08/31/2026
Three years ago today…..
Three years ago we were neck deep in the freeze dried candy world. I had legally been a home baker for five years and I had big plans. That plan was to create a place where people with intellectual disabilities knew someone would welcome them, encourage them, help them with job skills, protect them, and employ them. We had traveled to 11 states and visited 13 establishments. While some were close, none of them felt quite right.
We just don’t have many opportunities for people like our boys. I was pretty well known for my life skills charts and my “Inchstones to independence” mantra, but a bakery put some speed bumps on that idea.
Then, my lobster fought for his life on ECMO and life support while in the hospital for 96 days in 2022, followed by the come back of the century. We had to adjust many things for our new normal. Baking was one of them. It just wasn’t possible to continue with that dream I had with the amount of time he needed for care.
Or was it??????
Three years ago life was chaotic and hectic. In fact it has been since 2022, but as hard as it is, I’m always grateful and blessed to have him here. We made the switch to freeze dried candy after the suggestion of a fellow Autism momma. I thought it seemed easier. Wrong. Boy was I wrong. 😂 We were at an event almost every weekend, selling in 8 locations, doing pop ups whenever I could, we had candy in concession stands, and strangers were showing up in our driveway cause they thought the address was a store.
I never gave up that idea of employing people I love and I had the best idea while driving to the amusement park in Myrtle Beach.
🍬A FRICKIN’ CANDY STORE!🍬
A candy store is much doable with less ways of injuries like burns. It’s much easier for me to make visual schedules for my friends. It’s not as fast paced (or so I thought) and how could anyone NOT love a candy store. Added bonus, I don’t think there’s a person on the planet who loves W***y Wonka more than me! 💜
I thought about it for a hot minute, but didn’t stop. He kept asking as we drove by tons of them (there sure are a lot of them there) and I said no it’s ok. But then my lobster does what he always does……
He saw that twinkle in my eye, he heard the excitement in my voice, he watched me reach for that legal pad I always have handy stuck beside the seat of the truck, and said we are stopping.
If only he would have videoed that night, you would know exactly what “like a kid in a candy store” looked like. I said this is it. THIS is how we do it.
We started looking as soon as we got home. We said no to several places. There was a place or two in SC I almost said yes to but chickened out. It’s easy to fail on my own. It’s much harder when you fail others. Then we accidentally found our little slice of happiness in Nitro and it just felt right.
Life sure has thrown us some curve balls since that day, but while our dream (and location) has changed a bit, it has only gotten bigger. Most know our son Bailey in the shop. He’s usually there two days a week, but he also has a recycling job that he loves at Shawnee Sports Complex, so we get him when he’s not busy there 😉. He has a passion for recycling like no other and he’s been learning how to use the register at the shop. He’s a self talker with some zingers for one liners…..and he happens to have Autism. The older fellas I doubt you ever see there. They still think it’s the dumbest idea I’ve had yet and I’ve had some dumb ideas 😆.
We’ve had several friends come and go during our time and have many folks with different abilities who currently are still with us.
Today starts our FB memories of our candy journey and I’m gonna be honest when I say while I love that you love the viral trends, that’s not all we do here……I need some reminders of my WHY!!
Thank you for supporting us! We have one more closed Wednesday and are hoping things pick back up so we can bring them back after Labor Day. So far that hasn’t happened however 😔.
Summer is always tough on us and I plan on doing next Summer MUCH different. I would be lying if I said Summer doesn’t always make me question if this candy store should even continue. But Fall is just around the corner and it’s time to hopefully FALL in love with Sugar Shenanigans LLC again!!!!
🎶 Come with me and you’ll be….in a world of pure imagination…🎶
💜🩵🩷
