One o'clock came, and I left my seat. It should have spun around like a kid's toy I got out of it so fast. I couldn't wait to drive out on my break and deposit the cash and checks from my party this weekend. I didn't come back with a mint, but I had a nice sum for someone who's trying to push through and get away from "it's so hard...." to "I got this!".

The cool thing is that I sold every G-Wiz I brought with me. I can sell the hell out of that thang! I sold some other toys, and I finally sold my first Butterfly!!! I'm beyond excited that I finally sold my first big item toy. One of the ones that requires a Limited Lifetime Warranty.

Best of all: I got two parties out of the deal!!! That's where the bucks continue to come in, especially with repeat customers.

I just realized that I actually do have a third party out of the deal, and that was one of the goals: book three parties. I can't believe I acheived one of my goals!!! The third party will be in August, but I got it!!!

On the real... There's nothing like moving back in with your parents to put things in real perspective. It makes you spend your money a little more carefully. You want to invest in what will get you ahead of the game. You want to spend less so you can save more. Really, you just want to avoid all the BS out there. If there's isht hitting the fan, you don't want to be in the same house with it so not a piece of isht gets on you.

Now that I have a great party down, and two more coming up in May, I gotta get back on the next grind - working out at the gym again. More on that later....
OK, I didn't do all that I set out to do. I really wanted to convince

I'm finally catching on fire in this Slumber Parties thing. I think the hunger caught on when I spent over $300 to carry some stock with me to the party. Sales increase when you have items for the ladies to take home. Since I didn't have rent money to give to someone else, I bit the bullet and decided to invest in myself and my business. So, this party on Saturday night must be on point so I can bring home a nice profit. Sista got package deals and errythang.

I'm still hungry as hell because I need more parties after this one. I could just be shy and try to bank on reaching (or surpassing!) the goal of booking 3 parties tomorrow night. That's always the best way to get more parties: try to get the ladies in front of you who trust you and know you are fun to have their own party! Well, I'm going to a Greek Mixer tonight, and I have a goal of booking at least one party with someone at the function tonight. I don't care what organization she is, and I don't care if there's a guy who wants a card to give to his non-Greek girlfriend or wife. Someone is booking a party tonight!

This is so serious that I've already come up with a nice "Greek Mixer Special". If a lady books her party with me tonight and holds the party, she'll automatically earn a 15% hostess credit instead of the usual 10%. On top of that, if she's able to get at least 20 ladies there, she'll get $25 more in credit. If the sales are $500 or greater, she'll earn another $25 in credit. If she's so big and bad that she and her guests can rack up $700 in sales, then the hostess will earn 40% off any one item she wants.

You think I won't book a party tonight??? Watch me....

Prouder than a papa peacock watching eggs hatch

I'm really proud of accomplishing something small because I'm trying to make a big ol' comeback after having someone rob my apartment. Trust me...more on this shortly.

Finally, I did something to start building my business. I used the technology provided by Slumber Parties to generate my own professional ad!!! I actually did it all by myself. I even got a nifty logo out of it that says "Slumber Parties by ____".

I know it seems silly to be so proud of something that might seem easy to some, but I've got a long ways to go from where I've been since last weekend. This is a baby step in the right direction. Now, the key will be continuing to take those unsure, wobbly baby steps that will evolve into long, confident strides because I know exactly what I'm doing.

First, I have to overcome some hurdles. I actually see a whole line of hurdles in front of me when I think of what I've had to go through recently. Two Saturdays ago, I visited my parents' house (unusual for a Saturday night) because my grandma was over there. She usually doesn't venture from the Eastside, but she had to come home with my Dad for a while. He was being a good Mama's boy and staying with her over the weekend while my uncle and aunt went out of town. That impressed me, too. Well, my 1 -2 hour visit turned into a sleepover. My brother, NOPI, spent the night, too, after coming back from a night of partying.

Well, we cut up for a while with Mom and our nephew who spent the night, too. NOPI leaves first while I cut up a little longer with my Mom. NOPI calls me while I'm in the car to tell me we were robbed. Robbed? Us? In East Point? About 2 miles from the Police Department? Noooo.... There must be a mistake. Um...there were plenty of mistakes made.

I won't go into detail, but we have a good idea who did it. The police are aware and just need to get 100% on the ball.

Meanwhile, we can't stay around the foolishness. We were literally going to move around the corner into a wonderful house with hardwood floors, way too much space, a pecan tree in the back, and quietness. Yes, a few hundred feet really would've provided a quieter atmosphere. We had to drop that and do one of the most humbling things I've ever done to date: we moved back into our parents' home.

I may have to go into those details later, but it still makes me emotional just thinking of going back home. The silver lining in the move is that maybe God put me in this position to get me ready for something wayyy greater than renting a house. Maybe there are some steps I'm gonna have to take that'll get me to being a homeowner sooner than I think. I still remember reading a book about a setback is not a step back; it's a step forward. I'll need to reread that and focus on that entire concept because I sincerely believe that I'm being set up for something bigger than I could imagine.

Despite the line of business I'm in, I really think God wants me to take myself to the next level with my SlumberParties business. It makes total sense right now.

Lastly, I had to drop that dude Sam. The abridged version: it just wasn't gonna work. Just wasn't. He's a nice guy but too many issues, and I never really had an infatuation or love for him. I liked what he did for me, not who he was. Believe it or not, the probability of me hurting him deep down in the long run was more concerning to me because that had more chance of coming true than the probability of me falling for him. I really want to get deep on this.

Shoutout to SupaChica for becoming my sister in Greekdom as she crossed into DeltaLand through the Marietta-Roswell Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta. I love you, girl! (I would give more info, but I don't want to reveal her identity without her permission because some people really are computer savvy and might try to look up her info. See how I got yo' back? But don't look for too much more Crimson and Creme on my blog in the future. LOL)

It's all over, but it's GRRRREAT!!!

I'm still someone on Cloud 22. Cloud 9 didn't exist last night when it was announced that the winner for the sororities was Sigma Gamma Rho, Eta Sigma chapter. Just typing those words is still a shock to my system. In the years that the Stone Mountain-Lithonia Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta hosted the show (which is a HUGE moneymaker), no other team had won first place except the Deltas, no matter what chapter. Year Six came around, and Atlanta had no idea what my step team had in store.

Not only did we win First Place for the sororities, but we also won the awared for the crunkest step performance overall. It's amazing that we stepped that hard, that crunk, for that long, and there was no other team that was judged to be better. The only thing more amazing was hearing the words, "Second place goes to...Delta Sigma Theta." We knew we had it, but we had to make sure, so we had to tell some of our members to not get excited until it was officially announced that the Zetas hadn't won first place. When those sweet words hit our ears, I was frozen with shock. Then, I started jumping myself up and down, hugging my sorors on stage while a single tear escaped the corner of my eye but didn't roll down my cheek. Hugs went around for quite some time before we went to pose with our humongous trophy for pictures. We also won the award for the crunkest overall performance, male or female.

Some of you may not understand, but history was made last night. We beat of team of Deltas...in Atlanta, which can be nicknamed Deltaland. Not only did we beat the team, but we beat them at a show sponsored by their sorority. I've never seen so many Deltas ride out of a parking lot so fast.

The three months of practice paid off, and I'm so proud to say I was a part of it all. One of the best parts was seeing one of my sorors who drove all the way from Florida to see us again. (If you're reading, thanks hun.) Another great thing: a Zeta stopped me and made sure to tell me, "You held it down on the stage for the big girls." That was my goal! I might be big girl, but I didn't not want to get on that stage and be tired after 1 minute. I was exhausted afterward...as in breathing problems and slight chest pain complicated by allergies. But I was "rockin'" it, as my Dad said after watching us.

Will we step again? We don't know yet. We just know we won one of the biggest shows in Atlanta, and it's because we went into the arena with a first place attitude. We got crunk in the dressing room and made it happen, shawty!!!