THIRTY

so it's official. i'm 30. 

i guess it's time to reflect? 

(which we all know just means me ranting for a few lines. hang in there)

now i'm sure most of you are expecting a doom and gloom post. well i'm sorry to disappoint but i may be the only woman on the planet who is over the moon excited about turning 30. twenty schmwenty! 

i recently just read a quote by olivia wilde that sums up how i feel pretty much to the word. "You're 30: You know stuff now. Your 20s were for 'ducking up,' as my auto-correct would say, and learning from those mistakes. (For instance, never again will I convince myself that sleep is for sissies and go straight from a party to the airport. You will not 'sleep on the plane'; you'll vomit in the security line. Go to bed.)"

tell em' olivia!

what is it about this number that freaks everyone out? i mean i have actually lied about my age. and i'm not talking the typical i'm 21 when i'm not lie. i'm talking about meeting someone who was older than me and actually being embarrassed that i was in my 20's. i'm not sure if anyone else feels this way but it's like the moment you tell someone you are in your 20's they start looking for someone else in the room to talk to. cause you clearly haven't "lived" enough to know anything. am i right or am i right? since i was a kid i have always felt drawn to older friends. i blame my mom. i mean when most kids were eating paste i was sitting in on tupperware parties and singles groups. while they gabbed... i read, crocheted, colored and listened in. silently promising myself i would never do those things. ha! decades later and the view hasn't changed very much. insert knitting for crochet and wine for coloring... no more sitting at the kiddie table for me…i'm 30! let me in! let me in! some of my best friends in the world are woman who could quite literally be my mom.  there's just something about talking to someone who has been through way more than you in the sense of years but can keep it real without mothering you. (you know who you are! xoxo)  

i'm not quite sure what or why it is... but turning 30 just gives me hope. the kind of hope that makes nothing feel impossible. here's my theory…(feel free to ignore. i'm ranting remember!) it's like i was handed a map and a pair of blinders when i turned 18 and was told "now have at it". naturally i tossed that map right out the window and did my own thing. on december 26th of 2013 i got that map back. but this time i threw the blinders out the window and can perfectly see my path and can't wait to navigate. (wow that was deep right?)

i feel like i'm really coming into that time in my life of knowing who i am and what i want. (it's the new year…just go with me. i'm feeling all optimistic and gooey with hope.) the last ten years have been such a roller coaster and i feel like i'm finally coming down from the bumpy ride looking back and thinking…

"man. look how far i've come!" 

as far as i'm concerned 30 can bring it! 

We got this! What up! 

and now for a little thanks…

these last two weeks of birthday celebrations have made me feel so loved by the amazing humans in my life. have you ever had that moment when you are sitting with a group of people you love…look around and you realize that no matter how good or bad things are…you are still truly blessed to have them in your life? well i have had quite a few of those moments over these last couple of weeks and feel like one lucky girl. who would have thought that i would be entering my thirties with some of the best friends i have ever had. i mean come one…isn't it a proven fact that you lose "friends" as you get older...just due to the turbulence that is everyday life? well i clearly have been blessed by the friend angels and blew that theory out of the water.  

oh and here's a bit of a photo dump…                                                        

what my definition of love looked like in 2013