Room 1021

For school lovers.

06/09/2026

I don’t usually take selfie pics like this, but of course I had to on the last day in my own classroom for who knows how long! I hope future me looks back at this picture feeling proud.

Now that school is officially out, it’s all kind of hitting me at once. I felt a lot of emotions walking out of my school for the last time. Am I totally crazy for taking this leap?! What if things don’t work out and I’m not able to grow my business like I thought?

I am so blessed to have such a supportive husband who keeps encouraging me to go for it. But I still feel the pressure to provide for our family and pull equal weight. The cost of living is wild, especially with kids, so the financial side of things is what makes me the most nervous. And let’s be honest… I still want to be able to go out for chips and queso every now and then. 🙃

The past 11 years of teaching at the elementary level here in Des Moines have been so life changing and molded me into the person I am today. So now it’s time to bet on the work I’ve put into Room 1021 as I start year 12. I’m so excited to be able to work part time teaching a subject I love AND spend that same amount of time to grow my business.

Want to know the thing I’m most excited about for my days off? Getting to do drop off and pickup as my son starts preschool this fall. 🥲 Even if things don’t work out and this part time chapter only lasts a year, I know this is a really special year to take that chance.

But first… SUMMER!

06/03/2026

Teachers, tap and hold to get YOUR summer assignment ☀️

These are all things I am hoping to do for a slow and relaxing 90s kind of summer. What did I miss?!

And if yours happens to land on the farmers market, I’ll see you there. 😌

05/31/2026

West Des Moines orders are shipping and I couldn’t be more excited!

05/30/2026

Cedar Rapids! We’re at the first market today and would love to see you.

Emma is holding down the fort today! And not only is she my friend, but she’s also a substitute teacher. 😌

Hope to see you there!

05/28/2026

My grass is super green because in approximately one week I will be a teacher on summer break!!!!!

The end of the year is always so bittersweet. But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t looking forward to a slow and relaxing summer.

So every teacher in the home stretch… summer is coming and your grass is about to be very green. I hope you enjoy these last few days with your sweet kiddos. 🥲

05/23/2026

West Des Moines!!!!! The collection is here. 😌

I’ve been working on this one for almost a year. But that’s a story for another day! Hope you love it as much as I do. If you know someone who might like one of these, please send it to them! 🫶🏼

05/18/2026

Happy National Speech Pathologist Day! 🫶🏼

05/15/2026

Big day over here! I just paid off my student loans. It only took 11 years, but it’s done. 🥲

I was an average student in high school and didn’t receive any scholarships. My parents made too much to qualify for financial assistance, but not enough to pay for four years of tuition. So it was a nice bill at the end of my time at Iowa State.

I am soooo so fortunate that my parents were able to cover a decent chunk of it. But I was still left with a nice amount to pay on my own. And to make things worse, I took out private loans instead of public, so despite spending 11 years in public education where they could have been forgiven, none of mine qualified. But I try to not remind myself of that otherwise I could cry. 🙃

Any money I’ve made from Room 1021 over the past five years has gone right back into the business. I’ve spent it on branding, my website, inventory, pictures, equipment, lawyers, freelancing, software, etc. all in hopes that this could maybe be a reliable source of income for me and my family someday.

But this past year, for the first time, I finally felt like I was in a good enough place to use some of that money for something else. So I did. Last week I made my final student loan payment. And I feel like this huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

So THANK YOU SO MUCH for being here and helping me check something huge off my list. I feel extremely grateful. 😌🫶🏼

Address

Des Moines, IA
50301-50340-50310

Website

http://www.room1021.com/

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