Thirty-wise, sorta

I was all set to write a post last week about turning 39. I don't know exactly what I had in mind - something about being older and wiser and feeling more confident and yada yada. Then, the time got away from me rapidly. I was classic-ly epic last week.

Ends up, it was a good thing I was delayed and could re-think the post. After I really thought about it, I discovered there are a few things I feel wiser about as I round off this decade, but many things that also make me feel naive.

So, for example, I am wiser when it comes to money. I'm pretty sure it's no longer a good idea to sign up for a credit card just to get a free t-shirt. That's a classic Spring Break twenty-something mistake that I may have made a few times. Everything sounds better with the word "free" attached. Until you realize it isn't.

But then there are things I am clearly just now learning. Like how to raise a tween - and that the word tween even exists. And how to parent a kid with a growing list of extracurricular activities. Or how to look at my face in the mirror and not criticize the, ahem, "laugh" lines and small streak of gray hair.

Or how to appreciate wasting time. It seems I have gotten worse at this skill, actually. I was pretty good at this in my 20s, but the pressures of life tend to overtake me. I will carve out activities in increments and watch the clock to make sure I don't run over my "designated" slot. I am not sure what to think of this one. It seems necessary sometimes, but I prefer giving in to a good book or a long conversation with a friend. How does one fight this battle?

Still learning.

There is one thing I do feel pretty good about in my 30s - I've been around long enough to have met a lot of pretty wonderful people.

got to hang with this amazing friend this weekend - bonus event was
celebrating the Kentucky Derby with mint juleps. why not?

What a ridiculously huge honor to grow older and grow your circle of relationships. Seriously, if meeting more people who challenge me, who change my perspective, who introduce me to new experiences and ideas, comes with age, then I am ready.

If flying into my 40s means I know more about my kids, and how I can both influence who they will become as well as learn from their incredible perspectives, I'll take it.

But hey, I am not there yet. I am only 30-wise today. Tackling one thing at a time right now.

Whatever birth year you are celebrating in 2013, revel in everything you have learned and have yet to learn.