Reflecting on Motherhood

I never knew what it was to completely love another person until I met my child. While I never saw myself as anyone’s mother, this child came into my life as a gift. My love for her added depth and purpose to a life that until then I was living peripherally, and it is also how we discovered a shared love of handcrafted artisan soap.

28 years ago, before my original soap partner was born, I served as a civilian Naval reserve officer in a war zone before women were allowed in combat, and was the first person in my family to graduate from college. However, these defining moments paled against the undertaking of being a mother. To nurture and love another human being unconditionally has been the single greatest accomplishment of my life. My preemie daughter came into the world wrong side up and way too early, and I quickly realized that this small and perfect being needed me to be fully present. So began a journey of growing, and making her clothing and her organic baby food, questioning every choice and even making her soap and salves myself. We were a single income household, and we wanted to give gifts that mattered, so when she was three, she joined me in the process of making soap for family and friends.

We launched our brand Three Sisters Apothecary in 1999, and named in honor of my relationship with my sisters Marlo and Pandora.  Family owned, we make our bars daily. Each one is poured in small batches with a unique combination of botanicals, pure essential, gourmet butters and plant oils to support skin naturally. We know that in this fast-paced world the simplicity of nature is often forgotten, and our goal is to bring back a reverence for nature with our products.

What we find so exciting about our company is that if we can dream it, there is no reason we cannot make it happen. We still love making soap; choosing the herbs and scent profiles that make each bar unique. Time has passed and that baby is now an adult, out in the world saving lives. Her visits home are bittersweet as I know we are on borrowed time, but she always takes the time to don her trusty smock and helps us prepare soap for customers, and that makes this all the more special.