It's not the 10th today, but that date is on my mind all the same. Guess who's going to be 33 on Sunday? Yes, it hurt to type that number. I almost deleted it. I contemplated lying. But it is what it is... I'm an old woman. Do you remember when you were 20? My twenties are crystal-clear in my mind, and one of the biggest things I recall is the feeling that my life would officially be over the day I turned 30. Women in their thirties have baby hips and mom jeans, dark circles under their eyes and "practical" haircuts. If life is like climbing a mountain, 29 is the peak and everything else is downhill from there.
Whatever. I used to believe that. But guess what? Life just keeps getting better and better.
My early thirties have been marked by a sense of contentment, of peace in my life. For one of the first times ever, I feel like myself. I'm comfortable with who I am and who I still hope to be. My joy comes from outside of my own successes and failures--it's less dependent on circumstances and much more stable. My kids bring me joy. My friends and family. A hot cup of coffee and a cold bowl of ice cream. Clean sheets. Believe it or not, I actually like my laugh lines and the fact that my friend's kids come to me for a quick cuddle and a bit of comfort. I love preparing meals for my family, folding my husband's boxers, and going to bed at 10:00 instead of 2 a.m. But I also adore getting dressed up, discovering a new band, and laughing so hard it hurts. (See the photo above? I was actually laughing so hard I fell down. Pathetic, I know.)
You know, I think I love my thirties. Yup, I do. And 33 is such a nice, whole number. It seems complete somehow. Fitting that I would turn 33 on 10-10-10. This may very well be the best year yet. Happy birthday to all of you who turn thirty-something this year. Or forty-something or eighty-something. And a very happy birthday to those of you who fall below that special line. Enjoy every minute of it. Whatever you do, don't believe it when someone tells you that it doesn't get any better than this. It does.
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So now I know what you've thought of me all these years! Because we didn't really meet until after I was 30! Tee hee! It does keep getting better, I'm coming upon 44 this winter...try that on for old!
ReplyDeleteI'll be 38 in January and I'm looking forward to it. I agree with you and Miriam - it does keep getting better. As we get older we learn to leave behind some of our insecurities and worries about what others think. We grow comfortable in our own skin. It's such a relief.
ReplyDeleteHappy early birthday!
-Tracy
Amen! I've not crossed that special marker yet, but life DOES keep getting better and better! I'm officially obsessed with that picture. It. is. awesome.
ReplyDeleteHappy almost birthday!
ReplyDeleteAnd I'll look forward to my thirties - if things are only going to get better, my life will just go from wonderful and blessed to fantastic and still blessed. :)
Happy Early Birthday and I agree w/ Katie, that picture rocks! :D
ReplyDeleteKeep on laughing!
~ Wendy
Happy Birthday Nikki! I knew there was someone out there who has a way with words to express exactly how I'm feeling. I haven't had this much fun in my entire life in spite of days when I attempt to do the dishes 6 times and end up finishing at midnight. Or the fact that my house just never seems to be clean. Or the laundry done, folded, put away. So, yeey for us making it up the hill, building our abode and living happily ever after! :-)
ReplyDeleteNoemi
Okay, well I haven't been able to follow your blog much these past few months but I was able to read this one...I turned 30 (plus 3) in July...that is what I REQUIRE my husband and friends to refer to my age as. Yes, I would definitely agree with you that life only gets better...it's like wine - finer with age ;) We become wiser and handle life better because we grow stronger in many areas
ReplyDeleteP.s. You ARE the perfect 10!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday! I hope it's a fabulous day! I'm 23 and honestly have no fear of the big 3-0. Bring it on, I say, haha :)
ReplyDelete~Brandi
Happy last day being 32! I said to someone yesterday that someone out there will have a baby on 10-10-10...very cool.
ReplyDeleteI'm the forty-something mom in the mom jeans with the practical haircut and I still think that it just keeps getting better. Have no fear.
Happy one-day-before-your-birthday, Ms. Baart. :-)
ReplyDeleteMay God continue to bless you in your writing and your ministries.
Grace and peace to you,
Jennifer Dukes Lee
I turned 31 a few weeks ago, and on that day I realized that this present time is the happiest I have EVER been. God has blessed me in ways that I cannot even comprehend. I have two beautiful little girls, and the most wonderful husband ever. It wasn't always this way, as you well know about me ;) I am truly grateful for the potholes in the long road to 31, because they make my life the wonderful life it is today. I agree Niki, I LOVE my thirties ;) Happy Birthday my dear friend. Blessings and love to you always...
ReplyDeleteHeather Brunsting
Thanks so much for the birthday wishes! Cheers to you all. :)
ReplyDeleteHappy 10-10-10 Day! Remember that 33 is a landmark age. Christ was 33 when He FINISHED His ministry. You've already accomplished so much it's amazing. Life keeps getting better until you hit 41 - things go downhill from there :)
ReplyDeleteI love Mildred Taylor's quote "We have no choice of what color we're born or who our parents are or whether we're rich or poor. What we do have is some choice over what we make of our lives once we're here."
You have done much, Nicole. And you have only just begun. May God bless you today and this whole year through!
This reminds me of how everyone tells you that high school is the best time of your life, to which I thought: If that's true, I may as well just quit now. Lol. Then they say, no, no, college is the best time of your life. And to that I say pretty much the same thing. College is an entirely different ball game than high school, and I like it a whole lot better, but I definitely wouldn't call it the time of my life. I expect that to come when I'm able to afford my own place, graduate college and get a real job, meet the man I get to spend the rest of my life with, watch my best friend walk down the aisle, become a mother, own a house and a backyard and a garden, make it through the whole Bible, get a puppy, watch my children grow up, become an aunt, watch my parents be grandparents, etc. I expect those things to be fields better than both high school and college combined. And I can't wait for them...God willing, of course.
ReplyDelete