30 Reasons I'm Grateful to Be 30

The full list:

1. I'm so thankful to be entering my 30's as a saved woman! Jesus saved me from a life of bitterness and anger. He gave me peace and joy. If you haven't accepted Jesus in your heart, it is never too late, do it today. You will never regret it.
2. I'm thankful to be starting my 30's with an amazing husband, 2 healthy kids and incredible friends
3. Taken more seriously: is it just me or do people take you more seriously when there's a 3 at the beginning of your age instead of a 2??
4. Seeing my babies grow into who God made them to be: by the time I hit 40, I will have a 15 year old son and an 11 year old daughter; I can't wait to see them grow into the beautiful creations I know they were created to be
5. Removing pride: if there was one wish, it'd be to remove my pride, and I believe God is going to work wonders on that in the next decade
6. Living like the daughter of the one true king!
7. I look forward to celebrations. Birthday parties, dinners with friends, Christmases, weddings and even daily joys of playing with my kids, sharing my hopes and dreams with my husband and texting my bestie.
8. I am thankful that God had me take much of my early 20's to forgive my mom. I can't even begin to tell you what weight I was carrying with constantly rehashing my childhood in my mind. I was angry and bitter. I am eternally grateful that I no longer live in a war zone in my mind.
9. Gaining more wisdom: as every year goes by, I gain just that much more wisdom from God
10. Blooming seeds: my 20's planted so many relationship seeds; I married my husband, had 2 kids, met my best friend and kindled over a dozen beautiful friendships; I'm looking forward to seeing those relationships bloom and flourish 
11. Creating my ministry: writing a novel, blogging more, fighting the battle of addiction, suicide prevention, all on my radar for my 30's
12. Getting time with my dad: him and I, we have had some rough moments in our past, but now, we're in such a beautiful place; I'm so thankful for our relationship and where God has taken us
13. Leaning less on what this world tells me and more on what God tells me: social media lies, no one is perfect, everyone struggles and has horrible days; God is true and just and I want to crave Him wholeheartedly
14.  I spent every single day of my 20's with my husband. We've never been apart (yet). I am honored to be in love with my best friend and a man I fall more in love with all the time. God truly gifted me with him.
15.  More cooking knowledge!!! Goodness my 20's were rough in the cooking department!
16. I crave to daily worship my Papa! I want this to be a HUGE part of my 30's!
17.  I am so thankful for my son, Camden. I got to meet this precious soul when I was 24. He is a gentleman who always opens doors for me, he loves robots and dreams of building them when he grows up, he loves adventure and is deeply loyal to those closest to him. I am honored to be called his mom.
18. I am also thankful for my daughter, Allie, who I met only one year ago. She is brave with a touch of feistiness, she loves her family passionately and has no problem taking risks or doing things on her own.
19. Healing: I know God is going to heal my heart in this next decade; I'm going to mourn my mom, my brother and I'm going to honor and love them by moving on
20. Share Jesus with anyone who will listen; this may have scared me a little in my 20's, but nope, not anymore
21. I'm entering into my 30's knowing more who I am; my 20's were definitely full of challenges and hardships but they were the fire that refined me through God's wisdom
22. I'm thankful for my family: my dad, Sherrie, my in-laws (Kathy & Rich), Dameon, Jason, Stacy, Justin, Michele, Todd, Kenny, Heather, Bobby, Kerri, Kevin, Brandon, Gina, Deb, Michael, Steven, my grandparents, Nick, Naomi, Leslie, Ryan, Sherrie, Larry, Pat, Scott, Suzy, Claire, Larry, and Kaitlyn. Don't know where I'd be or who I'd be without all of you!!
23. Friendships: I can't wait to see how the friendships I currently have flourish and I am so excited for all the brand new people the Lord will be introducing me to.
24. Spiritual growth!!
25. I am so very thankful for my bestie, Corbin. She has walked beside me through 2 children, the passing of my mom and the passing of my brother. I've seen her marry a great man and start the journey of motherhood. I'm honored to get to call her my bestie and to see what God has done to heal her heart.
26. I am way more secure with my body: Yes, I'm entering my 30's with a very different body than when I entered my 20's, but the last 10 years have shown me what my body is capable of, making beautiful little people, creating a home for my family, preparing meals and doing a mud run.  I can't wait to see what God has planned for the next 10 years!
27. God has truly blessed me with a home I love, more possessions than I know what to do with, a fridge full of food and a bank account with just enough to cover our needs. I'm thankful for a God that provides!!
28. God still has plenty of sin to remove from my life. I pridefully worship myself, I lie, I am jealous of others' success, I harbor resentment, I fear over the future, instead of loving my neighbor, I despise them, and the list could go on and on. I want to learn to imitate Jesus and seek God with all my heart, mind, and soul and I want to love my neighbor as myself.
29.  I am thankful for friends who have so graciously invited me to be apart of their lives: Paula, Sara, Libby, Kate, Cindy, Kailey, Stephanie, Adriane, Emily, and Brittany.
30. I am looking forward to whatever God has planned in my 30's, both big and small! Living my life with Him promises adventure and growth!

30 Reasons I'm Grateful to Be 30 (Part 2)

The growing list of thankfulness:

1. I'm so thankful to be entering my 30's as a saved woman! Jesus saved me from a life of bitterness and anger. He gave me peace and joy. If you haven't accepted Jesus in your heart, it is never too late, do it today. You will never regret it.
2. I'm thankful to be starting my 30's with an amazing husband, 2 healthy kids and incredible friends
3. Taken more seriously: is it just me or do people take you more seriously when there's a 3 at the beginning of your age instead of a 2??
4. Seeing my babies grow into who God made them to be: by the time I hit 40, I will have a 15 year old son and an 11 year old daughter; I can't wait to see them grow into the beautiful creations I know they were created to be
5. Removing pride: if there was one wish, it'd be to remove my pride, and I believe God is going to work wonders on that in the next decade
6. Living like the daughter of the one true king!
7. I look forward to celebrations. Birthday parties, dinners with friends, Christmases, weddings and even daily joys of playing with my kids, sharing my hopes and dreams with my husband and texting my bestie.
8. I am thankful that God had me take much of my early 20's to forgive my mom. I can't even begin to tell you what weight I was carrying with constantly rehashing my childhood in my mind. I was angry and bitter. I am eternally grateful that I no longer live in a war zone in my mind.
9. Gaining more wisdom: as every year goes by, I gain just that much more wisdom from God
10. Blooming seeds: my 20's planted so many relationship seeds; I married my husband, had 2 kids, met my best friend and kindled over a dozen beautiful friendships; I'm looking forward to seeing those relationships bloom and flourish 
11. Creating my ministry: writing a novel, blogging more, fighting the battle of addiction, suicide prevention, all on my radar for my 30's
12. Getting time with my dad: him and I, we have had some rough moments in our past, but now, we're in such a beautiful place; I'm so thankful for our relationship and where God has taken us
13. Leaning less on what this world tells me and more on what God tells me: social media lies, no one is perfect, everyone struggles and has horrible days; God is true and just and I want to crave Him wholeheartedly
14.  I spent every single day of my 20's with my husband. We've never been apart (yet). I am honored to be in love with my best friend and a man I fall more in love with all the time. God truly gifted me with him.
15. More cooking knowledge!!! Goodness my 20's were rough in the cooking department!
16. I crave to daily worship my Papa! I want this to be a HUGE part of my 30's!
17.  I am so thankful for my son, Camden. I got to meet this precious soul when I was 24. He is a gentleman who always opens doors for, he loves robots and dreams of building them when he grows up, he loves adventure and he is deeply loyal to those closest to him. I am honored to be called his mom.
18. I am also thankful for my daughter, Allie, who I met only one year ago. She is brave with a touch of feistiness, she loves her family passionately and she has no problem taking risks or doing things on her own.
19. Healing: I know God is going to heal my heart in this next decade; I'm going to mourn my mom, my brother and I'm going to honor and love them by moving on
20. Share Jesus with anyone who will listen; this may have scared me a little in my 20's, but nope, not anymore

30 Reasons I'm Thankful To Be 30 (Part 1)

A few weeks ago I turned 30! A huge milestone for me! I am not a person that is bothered by my age creeping up. For some reason, it's never bothered me. So, during this season of thanks, I thought I'd compile a list (I LOVE lists) of 30 reasons I'm grateful to be 30. I'm going to break it into 3 posts so its not completely overwhelming for you (and me). Come journey with me into my thankfulness and maybe, just maybe, I can inspire some thankfulness for your life.

1. I'm so thankful to be entering my 30's as a saved woman! Jesus saved me from a life of bitterness and anger. He gave me peace and joy. If you haven't accepted Jesus in your heart, it is never too late, do it today. You will never regret it.
2. I'm thankful to be starting my 30's with an amazing husband, 2 healthy kids and incredible friends
3. Taken more seriously: is it just me or do people take you more seriously when there's a 3 at the beginning of your age instead of a 2??
4. Seeing my babies grow into who God made them to be: by the time I hit 40, I will have a 15 year old son and an 11 year old daughter; I can't wait to see them grow into the beautiful creations I know they were created to be.
5. Removing pride: if there was one wish, it'd be to remove my pride, and I believe God is going to work wonders on that in the next decade.
6. Living like the daughter of the one true king!
7. I look forward to celebrations. Birthday parties, dinners with friends, Christmases, weddings and even daily joys of playing with my kids, sharing my hopes and dreams with my husband and texting my bestie.
8. I am thankful that God had me take much of my early 20's to forgive my mom. I can't even begin to tell you what weight I was carrying with constantly rehashing my childhood in my mind. I was angry and bitter. I am eternally grateful that I no longer live in a war zone in my mind.
9. Gaining more wisdom: as every year goes by, I gain just that much more wisdom from God.
10. Blooming seeds: my 20's planted so many relationship seeds; I married my husband, had 2 kids, met my best friend and kindled over a dozen beautiful friendships; I'm looking forward to seeing those relationships bloom and flourish.