My Golden Birthday- The Big 30

I am turning 30. On the 30th of April. 30 on the 30th. It's my golden birthday. It feels strange and at the same time like it's time. Time to say good bye to my 20s. A decade that was tough for me, even though I always imagined it being so fun. It was a decade of growing from a single college sophomore into a married adult with a career. That alone is crazy to me.

Please excuse the mess. This is apparently what 30, being married and having a career look like a la 8am. Thanks husband for my new shades!

Instead of being sad though, I thought I'd list out 30 things I know about myself, am proud of, am not proud of, but at the end of the day I know about myself as I head into my 30s.

1. My sister is my best friend. I am not sure when it happened but somewhere in the past 30 years it did. 
2. After all the awful dates, guys and dating games, I am married to the best husband and most perfect person for me. It was all worth it in the end and if you are reading this and are still looking for your person, I promise it will be worth it in the end for you too. 
3. I am still obsessed with my family. They are my people. 24/7. We have each other's backs and I am proud to admit that. 
4. The working world can be strange. I have met some amazing people in the work force and some of the strangest people in the work force. I finally learned this is applicable to everyone, the world is not out to get just me.
5. I have met some amazing friends I never would've imagined meeting and I have lost some friends in my life that I never would've imagined losing. This has been the toughest part of growing up for me. 
6. I learned I can move to cities I have never lived and figure them out. That being said I have also learned it isn't truly a move until you've cried at least once over the boxes and the changes.
7. On a similar note, I also learned that as much as I hate a city when I move there, I will always be sad and cry when I leave. 
8. I know a funeral is the worst place to have front row seats. 
9. I wish I read more. I struggle to finish books. But every time I do I feel so accomplished and energized by the process of reading. 
10. I am much happier when I am busy. Even though I don't feel happy at the time, I am happier. 
11. I miss school and getting grades. Work is tough because you don't get grades. You work hard and just continue working hard. There is never the rush of finals being over and going on a break. I miss that.
12. I can say I am old enough to remember when you had to be in college to be on Facebook. 
13. Speaking of college, I never thought I'd go to A&M. Now I can't imagine my life had I not gone to A&M. 
14. My favorite color is still purple.
15. My favorite animals are still cats and I now own one myself. The fact that I own a pet separate from our family dogs at home has made me feel very grown up. 
16. I have developed a love of touring hotel lobbies. The exact thing I used to give my Dad hell for making us do as a child.
17. I love to travel.
18. I love cozy nights at home.
19. I love wine. 
20. I have yet to own a home, only apartments. I am secretly okay with this absence of commitment in my life.
21. I still don't know how to cook that well. 
22. I still pick my nails. Occasionally I let them grow and get manicures for awhile. Then I pick them all off again. It's a vicious cycle. 
23. I worry. A lot. About big things and dumb things. I am not sure if it is fear of the unknown or fear of failure or issues with expectations. But I worry. 
24. I am slowly but surely admitting to myself that I have been and always will be a planner. I have always gotten made fun of for this and have attempted many times to quit planning, but it doesn't work. You can't quit planning if you are a planner. Instead I am learning to embrace it and embrace getting made fun of for this in the process.  
25. I love dancing. I really do miss performing in dance recitals and dance team. 
26. I know that the concept of being in the right place at the right time isn't a concept- it's God. 
27. I don't like to brag. Which is good except even when it is the good kind of bragging, I still struggle. 
28. I have figured out I love writing. I love public speaking. I love delivering meaningful messages to people to help them. I love making people laugh. I am trying to figure out if I will ever find a way to tie those together. 
29. My friends affectionately call me their life counselor and say I missed my calling. I actually love that I am the person people think of calling when they need someone. 
30. I truly feel loved by the people in my life. Even in admitting that, I struggle because I feel like I am bragging (see #27). But it's true- I am loved. 

 Cheers to 30! Thank you for reading and celebrating with me today! 

Home Happy Hours

About Me Disclaimer: I am horrible at being creative and will never provide you a good DIY project. My life doesn't look like a Pinterest board that I would advise anyone to replicate. I steal other people's fashion advice meaning I have none of my own to give out. But how to have happy hour at home? This is the kind of nonsense I promise you will always find here. 

Yes this photo was taken at Halloween time. No, unfortunately I am not stocked on candy corn year round. 

While Gregg was busy in his MBA program getting an MBA, I was busy befriending girls in his program who were not only getting an MBA too but also watching The Bachelor. One of the girls, S, moved to Houston as well for her job so I have gotten to keep up the tradition a smidge when she is in town and not traveling. Last night she came over because she hadn't watched The Bachelor and once I finished an after work interview taping, I had no plans...so duh I wasn't going to say no to REwatching The Bachelor with wine. Here's the thing, I will pretty much watch or rewatch anything reality TV related with anyone anytime if there is wine involved. 

It was a "late night" viewing beginning at 8:30. Just in time for a late night home happy hour….a kind of happy hour I have grown to love. Don't get me wrong, I still love going out for happy hours but home happy hours should not be overlooked.

Think about the effort it involves:

Get dressed up? No. You can change out of your work clothes and have on pajamas for all I care. At my home happy hours, the comfier the better. 

Clean the house? I prefer to say "clean" because let's just lay it out there, I don't have a maid and if we are good enough friends that we are doing a home happy hour then we are good enough friends that you are going to see what our apartment looks like on a Tuesday….meaning there is a 50/50 chance this place is a disaster. Gregg often works late and is literally like a brain dead tornado when he comes home. Sometimes I can manage the fall out from the tornado and sometimes I don't have time. Often in the afternoon when I am at work and we are planning a home happy hour, I don't even know what my house is going to look like until I arrive home. It's an adventure for all of us. 

Waste time trying to figure out a good happy hour location and/or deal? Not necessary. I provide wine, along with a couch and television full of mindless reality TV shows I am behind on to watch while we chat. 

No one gets off work in time for happy hour? No problem. Come whenever. Come looking however. Pick up food. Eat my food. I don't care. You never miss the deal at a home happy hour.

There you have it, go forth and host your own home happy hour. And the next time you may get off work after happy hour ends or feel lazy and don't want to get dressed up, consider yourself invited to a home happy hour with me.

My next dabble into the home happy hour is the long distance happy hour. I have so many friends who live all over that I think this could have real potential.  

 

Making an Impact in Unexpected Places

Babysitting and being a nanny are interesting things. I have done both or have considered myself both at different times. For me personally it was a reflection of age that probably shifted the title. I think most of the time it is a reflection of the amount of care and time provided to a family. 

I came across this piece on Slate that really got me thinking this week about the role of a nanny in a child's life and the role I played in families I babysat for over the years. The author Jordan Teicher wrote about a series being done on NYC nannies and the relationships they have with the children and families in which they work. I found it fascinating for many reasons but the biggest one of all being there is a part of me that could relate so well to some of the comments the nannies made about their families. 

• Gemma said "she feels like part of the family but doesn’t want to because she knows she has to leave one day."
• Ernestine said: "she misses the children when she moves on."

As someone who considers babysitting her first career, I could relate so well to what these women were saying. I know we care for children for different reasons but the end result is the same. Even though you may not try, you become attached to a family and to the children. In many ways sometimes you become part of the family. But just as children grow and do not need a nanny anymore, in my case I also had to grow up myself, go to college and move away. I think so often about all the kids I have babysat over the years. Most of them were old enough to remember me or I still see them periodically. Thanks to technology I keep up with several of them through facebook or instagram.

There is still a difference though. 

In many ways it is the difference from once being involved in their lives in person on a daily basis to now watching as more of a spectator. In several cases the kids I babysat were so small they wouldn't remember me today but I still very much remember them. 

But then I let my mind wander a little more and think beyond to all the people a person encounters in their life. Some are there for a lifetime and some are there only briefly. But everyone plays a part in weaving the tapestry of your life. Gregg and I have had some "life has come full circle" moments lately and it has left me thinking a lot about it. Thinking about everyone from my past, relationships that have changed and people I have yet to meet who will play a huge role in my future. It is amazing how it all intertwines to position us exactly where we are supposed to be today. 

For the kids I babysat, I was a part of their story. No matter how brief or long it was, I was there. I can only hope that whether they remember me or not, I left a positive mark on them. It is one of the benefits of the job no one tells you about I guess. The impact you can make on someone and the impact they can make on you, even if it is only for a short while. But then maybe that is one of the benefits of our everyday life that people easily forget about- no matter how big or how small, everyday you make an impact on someone. 

About Me

I am a wife, a big sister and a daughter all rolled into one. I am a free counselor to everyone in my life who calls me a friend and have been told I missed my calling. I love laughing until I am crying and get real joy when the stories of my life cause other people to do the same. Thanks to my Mom I am quite the planner. Reservations, trips, holiday schedules or events, I usually take charge. Thanks to my Dad I have an obsession with hotel lobbies. This probably stems from all the times he would drag our family through hotels we weren't staying at on family vacations to see the lobbies. 

Welcome to my blog which I plan to fondly refer to as a lobby as it somehow tells the stories of these many parts of my life.