My sister (with the help of everyone) threw an amazing party. The food was soooo good, the house looked so cute, the company was the best, and the decorations and presents were unbeatable. The theme of the party was black and white so everyone was dressed accordingly, and my dad even showed up in a tux! That was probably the highlight of my night! But, honestly, I couldn't have asked for a better party...I smiled all night long!
* I have 3 kids ages 12, 10 and 6 in 6th, 4th and kindergarten grades.
* I live in a great house that I love to decorate and change all the time.
* We have a great backyard that we love to entertain and use as much as possible.
* I stay at home full time, with no means of making money. I say this because it seems like in the past, I've always had SOMETHING....and this year, I had nothing....no real commitments, no side jobs, no consulting, no one expecting me to be somewhere at a certain time.
* I volunteer at school, but don't over-volunteer. I like to do one field trip per child per year, and one other opportunity such as a class party for each kid. I enjoy being at the school, and the kids still love having me there. I just don't get over-involved....
* I clean my house almost daily....rarely will I let it go completely. I used to do laundry daily but have recently changed that to every 3-4 days. I'm experimenting which way I like the most.
* After school, I have a snack for the kids every day and we do homework right after school. And, I mostly love hearing the kids stories right after they walk in the door. I like that school and friends and teachers are top of mind so I get to hear it all right away.
* We spend most of our "free time" with kids sports and activities. Usually 2-3 weeknights are spent running around kids to practices; and nearly every weekend is filled with some kind of sporting event. Do I love this? Um.....I love watching my kids play. But, it's a lot of time! Would I have it any other way? No. My kids have healthy bodies, a love for competition, and enjoy physical activity (most of the time)....that's a huge blessing in my life.
* My marriage....is happy. I love Joe more than I ever thought possible. I think looking back on our wedding day, you realize that you're really just trusting your own judgement and God - A LOT! And, that has worked for us. At 40, your friends marriages start to struggle, and some break completely...that's a part of my 40s that I'm not loving so much. But, it's also taught me to keep working on it, and cherish what I have.
* My kids....bring me more joy than stress. And, I guess I consider that winning. I will admit that my kids haven't entered into those dreadful, stressful zones yet- pre-teen, teenager, etc. We are just now wading the waters of some of those harder decisions....but I just keep thinking "so far, so good." Also, they are lovers. They want to hug us, love us, snuggle on the couch with us, kiss us goodnight, wake us up with hugs, sit right next to us when watching tv, share blankets with us...I know that these days will end. But, this might be my most favorite thing about them.
* Stress....I feel like this has been a work in progress. I've learned how to manage it better, or I should say WE have learned to manage it better. Staying at home helps, of course. I have learned to worry less, but not stop caring. I think most people's solution to less worry is to care less...and well, that's just not me. I do care about a lot of things and people in my life and I'm not going to change that. I just have to change my reactions to some of my worries.
* Worries....my main worries have to do with sickness, overall health, loss, and my kids well-being. As my parents and grandparents age, those worries start to grow. But, as I age, worries about what other people think or say has decreased a ton.
* Faith....I love having faith in our schools, and I love our church. At 40 years old, I find I need faith assurance. I need to know that Jesus loves me, cares for us, has a plan for us, and cries with us when we are sad. Church isn't my only place to receive this message...I learn a lot about faith through blogs, instagram, podcasts, books, family, etc. I think "church" means all of those places. I do believe that when you know more about God, you just are better- at everything in life!
* Friends....I've got little groups of friends....I have sports friends (my kids' teammates parents); I have school friends (my kids' classmates parents); I have law school friends (Joe's law school friends' wives- 2 of them); I have old job friends (Farm Bureau and One Neck); I have cousin friends (Joe's cousins and my cousins); and my sisters (5 of them!). What I know for sure: At 2 a.m. if I'm down and out and need a friend, I have a few I can call. I wouldn't call on all of them....but I don't think that's the point. I think if you have 2 that you can call, that's pretty special. And, I'm thinking I'm on a couple of people's 2 a.m. call list. And, I'm proud of that too.
Many people asked if I was sad about turning 40....I really am not. I'm actually really happy to be here at 40 years old, knowing that many don't make it to see 40. But, I get to be one of the lucky ones, and I'm just really grateful for that. I think my 40s have a lot of fun things in store for me. The other day, I was telling Joe that I actually wanted to save the Legos for our grandkids. And, then I said..."Well, it's not that far away...I mean, that could be in 10-12 years!" And, at that moment, I was a little shocked. The time it took for Joey to get to 13 years is the time it could take him to have a child. And, that is way too fast.
So, cheers to the 40s...bring em' on. But, let the grandchildren wait....
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