thirty.

Holy moly, I'm 30. I've entered a new decade of adulthood and still feel like a kid. Shoot, as long as I still feel like a kid and still get carded (am I right?!), I suppose the years just don't even matter at this point. But thirty... that just sounds cool. So I'm determined to make 30 my best year yet.

Following suit with last year's celebration, I again spent my birthday weekend in Oregon running the Hood to Coast Relay. The difference was that last year I traveled to the race on my birthday and celebrated with our pre-race carb-loading meal, whereas this year my birthday fell on the final day of our race... so I got to ring in the big three-zero in style at the after party—talk about a huge celebration! It was also awesome because not only did I get to be on my sister's HTC team, but they were short a team member so my brother was also able to run with us. It made my birthday even that much more special.

On Wednesday prior to leaving for Oregon, my mom, her boyfriend and my brother had me and Daniel over for a very low-key birthday dinner. It was so nice to be able to relax with my fam! Daniel helped me pack for the trip that evening, surprising me with a Garmin Forerunner... something that had been on my wish list for years and years. I have always wanted a GPS-enabled watch to help with my running training (I usually just run based on feel, never knowing what my times are until post-race), so that was such a sweet present to get... and perfect timing, too—right before Hood to Coast and just three weeks before the Air Force Marathon!

So I turned 30 on Saturday. It was very cool because I was actually running my 2nd 7.7-mile leg when the clock struck midnight, so I literally ran straight into my thirties. As I ran up to the exchange between our 17th & 18th legs, my sister began singing "Happy Birthday" and by the time I handed off our bracelet to her, the entire exchange (about 100 people) was all singing me across the finish. It was a very neat moment and a memory I'll cherish for a long time. After we finished the race, I enjoyed a Bloody Mary with my team and spent the afternoon at the after party on the beach—eating delicious food and digging our feet into the Seaside sand. That evening, the team restaurant-hopped around Seaside, finishing with a three-hour dance party with my brother and sister and our awesomely-awkward moves. We killed it well past the hours of my birthday, closing the place down with our Whitney Houston family dancing session. I am so grateful that I was able to spend my special day with my brother and sister... it was a birthday for the books.

Here's to a new decade and just taking life as it comes. I learn time and time again that life doesn't always go as planned (ahem, still not a mom, still awaiting more military training, etc, etc, etc) but that is all part of the process. Things might not go as hoped or desired, but as long as I'm taking each day as it comes and enjoying every minute, that's all that really matters. So this year I plan on doing just that... forgetting about the spin of everything else and just truly taking time to be present and happy.

30... that just sounds good... and it feels pretty darn good, too.

Past birthday posts: twenty-six │ twenty-seven │ twenty-eight │ twenty-nine