𝐸𝑥𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑁𝑒𝑤𝑠 𝐼𝑛𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑔!!! This is the news y'all have been waiting for...

I have been keeping a very important secret for so long now and let me just tell y'all...it feels GOOD to let it out!!! But seriously, I am over the moon about this. I am posting this video as a blog to share a little bit more about myself and my journey up until now.

So, for a few months now I have been hinting at things here and there in my blog posts and on social media, but I never just fully said what I was planning until now! Surprise! I'm going to school to become an esthetician!!! I'll be the first to admit...when I was younger, I used to make fun of estheticians. Before you get mad at me, let me just tell you why. I was raised with the mindset of being able to take care of myself, alone, if I ever had to. So, essentially, that's how I became an echocardiographer. I come from a tried-and-true military family that would do anything in the world for me. I love my family so much because they made me who I am! I am the first medical individual in my family tree, however, I come from a strong history of women being the first to do something. My great, great, great, great (and probably some more greats) grandmother was the first policewoman in Spokane, WA! I also have generational military members in my family, and boy am I proud of that! So, I went into the medical field, and heart ultrasound has been such a rewarding career. (This also just proves that the way women were taught to pursue careers that sustained them with medical insurance and such, you know back in history when women decided they can do what men can do? Yeah, essentially that's how I got to where I am. But what I'm learning is that you don't have to have a job with insurance to have a life-changing job. I'll dive into that towards the end.) I've gotten to work with heart transplant patients, see actual transplants and other open-heart surgeries, I've been a part of life-saving measures on multiple occasions, and I've gotten to serve the general public and attempt to introduce Jesus to as many people as I could along the way. It's been sustaining, fulfilling, and rewarding, no doubt about it.

About two years ago, I started getting really restless with life. I wanted to do something more...something that I created. Back in June of 2023, I visited my dad in Texas, and he taught me how to make cold process soap. I loved it! We may have experimented too hard and almost blew up the kitchen, but that's just a funny story for another time. Anyways, my man, Jeffrey, and dad both were encouraging me to step off the beaten path and try to become something like a holistic nurse practitioner, but it still wasn't exactly what I was looking for. I was very hesitant because the idea of doing something so unsecure was against what I knew. However, not long after that, a family friend, (Chris Heiser, if you're reading this, you were my first soap order!!!) asked me to make them some soap! Pretty soon, I was researching skin care, body care, how to make herbal teas to sell, and more! The first year was a big one too! I started doing farmers markets where I learned a lot about how to pair my clients with products that would actually work for them! I also learned that it was certainly a lot of labor and unpaid hours. Trial and error is absolutely what was going on, because I failed a lot, but I also succeeded a lot! The best part about last year was finding my niche - holistic skin care.

I remember when I had my one-year anniversary shop-n-social. There was something so special about being able to share where I started and where I hoped God might take me. I was dreaming of opening a storefront to sell my product, but something kept nagging at me. It wasn't exactly what I wanted to do just yet...

One day I came home from work and talked heavily with Jeffrey about what to do with my life. There had to be something I could do that would allow me to use my product and connect with clients, and in the future, help provide for our family and create an atmosphere where I could be available for my family, as well. As much as I love being an echocardiographer, it's not always the most flexible job. I will say, though, right now I have a wonderful job that is gracious enough to work with this next chapter of my life. So, I looked up everything I could about being an esthetician, and then, I settled on this idea. Me, becoming an esthetician. Really? Yes! Why not?! And the more I thought about it, the more my dream is starting to become a reality!

In January, I enrolled into Cure Advanced Aesthetics in Germantown, Tennessee, and I begin school at the end of April, and should graduate sometime this fall! Now, let me tell you about my new perspective on estheticians and why I want to be one. Estheticians personally take time to educate themselves in order to help provide services and education to you to help you achieve not only clear skin, but a more stress-free life. This career path is so personal. It's also a great opportunity to allow the skills and resources God has given me to help provide healing to my clients. We'll be one on one with each other, doing life together, sharing life together. I'll be excited for our next appointment to see how life has been since we last talked. I'll be there to help answer questions and be a friend when you need it. Becoming an esthetician isn't about me, but rather it's about all of YOU! The same people who have supported me from the very beginning! AND, it's a way for me to keep leaning into God and trusting Him with all the unexpected.

While I'm in school, I'll still be working part time and running HSEN. I will still be doing farmers markets too! It'll be a very busy year, no doubt, but I have so much faith you wouldn't believe it. God has brought me from peak to valley and back to a peak so many times in my life. He's been my strength when I thought I couldn't make it to the next step. And now, I'm watching Him prepare me to walk through this next season, and it's comforting to know that He brought me this far, and He'll continue to carry me through. To God be the glory for all the things in my life, and my very life at that!

I hope that all of you will continue to accompany me on this journey!

xoxo,

Dani Michelle