The Real Reason Bubbly Ducky Started, Where It Is, And Where It's Heading

Bubbly Ducky has been a passion project from the start, and continues to be as I try to grow it into its full potential. I absolutely love watching other business owners talk about why they started their ventures and how they are growing them now, so I thought I'd hop on board and share my story. I want to share a bit about why I got started, where I am now, and where I want to take Bubbly Ducky.

I hope you don't mind me getting a bit personal. I have gone back and forth about sharing this. I truly believe that "in all things God works for the good of those who love Him" (Romans 8:28), so I decided to share my story of Him doing just that. 

Celebration & Grief

In December of 2018, about six months before I filed the paperwork for Bubbly Ducky LLC, I found out I was pregnant. We were so excited! We were already in the process of finalizing guardianship for our ten year old daughter who had been with us for about a year, and now our family was about to grow again. It was unexpected, but that was okay. We announced the pregnancy at Christmas, and everyone celebrated!

Unfortunately, in January, we had our second ultrasound and the baby's heartbeat was too slow. Over the next few weeks, the baby's heart stopped and we lost him. We were all overcome with grief. My heart was absolutely broken in a way I didn't think was possible. 

 

My tiny little guy

A Catalyst For Change

Through this grief, I began thinking about our state of affairs and how unprepared we were for a baby. The main issue was our source of income. We relied heavily on my paycheck. I worked a decent 9-to-5 job as a site merchant, but it was in-office and offered no paid maternity leave. Having experienced several truly awful babysitters and daycares when I was a kid, I was unwilling to leave a baby, who couldn't tell me what was happening, in the care of strangers. Our parents didn't live close by and still worked, so they couldn't help. That would mean that I would need to quit my job and stay home, and we weren't prepared for that. 

I needed to find a way to make money from home, where I could provide for and care for my family at the same time. I started thinking about problems I could solve or products I could improve upon.

A New Passion

A year or so prior, one of my clients had sent me a gift - homemade soap! They owned a successful soap business and sent me a couple of bars. That soap felt better on my skin than any I had ever used. I was so impressed! That is, until I saw it melt in my shower. I managed to get two uses out of each bar, then they were gone. I was sure that I could improve on that.

I began immersing myself in soap formulation research. I watched every video, learned about the qualities of various oils and butters, and began to experiment. I found that soap could also be an arform. How fun! I always wanted to be an artist! This was the perfect blend of creativity and analytical thinking, and I fell in love with the craft. 

One of the best parts was that my daughter was involved, too! She watched the videos, took notes, came up with design ideas, and even put together a growth plan for my business! This was something I could share with her, and we could grow together.

The First Few Years

I started with a monkey logo because I thought it would be a silly conversation starter. 🤦‍♀️

 

Bubbly Ducky officially started in May of 2019. My family and I tried a ton of names out, but I settled on Bubbly Ducky because I have a minor obsession with rubber duckies. Way before Jeep owners started exchanging duckies, I had a Camry that was absolutely covered in them! 

I tried to get the business started online, but realized that my goodies sell better when my customers can touch and sniff them, so I started doing craft fairs. That let me start meeting some of you, which is so much better than just chatting online! The business was growing, but at a snail's pace. 

My silly goose at one of my first few events, September 2019

A little less than a year after I started, Covid hit. The business continued to support itself, but it definitely wasn't growing. However, a big change was happening in our society. Suddenly, remote work was the norm. As much as I love, love, love Bubbly Ducky, I was trying to keep my eye on my main goal - supporting and raising my family simultaneously. 

In March of 2021, I started a new day job. It was a huge blessing. It came with a raise, benefits that included ample maternity leave, and the promise of never working from the office again. My oldest could start staying home with me and any future kids, if God chose to give me any, wouldn't need daycare. Woohoo!!

This job was really tough. As many of you probably know, getting acclimated to a new job at home is totally different than being fully immersed in an office. I was struggling in a way I had never experienced before. I was working long hours and fighting a losing battle with work/life balance. I had no idea how to get Bubbly Ducky growing when I had no time to give it. 

The Long Hiatus

I decided to take a few months off from Bubbly Ducky, to give myself time to adjust to my new job without stretching myself too thin or robbing my family of attention. I figured two to three months should be plenty.

Then we decided to move. As much as I love Florissant, we had started having issues with drive-bys in our neighborhood. Also, home values had hit a record high. It was time to go, so we found a house in Troy. I extended my hiatus for a couple months to move and sell our old house. I loaded up the spare bedroom in the new house with all my tools and ingredients, excited to get set up as soon as possible! But then...

The Longer Hiatus

I found out I was pregnant. When it rains, it pours! We were literally overwhelmed with blessings. 😂 My planned soap room was going to be a nursery. I had no clue where I was going to make my products in a way that conforms to Good Manufacturing Practices (which meant I couldn't use my kitchen). 

Also, I hated all smells! LOL. I didn't realize how strongly you smell things when you are pregnant. I couldn't go anywhere near my supplies. That meant no more soap making until the baby was born, at least.

At this point, I didn't know if I would ever be able to open up shop again. 

Hello, Baby!

After a difficult pregnancy, my youngest was born on November 2, 2022. She wasn't breathing. After about six minutes, they were able to rescusitate her, praise the Lord! She started out on a ventilator, but she was able to move to an oxygen tube after less than a day. She had to be hypothermic for three days to try to prevent brain damage. Then she had to be monitored, learn to breathe on her own, and learn to nurse. All in all, she was in the NICO for 11 days, which is absolutely miraculous. They had told us that 3-4 weeks was a very optimistic estimate, and she was home in less than two.

My miracle baby, at about a day old and two years old

I should insert that she is absolutely healthy now and the smartest baby in the whole wide world. God has blessed her abundantly. There were a lot of checkups to monitor for developmental delays and cardiac issues, but we've stopped most of them at this point because she is doing exceptionally well!

Let's Try This One More Time...

Finally, after way too long and a lot of late night talks with my hubby, I reopened Bubbly Ducky in September with the mindset "I'm going to do this all the way or not at all". I loaded up my calendar with events, bought the biggest sizes available of most of my ingredients, and got to work! 

Right now, Bubbly Ducky is pretty much starting over completely. I'm working to let everyone know that I'm here. I'm guessing half of my Facebook followers haven't seen a single post yet because of the algorithm forgetting about me. 😂

 I've changed my focus a bit, at least for the short term. Instead of making a million different products and having them constantly go out of stock, I'm working on a few awesome collections that you can fall in love with and get again and again. I'll be bringing back some old favorites, too. I'd love it if you would comment with the collection you would most like to see!

What's Next?

I have so many big plans, and they will likely be happening pretty quickly! I don't want to share all of the details until they are solid, but I will say that you will likely be able to sniff and sample Bubbly Ducky soaps, lotions, and scrubs without having to chase me down at various popups in the near future!

I would also love your help! Part of the vision is to get Bubbly Ducky into boutiques, coffee shops, yogo studios, and anywhere else that it may make sense. If you know of a shop that would be perfect for my products, please reach out! I'd love to hear about it.

Be on the lookout for more announcements soon!

I'm so, so grateful for every one of you!!