Bentonville, AR May 2026

WOMEN, POWERED BY PEPTIDES TO FEEL

STRONG. BALANCED. RADIANT. FOR

This month, we celebrate the strength, resilience, and beauty of women, evolving through every stage of life.

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It’s Not Us Versus Them, It’s Us WITH Them

“Confident Women Don’t Compete.”

I heard this quote recently–though, I can’t recall where–and the truth of it really stuck with me.

When we’re our most confident selves–guys and gals–we tend to support and celebrate others rather than criticize. We recognize that rising tides lift all ships, and the success of those around us only serves to better us all. Women have long been on the offensive, competing for access to ownership, opportunity, and representation. Competing for a voice and a seat at the table.

Within my grandmother’s lifetime, women earned the right to vote through the ratification of the 19th Amendment. In my mother’s lifetime, women celebrated the signing of the Equal Pay Act and the Civil Rights Act, which prohibit gender-based wage and employment discrimination.

In my lifetime, we’ve seen the first female US Vice President and achieved record representation in Congress with 28% of members being female.

No person could have achieved this without the support of others, and not just other women. Confident women reaching for more aren't saying, "It's us versus them!" They're saying, "It’s us with them." I think this is a message the women of Bentonville emulate beautifully. While the world continues to work toward closing gaps for females, locally, it’s ladies we see at the helm of influence.

I would like to dedicate our 2026 Women’s Issue to some of the Bentonville women celebrating each other and pushing our community forward. Women not limited to: Philanthropist Alice Walton, Visit Bentonville CEO Kalene Griffith, Bentonville Mayor Stephanie Orman, Arkansas Moves CEO Jessica Pearson, Peel Compton Foundation President Lynne Walton,  Startup NWA Executive Director Serafina Lalany, Ingeborg Investments Founder Olivia Walton, State Commissioner and Women of OZ Chairwoman Allyson de la Houssaye, Rule of Three Co-Founder Lauren Pickman, Onyx Coffee Lab Co-Founder Andrea Allen, Sestina Executive Chef Corrin Ellis, and Velocity NWA Founder Kourtney Barrett.

When I shared the quote from the top of this letter at a recent women in leadership event, the first response was: "Competing against other women? We don’t have time for that…there’s too much to do." Amen to that!

MICHELLE BĀZIS, MANAGING @BENTONVILLECITYLIFESTYLE EDITOR

May 2026

PUBLISHER

Wyatt Layman | wyatt.layman@citylifestyle.com

MANAGING EDITOR

Michelle Bazis | michelle.bazis@citylifestyle.com

SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR

Claire McFarland | claire.mcfarland@citylifestyle.com

INTERNS

Ellison Bynum-Hyman, Violet Bloomfield, Lee Bailly

PUBLISHER ASSISTANT

Jennifer Purifoy

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Allyson de la Houssaye, Violet Bloomfield

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Ellison Bynum-Hyman, Claire McFarland, Justin Palmer, Mandy Babyar, Russell Bloodworth

Corporate Team

CEO Steven Schowengerdt

President Matthew Perry

COO David Stetler

CRO Jamie Pentz

CoS Janeane Thompson

AD DESIGNER Matthew Endersbe

LAYOUT DESIGNER Meredith Wilson

QUALITY CONTROL SPECIALIST Hannah Leimkuhler

inside the issue

The

Bentonville

city scene

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OZ Trails Bike Park Announces June 12 Opening

The OZ Trails Bike Park officially opens June 12, 2026, during Bentonville Bike Fest. This is more than a bike park opening — it’s the start of a new chapter for mountain biking for the region. The park features more than 20 miles of diverse trails, served by the OZ Express Poma-Leitner chairlift. Visitors will enjoy access to a modern lodge equipped with a restaurant, retail, bike shop, and rentals.

The hospitality group responsible for Lady Slipper, Cafe Louise, The Compton Hotel, and The Preacher's Son has shared exciting updates for the warm weather season. Expect a robust event calendar from Lady Slipper, including Jazz Night and Cocktail Class; Cafe Louise will now serve dinner Thursday through Saturday from 4-8 pm; Sestina is now serving brunch, and rooftop favorite, Celeste, will reopen at The Preacher's Son.

Ozark Retail Accelerator Launches Inaugural Cohort

The Ozark Retail Accelerator, which focuses on helping companies strengthen their product offerings for placement in large retail chains, has launched its inaugural cohort with 12 diverse companies from across Arkansas. The accelerator, overseen by Act-II Capital Holdings, is partnering with the University of Arkansas Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, the Bentonville Chamber of Commerce, and Benedict Enterprises. Bentonville-based cohort members include: Hillfolk, Mom’s Kitchen B&B LLC, Muckender, and Roasties.

Want to be featured? GET IN TOUCH AT

ARTICLE BY KALI KASORZYK

PHOTOGRAPHY PROVIDED

BECKY HILLYARD

From Side Hustle to Style Empire

The power of taste, trust, and the courage to “just start.”

She didn’t have a business plan, a media budget, or even a name anyone could pronounce. What Becky Hillyard had was taste, a young family, and the instinct to just start. Today, her lifestyle brand Cella Jane commands an audience the size of Vogue’s , she’s nine collections strong with Splendid, and she’s built it all while raising three kids — refusing to sacrifice one for the other. In an exclusive conversation for the Share the Lifestyle podcast, Becky shares what it really takes to build a brand, a career, and a life you love. Read the highlights below, then scan the QR code for the full conversation.

Q: WHEN DID YOU KNOW CELLA JANE WAS MORE THAN A HOBBY?

A: Two moments. Women started emailing me saying they bought something I recommended and felt amazing — asking me to help them find a dress for a wedding. That felt incredible. Then I looked at my affiliate numbers for one month and realized I could cover our mortgage. I thought, I can actually do this. I never set out to build a business. I started it because I genuinely loved it.

Q: WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST RISK YOU EVER TOOK WITH THE BRAND?

A: Designing my own collection. It’s easy to point at items on a website and say I love these. But to create something from scratch, put your name on it, and wait to see if people connect with it — that’s terrifying. I had an incredible partner in Splendid, and women loved the pieces. It was the biggest risk and the biggest accomplishment.

Q: HOW HAS INFLUENCER MARKETING CHANGED SINCE YOU STARTED?

A: When I started, brands didn’t know whether to take it seriously. Now it’s a legitimate line item in their marketing budgets — sometimes bigger than TV. Because what we’ve built is trust. People trust a real recommendation from someone they follow far more than a commercial. There’s no question about it now.

Q: YOU’RE A MOM OF THREE RUNNING A FULL BRAND. WHAT DOES YOUR DAY ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE?

A: I try to get up at five and not hit snooze — that first hour before the house wakes up is the most productive, most peaceful hour of my day. Then it’s all hands on deck with the kids and school drop-off. After that I work — planning content, connecting with my team, editing. After pickup, the day shifts completely and it’s all about them. I’ve learned to protect both halves fiercely, because both matter.

Q: WHAT WOULD YOU TELL SOMEONE WHO WANTS TO BUILD SOMETHING OF THEIR OWN BUT KEEPS WAITING?

A: Don’t wait. Don’t wait for the perfect camera, the right strategy, or enough followers. We find every excuse to stay comfortable. Just start, be consistent, and be authentically yourself. The right people will find you — and they’ll stay.

This conversation is just the beginning. Becky goes deeper on the risks that almost stopped her, the design process behind her latest Splendid collection, and what she’d tell her 2012 self today. Scan the QR code for the full, exclusive City Lifestyle interview on the Share the Lifestyle podcast.

“Trust is the only metric that actually compounds.”

— Becky Hillyard

BENTONVILLE ARTIST PAIGE DIRKSEN INVITES THE COMMUNITY TO FIND JOY AND EXPERIENCE PLAY THROUGH HER IMAGINATIVE MURALS

PAIGE PAINTS FOR PLAY

Paige Dirksen is a local artist whose passion for community arts is abundant in both the designs and execution of her lively murals, which decorate many corners of the city. With an MA in Art Therapy Counseling and a BA in Art/Psychology, Dirksen uses her understanding of art and mental health to create murals that invite the community to step into an imaginative world and––when it comes to her community murals–– help paint them.

Dirksen is also a talented woodcut relief printmaker, creating intricate botanical prints as well as modern block print designs. In Arkansas, she has painted murals for Fifth Market, Pedal it Forward, the Northwest Arkansas Community College Bike Tech Lab, the Third Street Tunnel in Bentonville, as well as Bella Vista’s Public Library and Riordan Tunnel.

This spring, Dirksen created a mural commissioned by OZ Art on the exterior of the Meteor Cafe in Bentonville. During one of her work days, she spoke about her process, influence, love of community, and experience as a female artist.

Q: YOU’RE A MURALIST AND A PRINTMAKER, WHICH IS INTERESTING BECAUSE NOT ONLY ARE THESE ARTS VERY DIFFERENT IN SCALE, BUT YOUR MURALS ARE VIBRANT WHILE YOUR WOODCUT PRINTS ARE BLACK-AND-WHITE. WHAT IS IT ABOUT THESE DIFFERENT EXPRESSIONS THAT YOU’RE ATTRACTED TO?

A: I fell in love with printmaking when I was in college. There are many different kinds of printmaking, but I’m really drawn to it because you see the artist’s hand in it; it’s all the little happy mistakes and textures that you can’t recreate digitally.

“THE GOAL IS FOR VIEWERS TO STEP INTO A WORLD OF JOY FOR A MINUTE.”

I’m a woodcut printmaker, a relief printmaker, and I feel like printmaking is more my personal practice. Carving wood is so meditative and relaxing for me.

The murals started out more as a community project, so it’s a way to engage the community to invest in the places they live, and feel like they made a mark on things. Not every mural, like this one, is a community mural, but those are the ones that excite me the most.

Q: YOU GRADUATED WITH A MASTER OF ARTS IN ART THERAPY COUNSELING, AND ALTHOUGH YOU’RE NOT CURRENTLY PRACTICING, HOW HAS THAT BACKGROUND IMPACTED YOUR MURAL MAKING?

A: I’m constantly thinking about the healing aspects of creating. When I was in grad school, I became a little bit more interested in community arts just because of the more authentic relationships that it could form. Even though I’m not practicing in a clinical capacity right now, I feel like it definitely informs a lot of the work I do.

I also have a couple of projects that I’m currently working on with Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art where I get to exist in that space between community arts and a more clinical art therapy practice. I’m grateful because Crystal Bridges, especially with the Heartland Whole Health Institute and Alice L. Walton School of Medicine, is really thinking about how much of an intersection there is between art and wellness.

I’m currently doing a year-long artist residency at Arkansas Children’s Northwest Hospital, where I get to create accessible art experiences for patients, families, and staff and just bring moments of comfort and joy within the hospital setting. I’m also working on their Vitality Arts program where I am writing art curriculum for senior care facilities. Last year we did a pilot project with it and served 11 senior care facilities in northwest Arkansas.

Q: CAN YOU TELL ME MORE ABOUT YOUR MURAL FOR FIFTH MARKET?

A: That was another community mural, and that was really enjoyable, because anybody who came to the Fifth Market could participate in it that day. So I had two-year-olds making a mark on the wall alongside other community members. It always blows my mind how magical community murals can be. I think it’s really easy for me to underestimate what that means for people to be able to put a mark on their community, and every time I leave feeling so fulfilled by how exciting and joyful it is for people.

Sometimes art in a gallery might not feel as accessible, but murals are excellent because they are accessible to anyone. I think with my style and design, the biggest goal for me is for viewers to step into a world of joy for a minute. A little bit of an ethereal space with lots of color to kind of escape reality for a second.

Q: ARE COMMUNITY MURALS AND MURAL PAINTING IN GENERAL SOMETHING THAT HAS ALWAYS BEEN IMPORTANT TO YOU?

A: I started doing murals back in high school, mostly just for my own school. Later on, I spent some time in Haiti and worked on some community murals with folks there. Those experiences really shaped me and helped me see how art can function as a universal language and how powerful it is to invite others into the creative process.

I also feel like, especially as adults, we all need to play more. That’s what art is for me, too, and we’re starting to really understand the health benefits of that.

Q: WHAT DOES BEING A FEMALE ARTIST MEAN TO YOU?

A: Being a woman in the arts feels deeply connected to lineage for me. I’m constantly aware that I’m standing on the shoulders of women who fought to be seen, to be paid, to take up space creatively when that wasn’t welcomed or even allowed. That awareness brings a lot of gratitude, but also a sense of responsibility. It makes me think about how I can continue that work—not just by creating, but by creating in ways that are expansive, inclusive, and honest. I want the work I do to widen the door even more for the people coming after me, which is why I also love mentoring younger artists.

I also really appreciate all the people who advocate for women, especially women in the arts who are mothers, because that comes with a whole additional set of challenges. When my kids were little, I made a lot of sacrifices, and I had to put my work on pause for a long time. Navigating both roles is a constant balancing act, and there are times when it’s genuinely hard to make space for it all.

Dirksen’s work continues to brighten the city with her imaginative style and care for the community. Creative, adventurous, and dedicated, Paige Dirksen is leaving her mark on Northwest Arkansas to amaze and invite community engagement in the arts for years to come.

EVENT DESIGN – KATIE MCINTIRE XO

FLORALS – THE FLOWERSLINGER

The Next Paris Might Be Bentonville

How Bentonville's collective creativity allows us to imagine something none of us could have built alone.

The truth about what I do is a little nuanced.

I may say I’m a documentary filmmaker, State Commissioner, or Parks and Rec Board Chair, but through it all, what I’m really doing is building relationships. I help people meet each other. I connect those with an idea to those with a resource. Sometimes I am performing. Sometimes I am observing. But mostly, I am paying attention.

When I was first asked to share my thoughts on the creative industry in Bentonville, my initial reactions were, “Why me?” and “What exactly do we mean by ‘creative’?”

That’s the thing about creativity and people whose work gets labeled as “creative”: it rarely fits into a neat definition. Creativity resists borders. It moves between disciplines and professions, appearing in places we don’t always expect.

Filmmakers, entrepreneurs, chefs, architects, trail builders, musicians, scientists, mathematicians— creativity lives in all of them.

Steve Jobs once said, “Creativity is just connecting things.” And those connections rarely happen in isolation. They happen in proximity—in conversations, collaborations, shared spaces, and chance encounters between people working on entirely different problems. Over time, those connections begin to accumulate. They build.

Each person contributes something small: an idea, a project, a gathering, a space, a story. Individually, those contributions may seem modest, but together they form the structure that allows the next generation of thinkers, makers, and builders to see a little further and go a little farther.

What’s happening in Bentonville today feels familiar to something we have seen before. The early signs of a place where ideas begin to accumulate. Where conversations turn into projects. Where projects turn into movements. But movements like this are often difficult to recognize while you’re living in them.

Think about Paris in the 1880s.

Do you think Parisians of this period woke up and went about their everyday lives appreciating just how special a time and place they found themselves in? That in the coming decades, artists such as Picasso and Matisse would emerge, and that once the break from realism occurred, a flood of modern expression would follow?

Or Detroit in the early 20th century, where the creative outputs in industrial design, mass production systems, and modern manufacturing would create an automobile revolution? Cambridge in the early 20th century—no, not that Cambridge, the other one—or, for that matter, both of them—where breakthroughs in physics, mathematics, and early computing were beginning to change the scientific world.

Turn-of-the-century Vienna, where modern art, architecture, and psychoanalysis were emerging side by side; 1970s Silicon Valley, where hobbyists and engineers would spark the personal computer revolution; or 1920s Harlem, where a renaissance of music, literature, and Black cultural expression transformed American arts. And, of course, the Delta between the 1920s and 1950s, where the blues took shape and laid the foundation for much of modern music.

I firmly believe Bentonville, Arkansas, is one of those places.

And this may be one of those times.

Maybe it is just a feeling.  A feeling that when enough people share it, and they start to believe, then that feeling - that belief - becomes a reality.

As I go about my days in Bentonville, I encounter transplants who chose to move here for opportunity, sitting alongside locals who chose to stay here because they appreciate the history, tradition, and beauty of the region. I see spaces being built and cultivated that give rise to intentional interaction. Some

CONTINUED >

“What’s happening in Bentonville today feels familiar to something we have seen before. A place where ideas begin to accumulate. Where projects turn into movements.”

of those spaces are grand in scale—ride your bike up and down J Street if you need any example—while others are quieter, woven gently into the natural landscape.

At the Compton, sipping coffee, I hear conversations that move effortlessly from global trade and supply chains to local flora and the best trail to walk if you want to see the newest guerrilla art installation in the woods. I see families exploring wildlife in the creeks and young adults getting that first taste of freedom, riding bikes to gather on the downtown square.

I see innovation at every huddle space and along trailheads.  I hear whispers of brilliance and revolutionary ideas whistle through town like the spring winds that visit us every year.  Sometimes these ideas emanate from conference rooms and board meetings, and sometimes they appear unexpectedly at a splash pad or on a group ride.  I smell the faint aromas coming from the kitchens of the multiple James Beard finalists scattered across the town and wonder how their expression of love and community is going to inspire the next culinary delight.

I see, hear, and smell this all as I participate in this town.  I go about my daily life feeling pulled into a vortex of kinetic energy that can only occur when you combine the physical infrastructure, natural beauty, and the array of people.

Each person adds something small—a story, a gathering, a trail, a restaurant, a company, a piece of art. Individually, those contributions may seem modest. But together they create the structure that allows the next generation of creatives to see further, build further, and imagine something none of us could have built alone.

Creatives. Creators.

And who knows—maybe 75 years from now, some sixth-grader will be writing a world history essay about the cultural inflection point known as Bentonville in the 20’s.

After all, crazier things have happened–someone once decided to build a world-class art museum in Arkansas, of all places.

Allyson de la Houssaye AWAL Productions www.awalproductions.com

Allyson is a documentary filmmaker and founder of AWAL Productions, a Bentonville-based production company that collaborates with creatives, local organizations, and corporate partners on projects ranging from outdoor documentaries to branded storytelling.

Looking for a point of connection?

These events bring together Bentonville’s creative community to exchange ideas and explore what’s possible. Open to creatives across disciplines.

off.script

AWAL Productions x Arkansas Cinema Society Film Forum x Tom Hoehn | May 7 · 5:30 PM at The Meteor Cafe

Wave

BLK ELK Media x The Momentary | July 22 Happy Hour at The Momentary

ARTICLE AND PHOTOGRAPHY

BY MICHELLE BAZIS

IT TAKES A Village

Havenwood offers housing and support for single mothers coming out of crisis

They say it takes a village.

If you’re a mother reading this, I want you to think about your family’s daily routine. Consider when your child was a newborn, surviving on formula, living in diapers, and building their immune system one germ at a time.

Think about your baby shower when friends and loved ones celebrated your growing family by gifting you with a car seat, stroller, baby monitors, and clothes. Think about when your partner switched shifts during sleepless nights and shared the financial responsibilities of diapers, daycare, and doctor's visits. Do you have siblings, parents, or in-laws? Can you remember a time when they’d babysit so you could have a date night or an afternoon to recharge your mom batteries? On days when you were sick, did they back you up so you weren’t struggling to care for your infant while fighting a fever?

Mothering is organized chaos; it’s beautiful mayhem. With every new phase of development, you might have wondered, “What did I get myself into?” Yet, even on your lowest and most under-appreciated days, you glow at being called “Mom”.

No family is ‘normal,’ and we all have relative obstacles to overcome. But the beauty of navigating life with a loving village is that you have someone to call, someone to fall back on, when you need help. For many of the mothers at Havenwood–a transitional home for single mothers coming out of crisis–there was no support system; no village.

The final setback that led to Heather applying to Havenwood’s two-year transitional housing program was getting kicked out of her mom’s apartment. “I was stuck for a long time and ended up moving in with my mom,” she said. “That went south because my kids’ behavior had been crazy. They gave me a week to get out, and I was on my knees praying, ‘God, you gotta work this out. I have to figure something out, or we're gonna be on the streets.’”

Heather called Havenwood, and they invited her to interview for their two-year program.

Located near Bentonville's Airship Pumphouse, in a former church building, Havenwood currently accommodates 14 families at a time with studio and one-bedroom apartments. The program has been around for more than 30 years, but it experienced major setbacks during the COVID pandemic, nearly closing its doors for good.

“WE’RE NOT AN EMERGENCY SHELTER THAT NEEDS CLOTHING; WE’RE TEACHING MOM HOW TO BUDGET FOR THAT.”

Take it from mom, Heather, a resident at Havenwood and single mother of two.

“If you don't have someone you can go to, if you don't have family that can help you, if you don't have support, so many moms end up in terrible situations,” she shared.

Heather lost her home and business, and became a single mom when her son's dad went to prison. A year later, Heather’s father also went to prison, and her mom lost the family house. Grappling with crippling anxiety and struggling to find trustworthy care for children with behavioral struggles, Heather recalled desperate years without a true home.

“There were about five years of just living in a hotel and trying to get on my feet,” she said. “My kids' behavior was crazy because of the trauma they had been through, which made it difficult for me to work. I didn’t trust anyone to watch my son because he was so wild. It was just a vicious cycle.”

In June of 2023, the organization approached Jim Evans for help. Evans, who brings nearly 20 years of non-profit experience, felt convicted to take over the Executive Director position at Havenwood as a matter of the heart.

“There were families that needed help,” he said. “I had to figure out: Am I going to be the guy who closes this down in a responsible manner, or am I going to be the one to turn it around?”

By December of that year, Evans and Program Director Tara Burghart had determined they wouldn’t have to close Havenwood’s doors. In the years that followed, Evans and his team were able to dig the program out of financial deficit and rehab its relationships with long-standing donors. For their team, the next step to expanding and improving Havenwood’s quality of care looks like owning their building. Ideally, a property donation would allow Havenwood to reinvest all funds into programming and direct support for families.

“These moms, they work so incredibly hard,” Evans said. “We’re trying to create sustainable change that she can do on her own. We’re not an emergency shelter that needs clothing; we’re teaching mom how to budget for that.”

Havenwood seeks to give its families a renewed sense of dignity; a space they can take pride in while they get back on their feet. In addition to things like counseling, employment, debt management, and legal aid, the non-profit sets each family up with a safe and furnished home with affordable rent under $600/month.

“We fully furnish each apartment with brand new furniture,” explains Mary Kate Provost, Director of Marketing

& Community Engagement. “No donations, no hand-medowns. Through sponsorships and donations, we provide furniture that will last, and the family takes it with them when they graduate.”

“You’ll see plaques on some of the apartments,” Evans added. “A company can sponsor a room; $8,000 for a family of two and $12,000 for a family of three. This helps furnish the apartment and goes to support that family throughout the year with whatever emergency services they might need.”

Heather explained how she felt when she toured Havenwood for the first time.

“I walked into the apartment when they were showing it, and I was just crying, thinking, ‘This is it. This is where I'm gonna start getting my life together.’”

It’s not always a rock bottom situation these moms need help out of. For some, like Heather, it’s juggling reliable childcare with stable employment. For others, it’s supporting their family on a single income while struggling to overcome debt and establish the credit needed to get a home.

“Some mothers have a job and transportation, but they have financial hurdles they struggle to overcome on their own,” explains Provost. “We’ve partnered with ARVEST to offer a grant for our moms. It’s a savings plan; as long as they consistently save each month–even if it’s just five dollars–the grant will match it when they graduate. This is a huge help for things like security deposits and first month’s rent.”

“Thanks to these amazing people, I feel like I've grown,” Heather said. “I'm thankful for the rules. I'm thankful for the stability and the peace that I have now. If anybody asked me years ago, ‘What do you want the most?’ I’d say peace, because I didn't have it, not even a little bit. There was pure chaos in my life. And the one thing that I can say that I'm most thankful for is the peace that I have now.”

In November, Heather will join the 85% of moms who go on to graduate from Havenwood with stable jobs and housing. She will be a part of a network of alumni who continue to support each other and often return to encourage new moms in the program.

When asked how she felt about the next phase, Heather said, “Not being able to support my kids is literally my biggest fear. Now, I'm not afraid to move forward because I have support.”

HAVENWOOD

www.nwahavenwood.org

808 N. Main Street Bentonville

Help: It costs approximately $90 per family, per day to provide the safety, stability, education, and community they need to rebuild their lives. Donate at www.nwahavenwood.org/donate or contact info@ nwahavenwood.org to learn about adopting a room and supporting a family for the year.

DIY VANILLA ORANGE SUGAR SCRUB

Create your own DIY sugar scrub for a perfect gift for a special person in your life.

To make one 8 ounce mason jar of vanilla orange sugar scrub, you need:

• 1/4 cup of coconut oil

• 3/4 cup of sugar

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

• 10 drops of orange essential oil

Soften the coconut oil in the microwave for a few seconds. Next add the vanilla extract and the orange essential oil. Then, stir in the sugar, a little at a time. Print off a fun label or attach a ribbon to the jar, and your gift is ready. Enjoy!

BLACKOUT FOR BABIES GALA

MAY 2ND

Women of OZ Monthly Flagship Ride & Skills Clinic

Join Women of OZ’s monthly Flagship Ride and Fundamental Skills Clinic guided by experienced female ride leaders and sweeps. The group ride caters to all skill levels, from beginners looking for the basics to experienced riders ready to push their limits. Each ride culminates in a post-ride social event. Register at woznwa.com/flagship-ride

MAY 9TH - 10TH

Sunny Side Up Brunch & Bazaar

21c Museum Hotel Bentonville | 10:00 AM

Stop by 21c and The Hive Bentonville Mother's Day weekend for a new two-day market: Sunny Side Up. The Hive will be hosting brunch and cocktails, while 21c will be filled with local vendors curated by NWA Creatives Club.

MAY 16TH

Rule of Three

3100 Price Coffee Rd, Bentonville, AR | 8:00 AM

Rule of Three 2026 is a mixed-terrain cycling event taking place between May 12–17 [race day, May 16] in Bentonville, AR. The race features 115-mile, 60-mile, and 35-mile routes that combine gravel, pavement, and singletrack. Visit 3100 Price Coffee Rd, Bentonville, AR on race day to cheer on participants and enjoy vendor festivities.

The Next Buyer For Your Home Might Not Live In Arkansas Yet.

Bentonville has become one of the fastest-growing luxury markets in the country. Executives relocating for Walmart, suppliers moving headquarters, and investors discovering Northwest Arkansas are creating unprecedented demand for exceptional homes. But capturing those buyers requires more than putting a home on the MLS. It requires strategic marketing, national exposure, and a luxury-level presentation.

If you've ever wondered what your Bentonville home could sell for in today’s market, I’d be happy to show you.