30?!

Yup, I turned the BIG 3-0 this past weekend. So far I don't feel any different than 29. I had a hard time turning 25- it felt so old, I didn't feel like I should be that old. I wanted kids, hadn't had any yet (Hailey was born a month before my 26th bday). I didn't really have the life that I envisioned myself living at 25 and was sad about it. But 30 is a lot different. 30 just feels right, somehow. Maybe it's because I have good friends that I love that are older, so it feels like I'm closer to them, now that I'm in my 30's. Maybe it's because I feel like a mom of 4 should be 30 and I won't get as many weird looks, now that I'm older. Maybe it's because my babies are growing up and I'm actually having a hard time with that so I don't have time to think about the fact that I'm getting old, too. Maybe it's just the simple fact that my mom's gonna be 50 this year, so 30 doesn't feel quite so old comparatively speaking. (right, mom?!) :) 

So far, I'm liking the age of 30. I feel a little more seasoned; a little more grace-filled; a little more relaxed. Ok, I've only been 30 for 3 days, and 1 of them was spent in Minneapolis with 5 amazing girls and no kids, but it still feels kinda nice to be "old" :) And, I'm really hoping that I can spend the next 30+ years showing myself and those around me more grace than I did in the last 30 years. Being a mom is hard; being a wife is hard; being a daughter is hard; being a christian is hard; being a friend is hard; life is hard and I want to be able to grace myself and those around me- a lot more than I managed to do in my 20's. "Grace, grace, God's grace; grace that can pardon and cleanse within"- that's what I want to define my 30's!! 

just so you don't think this is all about me- here are some cute little girly pics :) 

sometimes on the harder twinny days- the days where both are teething and cranky- I like to dress them alike to remind myself that they're so cute and that having twins is so fun and so worth it :) 

(and it always works- they 're absolutely adorable) :)