeople, all to find the right products and ingredients to make my store a success. From a dairy supplier to a shopping bag supplier...and then office-type stuff like finding a payroll company and a credit card service provider...on top of the store design elements like fabric choices and paint colors....there are just so many things that need to be found and ordered...you can't even imagine. So I've been really busy with those kinds of things....in addition to continual work on the menu, order forms, etc..

I did set-up my phone and internet service at the store....so that was kind of fun to get a phone # and hear the phone ring for the first time. Unfortunately the call wasn't for me lol! It was intended for the previous owner of the phone #. Hilarious. So that's our story for week 7. Hoping that my next post has some better news! Thanks! -K