Today is my 41st birthday! Forty was a fantastic year and I am taking a few minutes to record what I have learned to be true over the past year(s). I am also making this list of aha's (some silly, some serious) so I can remind myself over and over again in the next decade!
ON APPEARANCE
1. Fit, Fabulous, and 40 became my mantra. At least I was 40. :)
2. I am no longer doing my makeup to look like I am not wearing any. Who am I kidding?
3. Being a tall woman, I used to try to shrink myself and never wore heels. Not anymore. Heels and wedges are my new best friends and the added height makes me feel strong.
4. It has been decided I will have long hair until I turn 60. My family agrees. No more short, mushroom bobs - ever. (Andie MacDowell is my hair and aging icon.)
5. A girl can never have enough neutral colors in her wardrobe. They go with everything and never look dated. I can add pops of color through accessories.
6. Every new season requires a new nail polish.
7. When the clothes don't fit, buy jewelry (at Target). It's cheap and cute and perks up the same old outfit.
8. I will never go to bed with make up on again. Ever.
9. I am done experimenting. I have found my favorite beauty products and I will not spend money just to try new things anymore when I already love what I use.
10. The wrinkles around my eyes just prove how often I smile.
11. Life is so much more fun when shared with my "Best Girls".
12. Having and being "Best Girls" requires time, trust, and sacred loyalty.
13. Every Oprah needs her Gayle. I must keep my oldest, dearest friends close. They have earned it!
14. Be discerning. Take my time in growing closer to a new friend.
15. Surround myself with friends who share my faith. They are like a hedgerow of protection from the world.
16. Eccentricity is an excellent quality in a friend. It keeps life interesting.
17. Even "Best Girls" hurt one another's feelings sometimes. If they love me and didn't mean it, get over it.
18. If a friendship is making me feel manipulated, used, and anxious, it's not a real friendship.
19. I give myself permission to let got of a friendship that no longer fits my life. (Remember - that which you do not feed cannot grow.)
20. Opposites do attract in love and in friendship.
ON LIFE
21. It is always ok to say no. If I have prayerfully considered it and the answer is still no then it is the right answer no matter what anyone else thinks. Nothing brings me more peace than an appropriate no.
22. Stop caring about what strangers think. It only serves to hold me back.
23. Just when I think things cannot get worse, they start to get better. I am learning to be relaxed in the discomfort.
24. If I am scared to death to do it, it is probably exactly where God wants me. Trust.
25. Every action is met with an equal and opposite reaction. When I am trying to do something new there will always be resistance. Keep going.
26. For every nine people who like me, there will be one hater. This is fact. Accept it and move on.
27. (Note ~ if there are nine people who hate me and one who likes me, reevaluate my behavior.)
28. I heard someone say if you want an interesting life, stay married. This is absolutely true.
29. My marriage can always improve. There is always room for more love and it starts with me.
30. My son going through puberty has brought out a parenting puberty in me. Everything I thought I knew seems silly now.
RANDOM REALIZATIONS
31. Some recipes are just not meant to be made at home. Leave them for the experts in restaurants.
32. I like running. Really. I do. (keep telling myself this)
33. Gluten is not my friend. Nor is it my enemy. It's my frenemy.
34. Call Mom more often. It's a blessing.
35. There really can be too much of a good thing.
36. It's almost never as bad as it seems at first. Breathe. Wait. Calm down.
37. Gossip always leaves a bad aftertaste. Always.
38. If I am without a good book to read, something in my life just seems off.
39. Making time for creativity is not an option. It's a requirement for my sanity.
40. 41 is going to be fun!
Um...this is LOVE-I-LEE, my dear friend. When I find my printer cord (in some yet-to-be-unpacked boxes!) I am printing this and hanging it alongside my bedroom mirror. Seriously. And, I love that awesome picture of you and I gazing at the Eiffel Tower. You are amazing!
ReplyDeleteH2U!!!
I don't know which of us is Oprah and which is Gayle but you're my life-long Best Girl! (Love you and love that you read my blog and make comments to let me know. This means the world to me. It makes me feel "seen".)
DeleteP.S. What I love more is the awesome picture of you in the reflection of the mirror. xoxoxo
ReplyDeleteAnd again you know just what I need to hear. H2U
DeleteSuch wisdom here. I LOVE this--all of it. May the next decade bring all good things for you! (And dang, Andie MacDowell looks fantastic for her age! What a great role model of aging with grace!)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the encouragement Erin. Yes to the next decades!
DeleteI love this list! What beautiful wisdom. And with it being my birthday today I think I may have to make a list of my own. Thank you for the inspiration.
ReplyDelete