The One About Not Having A Birthday Crisis

In six months I turn 30 years old. I think some people who know me, are anticipating or thinking that I'm going to have some degree of a complex about the 3-0 milestone. Some people mention my upcoming birthday/impending age as if they should walk on egg shells... like I'm one comment away from having a break down about it. But I feel far from it; like I'm ready to be 30 and put the 20's behind me. I was starting to think there was something wrong because I wasn't more concerned about turning 30. I reminded myself of several reasons people dread the milestone:
-I'll be 30 and don't have children
-I'll be 30 and still not using my college education
-I'll be 30 and working to obtain my ideal body image
-and the list could go on...
But no identity crisis arose. Even after I found my first grey hair the other day, no copious amounts of chocolate cake and wine were consumed. I actually felt relieved. As if I obtained some rite of passage.

Now in the past, from my late teens to mid-twenties, I had identity crisis each year as my birthday approached. I think this happened because I previously had strong ideals of where my life would be at each point; and surprise, surprise, my life had turned out much different. Ergo... crisis. Thinking back, I can't say that I've really had an idea of where I would be or what I would be doing at thirty. I had micro-planned the beginning of my young adult life so much that I assumed by the time I was 30 life would just take care of itself and be perfect and I would be happy.

I'm not at all disappointed at where I am right now. That's been the biggest revelation I've made in the past year. "Perfection" and "happiness" are such relative terms. Their definition is formed according to the perception of the definer. I don't profess to have all the answers and have everything figured out. But I'm realizing that that's ok. I don't have to. And besides, I don't feel like 30 is that old. But ask me again in 6 months. Perhaps I'll be more worried by then.

Have you ever had a complex over a birthday? How did you deal with it?

Topic 3- Once Upon A Time

Once upon a time a few weeks ago, I signed up to participate in a 2014 Blogger Challenge
I'm not the most consistent blogger as of late. So I thought if I was part of a challenge that had prompts, then perhaps I will post about the topics I have something relevant to contribute on. Argo, starting at Topic 3!  This prompt is all about books.

I love reading but I run into a few problems:
 1. I can't seem to make the time to read or can't find the time to read.
 2. I probably could find the time to read for short periods at a time. BUT I only like reading books that suck me in and that I can't put down; so I end up reading them in a day or two. If a book takes longer than a couple days for me to read than there is a very good chance I will never finish it.
 3. Because I only enjoy reading books that are really good and hard to put down, I have an even harder time picking a book to start to read. It can take me months to decide on one. I'm getting better at just picking one and trying it but sometimes it's still a struggle.

Anyways, my husband thinks he's clever and knew that if he bought me a gift card for a bookstore, for Christmas, then I would feel guilty if I didn't use it. After some deliberation on which books to choose, I ended up buying The Fault in Our Stars and Someday, Someday, Maybe.

The Fault in Our Stars (on Amazon)

The Fault in Our Stars: I'd heard a lot of good reviews about this book but was hesitate to read it. I Usually I don't read YA books. And a book about someone dying of cancer, sounded depressing. However, I loved this book and couldn't put it down. I found it anything but depressing. It was not at all what I expected. It was inspiring and thought provoking. The book isn't about cancer; it's about the interpersonal development of the two main characters who are very much aware that death happens but it's how you live your time that matters. I finished the book thinking there was so much more in depth that I missed. I'll definitely have to read it a few more times; and I'm anticipating getting more out of it each read.

Someday Someday Maybe (on Amazon)

Someday, Someday, Maybe: After reading TFIOS, I wanted something a little lighter...a little fluffier. I'm still in the process of reading this book. I've read 95 of 340 pages so I don't have a concluded opinion on the book yet. So far I'm having a tough time getting into it; don't get me wrong I'm enjoying it! But it's slower moving and feels like it seems to be dragged out. I suppose if that is by intent.. then the underlying theme of the book is full of wonderful satirical irony. In this day and age we have short attention spans we want our entertainment in a compact, action-packed story. This book demonstrates that sometimes the life of the actor on screen isn't like we would see of a character in a script. We want the story to evolve in a predictable manner; girl moves to big city, girl gets dream job, girl meets guy, life is perfect. This book shows that sometimes that neat little package isn't reality. For some actors, it can  be a long and frustrating struggle to achieve their dreams. I find the main character Franny to be relatable. I'm hoping as I read more, the story will grip me and I'll find it more interesting! If nothing else, it's been a relaxing read. 

Winter Beauty

 

Where we live in British Columbia, it feels like it's winter for 12 months a year. Maybe that's an exaggeration but I have seen snow on the ground at some point in 8 of the 12 months. Usually by January I'm pretty done with winter.

 

This year I'm trying instead to embrace the beauty of winter instead of dread the cold and snow. That's been easier this year as we've been having warmer than normal weather!

How about you? Do you embrace winter or dream of warmer places?

The Maple VoxBox From Influenster

I received an email a few weeks ago informing me that I was selected to receive The Maple VoxBox from Influenster! (let me know in the comments if you'd like an invite!) 

 

A lot of companies have exclusive programs for people only located in the US so I was so excited they made a special box for Canadian members! 

I love trying new items but don't like to buy something unless I know I'll like it! So it was fun to try these out! 

I'm a little strange in that I don't LOVE a lot of chocolate bars. I have a couple that I like and I don't buy them very often. In fact usually Jon buys them for me and I stick them in the freezer for when I really have a craving for them. At one point I had 7 chocolate bars in the freezer!

 

Anyways, in the box was two types of chocolates from Skinny Cow. I had seen the commericals before but never tried one. So, not going to lie, they were the first things I tried from the box! The Milk Chocolate Heavenly Crisp were pretty tasty! But the Dreamy Clusters were amazing! They live up the name "Dreamy"! I saved a couple of them and made Protein Granola Bars with them! I've looked to buy them but haven't found those particular ones in stores. I'll keep my eye out for them! 

I'll be honest, I didn't love the NYC New York Color Mascara. Perhaps I am spoiled by my em michelle phan and UrbanDecay mascaras! But this one just didn't do it for me. I am kind of a mascara snob. I didn't like the applicator or how it made my eyelashes look. 

I LOVED the NYC New York Color Lip Gloss!! It does exactly has it claims, adds shine and plump! I loved the color and it wasn't really sticky feeling, as some lip glosses can. 

With creating jewelry, I can't keep nice nails. The metal and constant movements break my nails and give me callouses on my fingers. I was very interested in trying this Impress Press-On Manicure by Broadway Nails. I was really impressed with how easy and quick they were to apply! Once they were on they were light and felt quite natural! That being said, I didn't keep them on for long because they weren't quite strong enough to endure making jewelry. But otherwise I liked them! 

The Montagne Jeunesse Clay Spa Masks left my face soft and smooth! The holes in the fabric didn't quite fit my face very well but I cut the slits a bit larger and it worked better. 

I've tried several different Ice Breaker Mints before and loved them! But this Raspberry Ice Breaker Duo was not my favorite. It reminded me of a vitamin I used to take when I was a kid; so I didn't really enjoy the flavor of it. I'm want to try their Strawberry Duo mints. I think I would like those much better! 

So there we are! I really enjoyed the Influenster Maple VoxBox as a whole! I've discovered some new brands and items that I definitely want to purchase when my samples run out! 

P.S. I received these items complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes. All opinions stated are my own.