“I love Beettan. It does not make me orange and it does not rub off onto clothing/sheets.”
Jennifer Simmons
Owner
My Beettan Story:
Fun Facts!
- If you were a crayon, what color would you be? If I were a crayon I’d be the color yellow.
- My favorite quote that best represents me: “Train your mind to see the good in everything. Positivity is a choice. The happiness of your life depends on the quality of your thoughts.” – MARCUS AURELIUS
- What three traits define you? My sense of humor, my resilience, and my courage to be authentically me.
- What would you name the autobiography of your life? When it rains it pours.
- Have you ever had something happen to you that you thought was bad but it turned out to be for the best? When my younger son Hunter was born he had seizures the first night in the nursery. At the age of 8 months, he was given a diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy. When you’re presented with a diagnosis early on for your child you don’t know what to expect. I knew that he wasn’t reaching milestones like his older brother but I had no idea what such a diagnosis would entail. It didn’t help that doctors said that he will never walk or talk. There was a lot of focus by the medical professionals on what he couldn’t do. Early on as his mother, I chose to focus on what he could do. He would light up any room he was in and if you were in his presence you felt love emanating from every cute dimple on his face. Through many surgeries and multiple seizures, he fought hard. He loved music and taught me to appreciate what most of us take for granted. The small everyday mundane things that often go unnoticed I learned to appreciate because of his influence. He had to wait on everyone to get him out of bed or bathe him and he was always so very patient and sweet. He taught me to appreciate that I could get out of bed by myself. He taught me to value my voice and the fact that I could ask for what I wanted. Although he was unable to talk he spoke volumes with his expressions and the way he laughed and smiled. I learned to be his advocate and he reinforced my gratitude on a daily basis that God chose me to be his mother. He was truly my sunshine on many cloudy days. I was given 21 years to love him and care for him. He passed way on March 7, 2022. This brings me to the last experience that has made me a much stronger person. Losing a child is inexplicably painful and not something you’re ever prepared for. I am dipping my toes in the murky waters of grief and doing my best, to be honest with myself and with others about how hard this is. I’m taking each day as it comes and incredibly grateful that one of the lessons my son taught me was the importance of self-care. I learned early on as his mama the importance of filling my own cup. Motherhood and working full time is hard. Mama’s can’t pour from an empty cup. I have made it one of my missions in life to love, support, and encourage all parents to do what they need to do to take the very best care of themselves. As a licensed therapist I love helping people to uncover their own strengths and discovering how to integrate self care into their daily living. I have made it my life’s mission to honor my son by being the sunshine for other people.