Welcome to Boot Camp ... now drop and give me 20

No, we didn't decide to run away and join the army! But we have just finished "boot camp" and I swear  that by Friday night I was feeling like a mean drill sergeant had been making me run drills 24 hours a day for the last week!

In the Aveda world, boot camp is an intensive training period conducted just prior to a spa opening. Kate and I and our team have been immersed in Aveda products, techniques and rituals since last Sunday. Every day we have gathered at Maritime Beauty on Barrington Street to learn various aspects of the spa industry as it relates to Aveda and to start to build our Infusion team culture. It has been total system overload and everyone was looking a little strung out by Friday afternoon. Our team has worked incredibly hard to learn everything they needed to know to be able to start providing Aveda services to our guests next week and we are so grateful that everyone has been so open and willing to push themselves.

On top of getting a handle on the product knowledge and business techniques, Kate and I have also been completely consumed with the last-minute details of finalizing the construction, purchasing and set-up of the spa. We have logged more miles between downtown Halifax and Larry Uteck Blvd. than I care to calculate - on Thursday I drove back and forth to the spa six times. Kate and Nicole, our guest services coordinator, have spent hours working with our as-yet incredibly challenging computer system. I have organized and supervised movers, shopped for the items we knew we needed but didn't have room to store (they are all now sitting in my living room!), driven back and forth to answer questions from tradespeople and tried to keep a handle on the paperwork. Kate has organized marketing, scheduling and dealt with staff questions and concerns. I think we have actually figured out how to be in two places at once.

We have lugged boxes, swept floors, moved cabinetry, run for supplies and fallen into bed at night, only to lie awake trying to remember all of the things that we had to do the next day. It has truly been a week of pushing ourselves to the brink of physical and mental exhaustion.

I guess the only consolation is that no one made us shave our heads or clean the floors with a toothbrush. Oh yeah, that and the fact that as of next, our hard work will have paid off and Infusion Spa + Salon will be open for business!