Turning 30...

How fun it has been to see so many posts on Facebook about Sweet Fringe Benefits!  I've loved seeing which posts struck a chord with my readers.  Thank you so much!  The GIVEAWAY will run until Sunday night, the 16th.  So if you find another post you'd like to share (or for Leigh, a particular outfit that you loved), I will enter your name again for your chance to win the Emaack Designs statement necklace!  And if you need a reminder how to enter, click here to read yesterday's post. 

Interesting conversation today.  I visited with my 80 year old friend this morning.  She told me that her hardest birthday yet was her 30th!  I felt the same way...although she's had many more milestone birthdays than I have.  I took comfort that by her experience, I had already passed the most troubling birthday of my life.  For me, turning 30 meant letting go of all of those childhood dreams and lofty hopes, that obviously just weren't that important to me because I had done nothing to make them happen.  I realized at 30 that I was never going to be invited to a White House state dinner, I wasn't going to be a Senator's wife, and I wasn't going to live in one of the mansions in Wellesley, Massachusetts that I dreamed about as a little girl.

What I did not do at 30 was recognize the wonderful life I was building, and a hope for a meaningful future of family, relationships, experiences and flatout JOY.  I am so glad I am not 30 anymore!  Yes, my eyes are saggy, my wrinkles are getting more and more prominent, and the days of dreaming of looking great in a bathing suit...even if I lost 50 pounds...are pretty much gone.  But I am way more content and satisfied with the path of my life than I was at 30.  And that's a Sweet Fringe Benefit of 49 that I will take everyday until I'm 89!

I'm not a big reader, but I saw the movie "The Five People You Meet in Heaven" several years back.  One line in the movie that has always made me cry, pause, and reflect, is when Eddie asks his wife in heaven why she looked so young.  He wanted her to look like she did before she died, in her late 40's.  When she asked why, his response was, "Because that's when I loved you the most."  The older I get, the more I understand that. 

Outfit of the Day: LOFT khacki/blush lace cardigan, Converse (Target brand) ruffle shell, LOFT floral embellished belt, Worthington (JCPenny) mushroom jacquard print pants, Bandolino Snakeskin pumps, Emaack Designs Statement Necklace.  Although there is not a lot of color in this outfit, I really liked the mix of textures with the lace on the cardigan, and the monotone print of the jacquard pants. 

Thank you again to all of your kind words.  Good luck to those trying to win the necklace...you will love it!

Nanette