In one week I will celebrate my thirtieth birthday. Celebrate? I have always celebrated birthdays with fervor because I looked forward to having a reason to go BIG! I could not understand why as people got older they dismissed their birthdays, as if trying to wish them away. Thirty is by no means over the hill, but I can appreciate that sentiment a bit more now. There is a lot I had hoped I would have accomplished by now. It always felt like time was on my side. Now, with two kids and this milestone just around a very short bend I feel the press of time I bit more. It seems more like an enemy than a friend.
I had hoped when making the list of thirty things I wanted to accomplish before turning thirty that the push would compel me to check things off my list that had stagnated for so long, and try new things too. I admit I am disappointed that I did not accomplish more, but I would not say it’s an entirely failed experiment either. It did encourage me to look at my priorities, to see what I actually enjoy doing still and to really evaluate what I hoped to get out of the last year.
So, with one week to go here’s where I stand…
1. Get my driver’s license/learn how to drive. – I remain absolutely terrified to get behind the wheel, but I have been reading the manual. It’s a massive weight on my shoulders so I pray that this weight is lifted and I break through my fear because it would open a lot of doors for not only myself but the kids as well.
2. Apply for US citizenship. – One way or another I need to begin looking into this or renewing my Permanent Residency. I was all on board with the idea but then began to waffle when I thought about entirely wiping my Canadian identity clean. Many things have changed over the past three decades but I was born in Canada, that doesn’t change, so it is a bit strange and sad to imagine the words, “I am American,” one day coming from my mouth.
3. Meet my nephew, Marcus, in person. – My passport expired! ACK! This was a hiccup in this plan that really was its undoing. While it is not the same as getting to hold this cutie in person, I am grateful for the many Skype video chats with Marcus and his Mommy that have allowed me to watch him grow up from across the border.
4. Get my first novel into a state worthy of sharing with the public (because it is most assuredly not in that state yet). – The more I thought about it, the more I just wanted to scrap this story altogether, chalk it up to a good exercise in strengthening my writing chops and move on. That is to say, I think my broader goal is to keep writing. I have not written another novel since this past November but I hope to be in a position to participate again in the National Novel Writing Month this year.
5. Finish the final painting, in the set of four, I started for my son’s room.
6. Finish the poster I started for my father. – If you want to know how old this goal is let me point to the fact that when my Dad read this item on my list he said, “What poster?” He didn’t even remember the progress I had shown him *cough* ten years ago. To top it off, with all the moving, I have misplaced the drawing tablet I was using to create said poster. Whether this goal just needs to be written off entirely remains to be seen.
7. Make the master bedroom feel like a relaxing retreat. (Done – Read about it here.) – Before we moved from the apartment we were making an effort to make it feel like home. However, with the lack of storage space relegating most of our boxes to be stacked in the master bedroom, it was not ideal. Shortly after the post I wrote about this item being checked off, we moved into a new home. I was content with the bookshelf and the efforts of my husband in the apartment but then we were both blessed immensely with the perfect bedroom retreat. Our new home has a great en-suite bathroom and walk-in closet, a double door, vaulted ceilings, a view of the mountains (as brown as they are, they’re still lovely) and because we have a garage there are no boxes stacked all over the room! I am just blown away by how God provided in a way that was unexpected and better than I could have imagined for the apartment.
I will have to snap some more pictures because these were taken before we had our furniture moved in.
8. Read ‘Pride and Prejudice’ by Jane Austen. (Done – Read about it here.)
9. Procure a bunch of Canadian foods to introduce my kids to and, of course, consume. – I did not procure “a bunch” but I did find buy a mint Aero bar at World Market, my Grandma sent us all some Canadian chocolate bars as part of a birthday parcel and on Canada Day I stumbled upon some All Dressed chips at the grocery store. This greatly excited me. All Dressed was my favourite chip flavor growing up in Canada and the rest of my family fell in love with them too.
10. Create an “Ontario” painting for the house.
11. Create a “New York” painting for the house. (Done- Read about it here.)
12. Create a “Florida” painting for the house. (Done- Read about it here.)
13. Go kayaking with Raymond. – I put this one on my list because Raymond has been wanting to go kayaking again but we have difficulty with childcare out here, so that never happened. However, we did go back go paddle-boating as a family this past week-end. I would say that that is as close as it’s gonna get! So, I am checking this one off!
When my daughter passed me her sunglasses I did not have anywhere to put them except my face, so I slid them on and forgot. They worked well!
14. Take the kids to play in snow for the first time. – It does not snow where we live, but I thought we might end up going into the mountains or maybe visit family where there is snow. July is well underway, so this is not happening before I turn thirty but it is still on my list of things to do with the kids.
15. Feel more comfortable in my own skin. – I knew this was a vague goal when I included it and I was aware at the time that it would not likely be something that was completed in its entirety in a year’s time. However, I did take some strides toward this through breaking through some walls in my walk with God, having the embarrassing amount of cavities in my mouth filled and beginning the process of getting braces so I am not so horrified by smile. Do I feel a little more comfortable in my own skin? Perhaps a little. I started on the path, though, and I plan to continue down that path so that my daughter and son have an example of a healthy self-image to follow.
16. Get all dolled up for a professional photo session.
17. Have a mommy-daughter date with Natascha.(Read about it here.)
18. Have a mommy-son date with RJ. (Done – Read about it here.)
19. Cosplay and attend one of the nearby comic cons with Raymond. – Okay, so the cosplaying did not happen. We had been planning to return to the local anime convention in costume when it was in town but it happened to fall at the end of what had already been a stressful, eventful and expensive month. While we were unable to attend that convention, we did make it to the comic convention the month prior. It was also on a whim, and just before all the garbage dumped on us really accumulated. We went to have fun as a family before we buckled down and started to tackle the mess of an unexpected eviction and the long-distance stress of trying to sell a home across the country, etc. etc. It was a great day, though. Our little girl gladly took the opportunity to wear her princess dress, so one of us did attend in costume. The highlight of our day the convention center was getting to take a picture with Jeremy Renner. It was a three-second interaction, and I really just stood there like a starstruck fool but I treasure that memory and the day surrounding it. It also, oddly enough, was our first professional family photo…which technically crosses off number twenty-seven on my list. My husband and I got a good laugh out of this!
20. Bake a Strawberry Shortcake Cake with Natascha. – I bought all of the ingredients for this cake but it was a flop. Given my daughter’s recent announcement that she does not like strawberries, I asked her if she still wanted to attempt to bake this cake properly. She did not. So…check?
21. Go through my e-mails and delete, delete, delete!
22. Make a First-Year photo book for RJ like I did for his sister (it’s a little after the fact, but I still want him to have one). – I did start one. I just need to finish it!
23. Print pictures of the kids and put them in albums for them.
24. Try Sushi.
25. Revamp my wardrobe/accessories (so it looks a little closer to my dream closet on Pinterest)!
26. Learn how to style my hair in something other than a ponytail (and by extension, my daughter’s).
27. Get professional pictures taken of our family. (see Number 19)
28. Adequately teach my daughter what she needs to know for Kindergarten. – She did it! My daughter graduated Kindergarten and has done quite well with all of the placement tests I have had her take to determine where she stands for next year. Hallelujah!
29. Take RJ for a ride on a train. (Done- Read about it here.)
30. Try some more cupcakes from Cako. (Done – Read about it here.)
If I am generous, I have checked off roughly half of my list. Hey, the week’s not up yet, though!
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