The Oldest I've Ever Been

Well, I finally gave in and did it. I turned 30. Sigh. Though to me it seems like any other birthday in the sense that you don't magically wake up feeling like a different person, once you hit 30 there is still the perception that you are now "old." When my dad tries to remind me how young I really am I often tell him "I'm the oldest I've ever been!"

I had much more envisioned for myself at 30: solid career, handsome husband, maybe a couple of kids, happily paying a mortgage on a house with a yard. I don't have any of that; I was laid off and work a part time job, I'm clearly not married nor have children, and tomorrow I am moving out of the 2 bedroom apartment I've been leasing for nearly 3 years to take up residence in the living room of a 1 bedroom apartment that my friend is renting. I don't feel like I'm where I should be (accomplishments-wise) for a 30 year old. That part is disappointing.

My actual birthday however, was a blast! My older sister Stephanie flew in from Colorado with some of her kids two days before my birthday, and we packed as much fun as we could into her 4 day trip! We spent a lot of time outdoors taking her kids to 3 beaches, many, many restaurants, and up a hiking trail to a waterfall. Our younger sister Krystin was supposed to join us as well, but a week before the trip she started feeling unsettled about driving all the way from Idaho alone with her two little kids in the car. After speaking with us about her impressions we all agreed it would probably be best that she keep her family safe. Turned out for the best too, as her insulin pump (she's diabetic) ended up failing before the trip would've been over! 

On my birthday Stephanie, her kids and I decided to do 30 things to celebrate my 30 years, which kept us busy from 7:30am until midnight! For a few examples, we went to the La Brea tar pits, hit up Hollywood to see Cher's star on the walk of fame and her hand & foot prints at the Chinese Theatre, visited the wax museum, watched Monsters U at the El Capitan, we did some shopping, ate out for every meal, looked for license plates from 21 states (my birthday was on the 21st), did a chinese firedrill, rode the ferris wheel on the Santa  Monica pier, and baked individual pineapple upsidedown cakes. It was a fantastic way to turn 30!

Stephanie flew home with the baby the evening after my birthday, leaving me with the other two kids to spend a couple of days at Disneyland before accompanying them back to Colorado. Now it's time to settle in and see what the rest of 30 feels like. Wish me luck!