The Best Years of My Life

"I  wanna be 30! Thirty, flirty, and thriving!" Jenna Rink from 13 Going on 30

Every time I think about turning 30 I say that quote in my head "thirty, flirty, and thriving". Its a great movie, one of my favorites. I might have to watch it again now. Anyhow, flirty is certainly NOT something I strive for but I am so excited to have arrived in this decade.  I am not at all sad about being 30, but rather relieved. For once my age matches my identity. There aren't many 20 something's out there with 4 children. My husband pointed out in my birthday card: (Lord willing) it will be the first entire decade we will spend together. How awesome is that?

So this is just a little birthday blog:

We were in Tulsa on my birthday and I had a great day shopping with my mother-in-law

and daughter! The first of many!

Then I had dinner with one of my best friends and continued on to a party full of old friends. It felt like we were cheating on our Nodak friends because we were celebrating without them, but what a rare opportunity we had to see people we hadn't seen in years. People we love dearly. It so warmed my heart to visit with these women. There is nothing better than sitting down with a friend after not being able to talk for a long while, and realize you never skipped a beat.

We have good friends all over this country! I was surprised to see some of my OU buddies at the party. It made me realize just how old I was. The best part is that some people never change and some do. Some keep their same old mannerisms and some decide to run marathons. 

 

I also celebrated my birthday with my high school or technically grade school girlfriends. We get together every year and this year we took ourselves out to celebrate turning 30. The waitress even brought us a joint birthday cookie and candle. These girls are pretty awesome. They have put up with me for many, many years and I know for certain that they are in it for the long haul.

J

I don't know what this decade will hold. Right now, I am hoping for an uneventful 10 years. In my twenties I fell in love,  married the man of my dreams, moved to 3 new cities, purchased 2 homes, had FOUR children, learned to cook, had a very short "career", become a homemaker, had my body used as an incubator and then for nutrition, and missed A LOT of sleep. I can handle some "maintenance years".

Right now Brian and I are in the grind. Four kids is a lot. In most ways it is easier than I expected (only because my expectations were SO low), but in ways it's harder. We made FOUR people. That's a lot of clothes, food, diapers, and bedtimes. It's a lot of work. Of course it's worth it to us, but it can be exhausting. No, it IS exhausting. Still worth it though. I just can't get behind in my game. That's when things get stressful.

Brian was visiting with a good friend who is semi-retired and has grandchildren. He laughed at us and said "Hang in there, you are in the grind but my wife and I are having the time of our lives." I don't doubt that they are and I look forward to those days but I also cherish the days we are in.

Baker and Beau are so smart, extremely silly, and very handsome. They are growing up way too quickly. They are good boys and very helpful. 

They are a bit obsessed with the camera. I had to take like 15 pictures of whatever this is. I also have a ton of pictures that they took of each other while I wasn't looking. They think it is HILARIOUS!

Benton is out to rule the roost. He is two and probably the main force behind the word exhaustion. I forgot what age 2 was like. It's rough. I have never seen someone fight so hard for their will. We will win as parents. We might not choose to fight many battles, lol, but we will win the ones we do. 

Charis is a doll. She isn't sleeping as well as I would like but are getting there. She is beautiful and a very good baby. Its hard to rock her boat. I love having her in our family. 

If you had asked me 10 years ago what I would be doing at age 30, I highly doubt I would have said "I will be a homemaker in North Dakota with 4 kids under age 5." Thankfully the Lord had better for me than I could have imagined. Here's to 30! Can't wait to see what is in store...or rather what isn't!

Another New Year to resolve

  January is almost over so I am making a point to get my New Year's resolutions down... or out rather. "Where there is no vision, the people perish" Proverbs 29:18. I totally believe that.

I just went back and read my goals for 2013 and let's just say I sucked it up pretty bad, lol. Pretty bad. "Drink less Dr. Pepper"...total fail Becky, lol, total fail. Perhaps I should place these goals where I can see them. Anyways, on to 2014:

1. More grace. Grace and compassion are not things that come easy to me, but I am sure you already know this. I mostly need to extend grace to myself, aka let things go. 

2. Forget differences between myself and others. In my non-gracious, black and white personality it is very easy to become hung up on differences. I have seen this become a huge blockade in relationships. For whatever reason, I have mainly only strong opinions. Although I am sure there are topics I am indifferent on, I have plenty that get my blood boiling! Some people like this about me, but it can cause problems quickly. For example, so what if you eat a bag of gluten for breakfast because you think it makes you healthy? I don't care! Go for it sister! I certainly use to. So what if you borrow money to buy a coke and cookies from the 7-11 everyday? I use to. It's your money. I am not responsible for it. Or maybe you worship at the Common Core alter? Good for you...probably won't see you on the other side, lol. Just kidding...

I have to learn when to share my opinions and when to say "hey, we think differently but I still love you so much and I won't allow this to separate us." The real trial comes when you walk away. Can I let it go or am I going to let it simmer?

3. Go to bed with an empty sink and clean living room floor. This is major for me. I know many of you are dropping your jaws wondering how I could ever sleep with a sink full of dirty dishes? It's pretty easy. As I have "matured" though and expanded my family I have learned that it is definitely best for everyone if we wake up to a clean or rather "picked up" home. This one sucks because it takes work, everyday! We eat 3 meals at home everyday! That's a lot of dishes. It may be 9:30 bythe time  I get to the sink but that's okay. My new housework motto is "just do it". 

4. Have fun! Sometimes I can be way too serious. I want to laugh and enjoy life. I love fun and I want to have it!

That's it. We will see how it goes!