You might think I'm referring to the birth of the baby I carry everywhere with me, but no.
I'm referring to the big, exciting birthday that is coming this year to me.
It's going to be the
BIG 3-0. That's right. 30.Thankfully, at this time in my life numbers don't bother me.
And thanks to a very healthy appreciation taught to me by my mother about birthdays, I
always love my birthday. Who doesn't love a day that's all about you ?! My mom would say it's just my personality that makes me love parties and having fun. Maybe so, but I digress.
Since this year I am turning an age that I used to think: a) I would never reach
andb) I would be SO old when I reached it
I've decided it needs some special preparation. Just for fun.
Plus it takes my mind off the aches and pains of pregnancy and motherhood and life.I think it would be fun to make a Bucket List of sorts for myself. One list of things I have accomplished in my (soon to be) 30 years on earth and another of things I'd still like to accomplish before I reach 31.
For the next 6 Sundays until my birthday arrives,
it's on a Friday, I will share 5 items from each list until I hit 30 things. Sounds like fun to me! Hope you enjoy.
5 Marvelous Things I Have Accomplished 1.Surviving a half-marathon. And really, it's due to my running partner that I survived and even accomplished the whole distance. 2. Traveled to England. Thanks to my brother and sister-in-law who lived there and also to my travel wise husband who wanted to go enough to convince me. Now I want to go back. A lot. 3. Sealed in the Temple. I love the blessings we receive, I love knowing that my husband and kids can be with me forever. And that I in turn can be with my siblings and parents and their families. It's truly awesome if you think about it.4. Being a Mother. Thanks to those who mentor me for helping me through it all, I'm grateful for the love I have for my daughter and knowing that I try every day to be my best for her and so she can be her best as well. Can't wait to be able to look at all my kids one day and know that I had a part in helping them learn and grow. 5. Running. Seems weird, I know. But the fact that I enjoy running as much as I do and knowing how much I used to hate it, I am grateful for what I have learned through running. I am grateful to be able to be more in tune with my body. I recognize the more I listen, the more I learn about how my body wants to be treated and the happier I feel when I do what it wants. I'm sure there's a spiritual law in that line, something having to do with when we listen to our spirits how much happier we are as opposed to when we listen to the world and all the stuff it tells us we should become and do. 5 Marvelous Things I Want To Accomplish1. Plant our first garden. With the help of those who live in this house with me. I think it could be a lot of fun and a great teaching tool for Aftyn. 2. Survive the addition of a 4th member of the family. Making all the adjustments, helping Aftyn know she is still wanted and needed, learning to juggle my normal life with an infant added in.3. Read the Book of Mormon before May 24th. For my family reunion in July, we've been challenged to read the whole BOM by then. I'm trying to be consistent at it, but I need to figure out if I'm reading fast enough to finish before this baby comes because I'm not sure I'll be thinking about reading when I'm sleep deprived and surviving day to day life. Just to be sure, I want to be done before she's due.
4.
Be adored by my primary class. This just makes me laugh, but I recall thinking (when I took my class of 8 year olds on just before January) that I wanted them to like me because I could tell that some of them didn't think I was so cool. I think they've seen how much I care for them and how much I enjoy our class, but still. I would like to continue to feel that through however long I teach them that I will be a teacher they enjoyed. :) And that they felt the spirit from and someone who taught them a lot about the gospel. Especially that last part. I recall at about 8 was when I started learning a lot about the gospel, and I'd like to feel that I helped them understand more and learn more about Jesus Christ.
5.
Evidently I can't count, because I posted this after only # 4. Teach Aftyn a whole primary song that she can sing. She loves to sing, but right now has a hard time remembering words or the songs are too long for her. I guess I better start searching for a short song with easy, repeating words and a catchy tune. You might find this task a little weird, but I grew up in a very musical family and want to make sure and pass that along to my kids. Since we don't have a piano and couldn't possibly fit one in our house anyway, I teach her songs by singing them to her or playing them on the cd player. This means I just need to be more consistent in the songs I sing to her and make sure she can hear the words that I sing.
