29 Years Have Passed

This Saturday, I turn 30. It's hard to believe that the end of my 20s is here, and I'll tell you that I'm more than a little sad about it. I'm 'officially' no longer considered young. And while being married and having kids has already made me feel 'old,' the number seems to be a bit daunting. After all, I've had some AMAZING experiences in my 20s. But then as I thought about it more, I realized that each decade of my life has been good in its own way and for its own reasons, and I would be sad to stuck in the past. So, I'm moving forward in hopes of another amazing time. But, here's a look back on the past and my life in a nutshell.

The decade from birth to age nine was filled with many things that I don't remember like learning to talk, sit up, crawl, walk, etc. But, I do remember learning to read around four years old, and I LOVED going to school at CV. I met my best friend Suz in second grade. We had moved to Lancaster just before I turned five, and I am so thankful for that move. This decade was also filled with friends, sleepovers, lots of singing, and lots of animals. My mom loved dogs & cats, and I remember the first dog I ever loved named Nicki. These years were also the only decade of my life where my parents were together and my sisters & I lived all together under one roof. I have lots of memories of special holidays - from hunting Easter eggs that we personally painted to looking to see if Santa Clause had really left presents under the tree to getting to lick the batter out of the bowl on our birthdays as a special treat. We went to the beach almost every summer, too, with family and friends. I have lots of good memories from the single digits.

Age 0

Age 1

Age 2

Age 3

Age 4

Age 5

Age 6

Age 7 - me & my friend Megan (the same gal I was playing with when I broke my shoulder in first grade).

Age 8

Age 9 - on my birthday 6/5/89

Next came 10-19, and oh my, did I have great memories from these years. These were also times I really didn't want to leave behind. We moved in the middle of sixth grade to a new house and a new elementary school within the same school district. I no more than got there and got the lead role in the school play. I also met my first boyfriend there. The next year began middle school, and I LOVED the school dances. From dancing with the first boy ever to fun sleepovers, etc. those were some fun times. I also tagged along with my older sister's friends, too. 

Then I started high school and youth group. I thought life couldn't get any better! I had friends pick me up and take me to school until I got my driver's license at age 16. Every weekend, I would hang out with friends from the start of church until the sun went down. I also got my first job at age 14 as a dishwasher for a restaurant, which quickly turned into hostessing and then waitressing. I ended out the decade working at one of my favorite jobs as a front desk clerk for a local hotel. Fun times! I bought my first car at age 15 just before getting my license, and I had saved enough from working to pay cash for it. I played the viola since the time I was eight years old right up through the end of high school and first semester of college. During the blizzard of '96, God taught me how to play the piano. My friends all played, so I watched and picked up a few things from them, namely Kristina. My youth group friends were awesome, and I have fond memories of going to Creation and hanging out at one another's houses. Suz & I were still best buds, and I remember having Suz/Val nights pretty often. I went to homecoming with a date and prom with a different date and I wore the football jerseys of two different guys to school.

I graduated high school at the end of that decade, and I remember tearfully wondering if I would see some of those folks again (now that facebook is here, I 'see' them even without really knowing them anymore! Haaa!!!). Then I started college and met whole new groups of friends. The girls from our dorm were SO wild and SO MUCH FUN! I loved going to Millersville University, even though I missed my mom a lot. I started dating Shawn when I was 19, and I had been hanging out with him and 'the guys' (his buddies from high school) for awhile before that. I also got my first apartment at age 19 and moved out of the dorms, again wondering if we would stay in touch (which I have a little with some and not-so-much with others).

10ish - in Hawaii

12 - Jr High Canoe Trip

13 - before getting my braces off

14 - Hawaii again

15 - school picture

16ish - friends house (I'm the center kid).

17 - senior picture & football jersey fun

18 - College & Disney World

19 - I also learned to play the guitar somewhere around there

And thus started my 20s. While I was sad when events like high school ended because I was nervous about the future, I was anxious to hit 21. All my friends (and even my boyfriend at the time) were 21 and could get in wherever they wanted, so I was all about it. My 20s started out rough, I'll admit, but then continued on to turn out well. The partying of my college days came to an end as I settled down with Shawn, who proposed to me when I was 21. I graduated shortly thereafter from college. Within six months, I landed my first 'real' job in marketing, which I enjoyed. [Later I left there when I was hired as a marketing manager for a local ad agency.] Backing up, when Shawn & I got engaged, we started going to the Lord's House of Prayer and had our premarital counseling there. We were wed at that church when I was 22, and shortly thereafter we began serving extensively. Shawn took on the role of A/V team leader and I served on the worship team, singing and playing piano. We also served as youth leaders. We had bought a house when we first got married as well, and we both earned our masters' degrees the following year. 

We sold our first house and bought the house we're living in now when I was 25, and we settled just a week before finding out the joyful news that we were expecting! I began teaching at Millersville when I was 26, and Joshua came early right in the beginning of that semester. With his arrival and health conditions, I quit my job at the ad agency and continued working from home as a freelance writer, which I thoroughly enjoyed. One year from Joshua's original due date, we found out we were expecting again. Our second son was born when I was 28 years old. These past few years that I haven't had to work on a 'schedule' per se and have just enjoyed being a wife and mom have been fantastic. At first they were a bit rocky as I transitioned into a new person (from just wife to mom) but they have been amazing to watch these two little lives grow before my eyes. We started attending a new church after Caleb was born for its kids' program, and we've gotten involved with a life group. I continue to write, volunteer, play piano and enjoy life day by day.

20 - June 2000 in DC with Shawn

21 - on my birthday 6/5/01 at the bar with Shawn & friends; graduating college

22 - Married to My Love

23 - Christmas with Mom

24 - Christmas

25 - BLONDE!

26 - my Bean arrived!

27 - on my birthday with Joshua 6/5/07

28 - on my birthday 6/5/08 pregnant with Caleb Luke

29 - On my birthday last year 6/5/09

These past few years I've been working on being healthier - eating better and exercising and overall health. I've also started to read my Bible every morning, no excuses. I'm studying God's Word and trying to apply it to life. I'm also zealous about being a mom. I want the best for my kids, and I love them immensely. I also desire to be a really good wife to my incredible husband. I'd also like to be known as a good friend, etc. and use my gifts in marketing & music to honor the Lord. Hopefully these are all things I will take into my 30s with me. I'm sure there's more I could have shared here, but these were the 'highlights' I could think of now. And I don't like to dwell on the negative; (things like broken hearts & hurts will rarely make it to this blog as I try to keep things positive.) Anyway, as I've been thinking about what 30 will look like, I started reading the Bible and noticed that:

• Joseph was taken out of prison and put in charge of the entire land of Egypt at age 30 (Genesis 41:46)
• Saul was 30 when he became king (1 Samuel 13:1)
• David became king at age 30 (2 Samuel 5:4)
• And, most importantly, Jesus began His ministry at... you guessed it, age 30! (Luke 3:23)

Think this is a coincidence? I don't! I think 30 may be the age when we're ready for what God has for us next - we've reached a new level of maturity and wisdom, hopefully. So, with all that said, I'm embracing this next year and believing that the best is yet to come!