I Wanted a Side-Hustle. I Started a Business Instead.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Jessica Redford. It has been edited for length and clarity.

Last September, a shopping center opened down the street from me. It had a grocery store with a bakery, and at first, I thought it might be the perfect opportunity for me to get a part-time job.

I’d been homeschooling my three kids, who are now 14, 11, and 8, for years. As they got older and needed me a little less, I started feeling like I wanted something for myself, an outlet for my creativity. A part-time job seemed like the perfect way to have that.

Before having kids, I’d taken cake-making classes and learned the basics, so working in a bakery just minutes from home felt ideal.

But then I started thinking about how much I value the freedom we have as a family. We can go camping or take a day trip whenever we want, and I realized that having set work hours might take that away.

Around the same time, I was scrolling through my phone and came across videos showing how to make, bake, and decorate cake pops. They looked so much easier — and more manageable — than creating huge, elaborate cakes.

I thought I could do that.

I got the encouragement I needed

After a bit of experimenting, I made a batch of cake pops for a Halloween party. Everyone loved them, and that gave me the encouragement I needed to try selling them.

I started posting about my cake pops on Instagram, taking small orders, and attending vendor events.

Then, in November, I had some cake pops left over after a vendor event. The kids and I decided to sit outside on the corner of our neighborhood and sell them to people passing by. My neighbors loved them!

I only had a few left after that, so I took them to my chiropractor as a gift. She posted about them on her social media, and that’s when everything really took off.

Suddenly, I was getting what felt like endless orders for Thanksgiving and Christmas cake pops.

I was burning out

Those months were crazy. I was in the kitchen constantly. It was exciting, but it was also overwhelming. I’m sure God gave me the desire for this business, and it’s my faith that has kept me going even when it was hard.

But by the time January came around, I knew I couldn’t continue at that pace. I needed to step back and figure out a way to make the business work without it completely taking over our lives.

So I took January off to regroup and make a plan.

I decided to sell my cake pops at a local family farm on Tuesdays and Thursdays — somewhere my kids could come along with me. I’d create different designs each week, so there would always be something new for families to look forward to.

Selling at the farm helped me build a reputation among local moms and really get my name out into the community.

After taking a break in July, I wondered whether I could make it work to sell cake pops outside my house from a portable cake cart I’d bought online. I decided to give it a try.

I told customers I’d take a set number of orders throughout the week, then have everything ready for them to collect from the cake cart outside my house on Fridays.

Since starting that over the summer, I’ve sold out every single week.

I’m learning to set boundaries

The past year has been a roller coaster of emotions. I’ve felt incredibly accomplished and excited, but there have also been times when it all felt like too much.

I’m slowly learning to say no and to set boundaries that protect my time, my family, and myself.

My kids have loved being involved in the baking and decorating. They’re my taste testers, and they’re always hoping I’ll mess up a batch so they can eat it themselves.

One of the most important things to me has been showing them that their mom can start and run a business — that, like me, they can create something from nothing.

They’re learning about entrepreneurship along the way, and I hope those lessons will serve them well in the future.

There have definitely been moments when I’ve wanted to give up. But I’m so glad I didn’t quit on myself. I kept going because I wanted to find out what I was capable of.

And now I know.