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15 Oct '13

What Really Matters

Posted by Annie Messing

There are many wonderful, rewarding aspects of running an online business. As a mother, I appreciate the fact that I can work from home and still be present with my three children. I am grateful that technology allows me the ease of doing online marketing for Brimful from my smart phone, while sitting in the pick-up lane at school! I really am doing exactly what I want to be doing, when I want to do it. 

What really matters to me is that by becoming a customer at Brimful, you walk away with products that deepen your family experience. The gifts you purchase for your little ones or for someone else's children will enrich their

quinns

 
My entire parenting journey has taken place on military bases. Friends for short periods of time, movings vans, new schools, deployments...this is the bread and butter of life in the military. Last night, a sweet neighbor's husband came home after being gone for a year. Above is a snapshot of their reunion at the airport. I'm not ashamed to say I've shed tears of gratefulness that he's home safe! That my friend doesn't have to fall asleep worried anymore...that her husband, her daughter's father, her best friend is HOME...oh, thank God! 
 
Friends, let us do everything in life to help preserve the family unit. Whatever shape or size "family" may look like in your life, let's just work hard to make it special, make it loving, and to make it last.

xoxo,
Annie

10 Oct '13

What's the Big Deal with Wooden Blocks?

Posted by Kari Spikkeland

These days I'm up to my knees in legos, but it wasn't too long ago that wooden blocks ruled the living room!

From the time my children were able to stack one block upon the other, I've laid on the floor with each child building, creating, and of course, knocking down.

Over the span of many many months, those simple 2 and 3 block "towers" morphed into castle walls with watch turrets, skyscrapers, brick walls for cars to crash through, landing strips for airplanes, and even soup for hungry dolls. Blocks are a wonderful developmental toy for little ones because it encourages open, multi-functional playtime. 

My children's first set of blocks was a gift and I loved that colorful set (and I openly wish legos were as stylish!). 

When we received our shipment of blocks for Brimful, I was instantly transported back to those times I spent on the floor with my older two children...stacking and building to our heart's content.

The three wooden block sets we offer here at Brimful are heirloom-quality toys, made in Germany. Annie and I carefully chose each set to highlight different skill sets (e.g. sorting shapes, hand-eye coordination, and color recognition). These kinds of speciality blocks are definitely an investment, but I can promise you that the wholesome hours of play and imaginative creations your little ones build is well worth it. 

xoxo,

Kari

 

 

 



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07 Oct '13

Corn Chowder with Shrimp

Posted by Annie Messing in Recipes

For several years now, this chowder recipe has been a favorite fall soup for my family.

I learned to make it when we lived in New England...and especially this time of year, when there's a deepening chill in the evening air, spoonfuls of thick corn chowder really hit the spot. Enjoy!

Corn Chowder with Shrimp (serves 12)

1 cup butter
2 cups chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
2 cans creamed corn + 2 bags of frozen corn (total amount of corn should be 60 oz.)
2 cups milk
2-3 tsp. salt 
1 tsp tarragon
1 tsp. celery salt
1 tsp. onion salt
1 lb. cooked shrimp (tails removed)

Cream sauce: 2 Tbsp. butter, 2 Tbsp. flour, 1 cup milk

Directions: In a large stock pot, saute celery and onion in butter. Add all other ingredients except the frozen corn. In another saucepan, make the cream sauce by melting the butter until it is bubbling. Keeping the heat low, add in flour, then the milk. When sauce has thickened, add in frozen corn and mix well. Pour contents of saucepan into the stock pot and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Add half and half to taste.

04 Oct '13

Happy Friday!!

Posted by Kari Spikkeland in Happy Friday

Life was full to the brim this week and I'm looking forward to a (fingers crossed!) relaxing weekend.

I'm sure you are too! 

Here's a peek at a few things I'll be checking out in my free time this weekend:

Have a great weekend!!

xoxo,
Kari & crew

 

 

 

02 Oct '13

How Brimful Operates

Posted by Annie Messing in Behind the Scenes

Today I want to share a little more about how Kari and I operate Brimful! 

When we decided to become business partners, one of the obvious questions we both had was how we were going to split the responsibilities. Because my husband is in the military and we move every few years, it made the most sense to have Kari be in charge of the order fulfillment and customer service.

For Brimful's branding, packaging, and shipping methods to all come together cohesively, Kari had to do a lot of research! She attentively puts together each order you receive...from our cute fox sticker to the brown kraft paper that protects the products...Kari has carefully considered every detail. In addition, most of our product photography was her work...and let me tell you, it's not as easy as you might think! Kari's strength is truly in making things look beautiful and I really admire that about her. 

Kari and I have an inside joke that while she's the "voice of reason" in our partnership, I'm the "lead foot". I like to get things done! So when it comes to communicating with our vendors, researching new products, and managing our social media outlets, I make sure time-sensitive emails, pins, photos, and status updates get completed. I can be a bit impulsive about decisions, which is why it's a GOOD thing Kari can slow me down when more thinking is required. 

The bottom line is, we love working together. Sometimes the fact that we live in different states and time zones, can be a challenge, but it also gives us the necessary space to have healthy boundaries with Brimful and our family time. We will always be friends first, business partners second. That means that if Kari needs to cut short a conversation about new products because her toddler needs attention...or if I can't FaceTime because I'm watching "Silver Linings Playbook" (again!) with my husband...that is OK. 

I hope you've enjoyed this peek behind the scenes of how we operate our shop. If you have any questions about our business or want further details on a product, please drop us a line at info[at]brimfulshop.com.

xoxo, 

Annie