Crepe Cafe Sisters

Crepe Cafe Sisters started as a hobby for sisters Jessica and Ashley, which quickly grew into a family passion inspired by their sweet, savory (sometimes salty) Auntie Mo who believed they could do anything. Then "inch by inch" their dream started to come true.

When you enjoy one of their crepes, they hope you taste the sweetness of family and savor life's simply divine moments. One crepe and one smile at a time. Whether at a farmer's market or future storefront, you may walk in a stranger, but you walk out family. And when this family serves and satisfies yours, as their Auntie Mo would say, "well, that's SIMPLY DIVINE."

Crepe Cafe Sisters Sweet, Savory, Simply Divine

Thank you for letting us "Ink the Story" for you!

Writer/Producer/Director/Editor: Kyle "KJ" Johnson
DP: Shane Prudente Created by: INK THE STORY, LLC

FACEIT.TODAY - "WHO DO YOU WANT TO BE?"

That’s a wrap!!
This past month I’ve been working with Amy Lloyd, founder of faceit.today to develop her non-profits story, script and video for an iFundWomen.com campaign. 

Faceit.today is a Botanical skincare line for normal and acne prone skin, designed to EDUCATE and EMPOWER young women through ENTREPRENEURSHIP.  Faceit.today’s mission is to help answer the question, “Who do you want to be?” Launching courageous, business-minded girls into the world with a voice to lead, the determination to succeed, and love of self to shine from the inside out.

The concept for the campaign developed around the tender relationship Amy shared with her Grandma Evelyn.  She made skin care a fun and funny environment of applied education as Amy cleansed, toned and moisturized her Grandma’s face until it began to glow.  The glow was contagious as Grandma Evelyn inspired and empowered Amy by merely teaching her the steps of healthy skin care. 

For the skeptics asking, “is this a need in the world?”  The short answer is YES. This revelation was revealed through the mouth of an 8-year-old during the video shoot. 

As we filmed Amy educating six girls (age 8-12) on the simple skincare routine, Vivian (8) quickly lifted her hand to ask a question.  She asked, “how are we supposed to take care of our skin if we don’t know how?”  From the mouths of babes!  At this moment, Vivian solidified the need for faceit.today for me.  The truth from this innocent 8-year-old who was brave enough to ask, “how do I take care of my skin?” is the reason Amy is answering this need in the world.  Amy told me that teens either over-treat or over-stimulate their skin, and 80% of damage done to the skin from UV exposure happens before they turn 18.  

In high school, I didn’t have the self-confidence to ask the question, “How do I take care of my skin,” when red puss filled bumps found a home all over my face.  I was so insecure, uneducated, and went into a rapid triaged mode with a prescription called Accutane.  This small pill burned my face off.  During school, I remember taking Mary Kay moisturizing breaks to apply lotion over my peeling embarrassment of a face.  I was so far from shining from the inside out as an insecure kid who desperately needed education, support, and love of self.  

These self-esteem and skin care issues are part of a bigger systematic problem we need to combat from multiple angles.  The secret sauce we developed for Amy’s natural skin care line, which separates her from the pack embodies the “3 E’s” for success.  Through education (teaching girls and parents the importance of proper skin care in a few simple steps); adventurous entrepreneurship (building a business around a healthy skin care routine they have the opportunity to sell the product as Face It brand ambassadors); as girls focus on health and self-esteem, holistically, empowerment follows allowing them to shine from the inside out.  

Early educational intervention is critical, I needed this education in HS; Vivian wants this education at age 8. Who’s going to teach her when the generations before her suffered from lack of skin care education and the self-confidence to even ask for help?  Faceit.Today’s layer of entrepreneurship, a chance to build a business with a product they use and believe in which activates the power of this movement of empowerment to launch courageous, and business minded girls into the world with a voice to lead, the determination to succeed and the love of self to shine from the inside out. 

What a privilege to help world changers like Amy Lloyd to develop their story as she passionately pursues her dream to change the world for the better.  READ MORE about Amy and her non-profit: faceit.today

If you need help in clarifying your business’s message and mission, I would love to bring the passionate story you have within you out!  Email: kjdeanjohnson@gmail.com

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KJ: "I WANT TO BE A WRITER"

When I was in elementary school, my Aunt Nannie turned 33; she called it her Larry Bird birthday. I remember thinking to myself, “33, that’s so old,” but here I am celebrating my 37th birthday.

My favorite Disney character has to be Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up. Peter had a whimsical freedom on life, maybe a bit immature about practical things like employment, meal planning, budgeting, or personal hygiene. Peter lived in the moment. I fantasize about mentally flying in the freedom Peter Pan did, but often feel shot down by arrows of self-made altitude limitations. I’ve come to realize Peter’s life seems like a dream on the outside, but on the inside, a nightmare. The turmoil of watching those you love on the other side of Never Never Land age, or lose their whimsy must be incredibly painful.

I’m wrestling with a loss of innocence at 37, a cosmic battle of the voices in my head. One voice says, “get a real job and keep it; you have three kids, responsibilities, your chance to do something great has passed you, you’re a 37-year-old man, dreams are just for kids!” There’s another, shier voice that speaks if I’m quiet enough to listen and it makes me soar. It creeps into my subconscious and beckons me to dream big dreams again.

God gave me a brain (rational) and a heart (emotional) to operate TOGETHER. When I polarized these complex organs, their unique functions operate independently bringing melancholy to my soul. My soul is a gentleman, shy, with a withering voice fading deeper into the background of my loud non-conscious that squeezes dreams dry.

The year of rational, emotional dreams starts now! HOPE (Positive Imagination)! As my head and heart work together mutually sacrificing to get the other organ to the top, I will begin to dream realities. When I sit down in my spare time, I’m always thinking, researching, watching, listening, learning from talented screen and speech writers of the past and present. At 37, with a wife and three beautiful girls, my dream is to be a writer. It seems immature, impulsive, an escape from reality, a hobby (maybe for a while). It seems impossible, but as Walt Disney said, “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.”

Here’s to those who dare to do the impossible!

Happy 37th Birthday KJ!

DEVELOPING A STORY: MY FRIEND'S STARTING A SCHOOL

For the past month, I've had the privilege to work with my world changing friend Shauna Edwards as she pursues her dream to start a Charter School for teen parents. I've been helping her develop a storyline and script for a video she is submitting as a top 5 finalist (only three are selected!). The government says they are required to provide a free and appropriate education for ALL people, but for these teen parents education turns into a packet they pick up or course they do on-line, further isolating them from their peers. I'm so proud of Shauna and her vision to provide rigorous, relevant, and engaging education that empowers students with the skills needed to raise healthy children and graduate prepared for success in college and future careers. AND for their kids, the school will provide an onsite childhood development center offering curriculum based early intervention.

The story of this proposed Charter School is still in development, but one thing is for sure the hope & vision for this unique school is illuminating the educational path for teen parents and their children to succeed, impacting lives for generations to come!

There's something in me that comes alive while developing a story for someone, and it makes me think, "maybe I was put on this earth to meet this need in the world." I do desire to make films that cause people to "feel" as it stirs them towards love in action. It looks like my story is still in the development phase waiting to blossom just like Shauna's dream of starting a Charter School for teen parents. The final product for this video is coming soon as the incredibly talented @michael.p.larson (Gonzaga U student) edits the film for submission. Maybe all of our story's are in the development phase as we wait for the illumination of our (sometimes) invisible passions that lay undiscovered in the deep well of our soul. To be continued ...

UPDATE: SHE LANDED THE CHARTER SCHOOL!! Projected start of the school 2020!!

KJ

DREAM IT! DO IT! DISNEY!

Dream it! Do it! Disney!

This slogan was drilled into me when I started my Disney College Program training in Orlando in the summer of 2012, and I still believe it. In a world that says here’s your box, stay in your lane, stick to the status quo, I say, if you can dream it, you can do it! Here are a couple of my favorite quotes back to back, “The glory of God is on display in a human being fully alive. Don’t ask what this world needs; instead, ask what makes you come alive and do that. The world needs people who are alive.”

When I graduated from high school, I had a desire to go to film school, but chose not to. I love Disney, imagination, the creative process, transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary, little details, and creating worlds for people to play in. A good story can tap into all our senses and move us to tears, action, and love. You feel the magic when you catch yourself smiling from ear to ear when a moment of love or joy happens on a screen. Our true self craves relationship, not a transaction; mystery, not self-gratification; love not fear. I have lived a lot of my life in fear. I wonder if fear is an illusion, an illusion I’ve bought hook, line, and sinker. I wonder if I’m more fearful of the light (love) and what that might cost me more than the darkness (fear).

Marianne Williamson wrote, “Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, NOT our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be, brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our light shine, we unconsciously allow other people to do the same. As we are liberated from fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Two summers ago, I had the opportunity to work on the Macklemore & Ryan Lewis video “Downtown.” They needed help, Ryan Lewis and the director Jason Koenig were friends, and I finally had the chance to work on a real movie set, so I said, “YES!” I was a lead production assistant, a flashy title short for coordinating 12+ YL leaders, a ‘work crew’ in YL terms, to keep people away from snapping videos/pics, which was an obvious challenge, and serve the talent & production crew. We did all this with a smile! I learned so much through this experience about the film industry and about myself. My first real full-time job was with Young Life, and I’ve been on staff for 9.5 years now. Before volunteering on this video shoot, I thought that Young Life was the only job in the world I could do. What a lie! I watched the “big time” roles people had in the film industry play out in front of me, and I found myself helping them problem solve and praising the Lord for my job with YL that has prepared me in so many ways that I believe I could do anything now! I’ve started to write (scripts, musicals, skits, books) and dream big dreams to use further exercise my gifts. This experience has taught me that YoungLife is a choice. I get to choose Young Life, not just view it as the only job I can do.

We come alive when we chase our dreams and allow our passions to push the world forward in love. We are simultaneously liberated from our fear and reflect that light of liberation to others so that they can shine too!!

Here’s to the ones that dream! Thanks for listening.

KJ