Today I have officially left my twenties behind me. I don’t really feel any different than I did yesterday, except maybe a bit sore from working out for the first time in far too long. I have to say that birthdays as an adult are very different from when you are a kid. I picked out my own birthday cake and spent the day decorating Christmas cookies with the kids, watching Top Gear with my husband, playing Just Dance 4 with the family and liking a lot of wall posts on Facebook from friends and family wishing me a happy birthday.

I always feel awkward when people say “Happy birthday” to me, like I don’t quite know how to respond – my usual reply is something like, “Thank you, Merry Christmas!” and I was thinking today that most people probably just say “Thank you,” but I never really have. It’s never been just my day – which I’m sure a lot of Close to a Holiday Birthday people can relate to. Jesus has been stealing my thunder for thirty years now, but now that I’m an adult I’m almost getting used to it.

Being a major birthday I feel like I should be making a bigger deal about my Big Day than I usually do. I won’t be getting a party and I got a lot of my birthday gifts early (a gift card to my favorite coffee shop, a new tv stand, and a wooden stand for our tablet handmade by my husband and MM). Wonderful, thoughtful gifts that I am so grateful for. We’re having frozen lasagna for dinner and I didn’t even have to preheat the oven (thanks hubby!) and a salted caramel cheesecake for dessert. It’s a perfect birthday in my mind, if a bit nontraditional.

So before I go eat my birthday dinner, here are a few things that I have learned in my thirty years on this earth:

1. British accents make almost anything more interesting.
2. Black is a universally slimming color – have plenty of it in your wardrobe.
3. The right guy is worth waiting for – the wrong guy is not worth a nanosecond of your time or energy.
4. Don’t click pop up ads. Ever.
5. Take lots of pictures, but not so many that you forget to enjoy the moment.
6. Drink lots of water.
7. Stretch.
8. Children make messes. It’s easier to just be at peace with this and pretend you love cleaning. (I’m still working on that one)
9. Birthday cake has no calories – it’s a total freebie.
10. There is no chance I’m going to sit here and type thirty random things I’ve learned – I don’t have that much patience or free time. You’ll have to settle for ten.

I hope you all have a fantastic holiday and all that jazz! Now let me eat cheesecake!