Fourteen years ago I turned 25. I remember thinking, “Am I having a quarter-life crisis?” In December I turned 39 with little to no thought about it, but on New Years Eve it hit me, I’m almost 40. I’ve never been one concerned with my age, especially since most of my friends have always been older, but 40 is different.
When I was a kid, 40 seemed so….OLD. Needless to say, now that it’s a less than 365 days away, I no longer feel that way. I want to embrace 40 wholeheartedly, but I’m not quite ready to kiss my 30s goodbye without a bang. In order to help me end the past decade which has brought me marriage, two kids, home ownership, a new car, and more, I decided to make a bucket list for the year.
- Lose the baby weight again and then some (40lbs). There, I said it. This is my year and I need to do it for me, and no one else.
- Run/jog/crawl a 5K. This has been on my list for a while. It’s time…beyond time.
- Purge, purge, purge. I have more clothes than I’ll ever be able to wear.
- Get a hobby…besides cooking, eating, exercising or reading.
- Do yoga or meditation once a week. My brain, as most moms, is always on overdrive. It’s time to slowdown and unwind.
- Get back into doing meaningful community service learning and teach my older son about it.
Remember the importance of self-care. Do at least 1 thing a month just for me (nails, massage, nap (ha!), catch up with friends).- Get back into swimming. I used to be a lifeguard and swam my summers away. I haven’t done that in too long to remember, and I seriously miss it.
- Go on a vacation with my husband. We haven’t been in over 3 years. We need it, not only to reset but to reconnect.
- Journal every night. This one is another I’ve tried before and abandoned. I’m ready and eager to do this at such a life milestone. I think it will be something wonderful to have to look back on and to have as a personal time capsule.
Basically I want to use this last year of my third decade focusing and remembering who I am…it’s so easy to get caught up in the everyday struggles and tribulations of being a mom. We give 100% percent to everyone else. Don’t we deserve to give 100% to ourselves too?
