My Top Ten Life Achievements

I’d like to think I’ve done a fair amount of stuff to be proud of over the past 34 years or so of life. I mean, I never went to fashion design school in NYC (bummer), have yet to visit Italy and eaten my weight in pasta, OR gone on that QVC studio tour I’m dying to go on (don’t judge me!), but when I think back on my life I know I have things I can be pretty darn proud of. I tend to nitpick myself nine times out of ten, and always think the worst of myself while lying in bed at night in the dark, but hey!, let’s toot our own horns for a bit, shall we?

My Top Ten Life Achievements (in no particular order;)

It took me six years, and a lot of it was does online while caring for two kids under two while my husband was deployed, but earning my Master’s Degree in Reading Education was a huge accomplishment for me personally. It showed I could do anything I put my mind to, even it I had to do it one class and one semester at a time.

The day I became a mom for the first time was something I will cherish forever. It changed my life forever and growing a child and giving birth to her showed me just how resilient the human body can be. 

On that note, when I had my second baby 17 months later, it showed me that I could do far more than I thought I could. I could nurture and love two small children, keep them from harm, and juggle a lot more than I thought. Having my babies and being their mama is very rewarding (and crazy, too, trust me), but they are my best accomplishment to date. Just being able to see their little souls grow into the awesome little people they are is a gift, and I value it daily. 

When I met my husband we started out as friends, and this morphed slowly into a relationship about a year later. I knew very soon on that he was special, and I KNEW I had to have him in my life in some capacity. I didn’t realize how important he would be, but once we started dating I saw how special he was and that he would make me a better person. Choosing him, marrying him, having him as the father of our children, and spending our days together has been a no brainer, and when I made this choice initially I didn’t realize the full importance of it. Luckily it has worked out far better than I thought, and having him by my side has been the catalyst to some of the best moments of my life. 

Earning my Bachelor’s degree in Business Management was also something that I am so proud of. It was the starting out point to being able to teach while I got my Master’s Degree, and going to college (where I met my husband AND my best friend), was the best experience, EVER. My college days were so much fun, and I love that I got to do so much there, both in and out of school, that taught me how to be the person I am today. Also, no degree is ever wasted. While I probably wouldn’t choose this major today, it is the building block for so much good in my life, and gives me options that I believe every woman should have. 

Starting this blog four years ago and keeping it up and running consistently since then has been HUGE for me. It is the longest I have ever stuck to anything, really, and has opened up so much for me. I have learned so much about myself, not just style wise, but about what I like as a person and who I want to be. It has given me something to look forward to while staying home with two kids, it has brought opportunities my way that I could only have dreamed of, and brought me friends I never would have met otherwise.

Getting fit and staying fit really didn’t become a huge priority for me until my late twenties. It was after I had both my kids, after I figured out that my body wasn’t just going to snap back into shape without some effort, that I started going to the gym. I’ve always been pretty good at watching what I’m eating and only splurging a little bit/keeping away from temptations, but exercise? Not so much. Then one day I joined the gym (because they had free daycare, duh), and took some classes, and saw how strong I could be. I learned that I could push myself really far, do so much more than I ever thought possible, and be that girl in the gym who could lift crazy weights and run fast and be AWESOME. And you know what? That feels really good. It’s something that I do for ME. I like to push myself and KNOW that I can do it. I like being able to stay fit and realize that it is attainable to have kids and still kick butt in the gym. I wasn’t always like this (I’ve always been an indoor, no sports kinda girl), so finding out later on that I actually enjoy getting sweaty and working out hard is pretty surprising. It makes me feel powerful and strong and invincible. Who wouldn’t want that?

Another achievement that came on later for me was realizing that I didn’t really care what other people thought of me. This sounds sort of selfish and weird, but I think woman especially work way too hard worrying about what other’s think of us. We care about boys and everything that comes from that (and man, that’s another post topic for another day!), to how our friends perceive us, to parents/coworkers/kids/etc. Now don’t get me wrong, I obviously DO care what my friends and family think of me, but I try not let the opinions of others cloud how I want to love my life. I like to dress a certain way, so I do. I like to do a zillion and one things that are particular to just me, and I refuse to apologize or change myself. Does it make me happy? Does it hurt anyone? Do my actions directly affect anyone in a negative way? No? Then hey, I am going to rock my life the way I want, because it is MINE. It all comes down to trust. I trust my own opinion, and I trust that my decisions are best for myself and my family. All other opinions are just noise, and don’t really count.

My last two, kind of work together in a way that makes my life so very enjoyable. They are fostering friendships over decades and through different states (and countries!), and being close to my family. These relationships, they sustain me in a  way that is different than my husband and children. The span from the second I was born (mom!), partying through college and pledging sororities, to suffering through deployments and living this crazy military life. These people, and you know who you are, are my lifeline to survival and sanity. Sustaining the intricate web of family ties, and creating new ties with those that we choose to love is a gift, and I don’t take it for granted, ever.

Tell me, what are your favorite life achievements?