Thirty

It happened and I survived.

For a long time, turning 30 was a daunting thought that would usually end in me shuttering and quickly dismissing it.  I loved my 20s..  After 29, life ends, I thought.  When I look back at that decade of my life, so much happened: college, graduation, fun, work, love, marriage, houses, business, travel, cancer, loss, drama, LIFE.  It's almost unbelievable that so much could be crammed into a seemingly short amount of time.  But what I learned is that it wasn't a short time.  It was 10 years.  Ten years of every event, every emotion thinkable.  MY 20s were an extremely formable time period.  I've never been so happy or so sad, so thankful, so surprised, so stupid, or so smart as my 20s.  And, to be honest, I feel blessed to have a vast array of experiences to pull from.  I know the next 10 years will not be easy, I know there will be hard times, but I also know there will be good times.  In fact, I know how to make the good and bad times better.  What I experienced in my 20s will help me deal with the inevitability that life will happen in my 30s.  I'm not sure I am where I thought I would be at 30.  I wasn't the kid who knew what I wanted to be when I grew up.  Certainly, I didn't think I'd be toting a camera with me all the time ;)  But, that's great.  The minute you start planning, life will throw you a curve ball - I learned.  What might be normal for someone else, may not be your cup of tea.  A lot of my peers have children by 30.  I, obviously, do not.  Is this right?  Is this wrong?  I suppose it depends who you ask.  But it's my normal.  One important thing I realized is that age is a number.  It's not as important as the relationships you cultivate, the time spent with loved ones, or how you choose to make a living.  Surrounding yourself with people who love, support, and cherish you is the most important thing you can do at any age.

Aaron and I decided to check out Middleburg, VA to celebrate my birthday weekend.  It's a super quaint, adorable, sleepy town in Loudon County, Virginia.

We ate at this sweet, little market right in the middle of town.

 Middleburg is surrounded by hundreds of acres of pristine horse farms and vineyards/wineries.  I pretty much died and went to real estate heaven.  

 We enjoyed the day so much and ended with an amazing experience at Vintage Ridge Winery.  Another important thing I learned in my 20s and will continue to love in my 30s: good food and good wine. 

 We ended the weekend with some good ol' birthday cake and family; two things you're never too old to enjoy.  And by midnight on my 30th birthday, I decided that I'm excited to turn 30.  This is going to be a great time in my life. I learned from my mistakes and get to apply all that knowledge.  I'm treating it like New Years Day and have made many resolutions that I can't wait to try out :)

Here's to my 30s.  I can't wait to see what the next decade brings.