My birthday is fast approaching, and to be completely honest – I had to do some quick math in my head while writing this post title to figure out how old I’m turning. Is that not the truest sign of being an adult? I remember as a child being completely, and utterly baffled at the fact that my parents would say they couldn’t remember how old they were at a given point in time. I mean, most of my entire identify as a kid was grounded in how old I was that year! Turning 10 meant entering double digits. 13 was an official teenager. Sweet 16. 18. Entering your 20s. 21! 25! Oh, for age to be exciting again.
I will admit that I 100% am behind the idea that your 30s are your best years yet. I had a wonderful childhood and hold some pretty awesome memories of my teenage years. High school was dramatic but amazing, and don’t get me started on my college years. Life changing, for the better, obviously. The post college years were also pretty great. At the time.
But my life as a 30 something is what I always, and I mean always dreamed of. Married, a mother, a house in the suburbs. Staying at home with my children. I spent my entire life dreaming of the day I’d become a mom. And here I am. Living the dream. Right?
So while I may not remember whether I’m turning 32, 33, or 34 (spoiler: it’s 33), life these years is pretty damn great. And looking forward to another birthday is always exciting, for me. Even if we don’t throw surprise dinner parties or lavish birthday adventures, we at the very least exchange cards and every once in awhile we’ll exchange an actual gift as opposed to the token gift card or “let’s just put your ‘birthday gift’ towards this upcoming life expense.”
In all reality, I’ll likely get a check from my family, a gift card from my in laws, and a sweet card from my husband with the promise of some sort of mom time away from the house for peace and quiet.
But if we were still big gift givers in our 30s, here’s what would be on this year’s birthday wish list.
- An 8qt Instant Pot: I love, love, looooove our slow cooker, and it’s saved me on far more occasions than I can even count. It’s a go to for our family dinners in the fall and winter, but truth be told we use it all year long. In the last couple of years I’ve watched the Instant Pot gain popularity, and now it seems there are more Instant Pot recipes on Pinterest than slow cooker! I feel like adding this bad boy into our arsenal of kitchen tools would be a game changer.
- This One-Step Hair Dryer & Volumizer by Revlon, because I’ve actually heard good reviews about it! Until this product hit the market, I would never have considered a hair brush and blow dryer in one. I’ve seen too many companies do this concept wrong, and my hair is already fragile and fine. I can’t take any risks! But this product received honest, positive reviews from bloggers that I trust, and anything to cut down on time in the morning while adding volume, gets a vote from me.
- A new medium sized suitcase. First, can anyone tell me why on earth is luggage so expensive? I mean, I just don’t get it. But at the rate we travel, and the wear and tear that our luggage is starting to show, it’s time for a new addition to our collection of suitcases. As unmarried, and then married with no kids kind of people, my husband and I mostly owned carry on sized luggage. I’ve since purchased a full set that includes a carry on, medium sized, and large suitcase, but I really, really want a new medium sized suitcase. My husband usually insists that we travel as a family in one super large suitcase, but now a days we’re almost always pushing the weight limit and as a soon to be family of 4 I’d really like to be able to travel in a large + carry on, or two medium sized suitcases. Hence, the birthday wish.
- These IG famous Quay sunglasses. I owned the same cheap sunglasses for almost four years straight. They were from Target, and I absolutely loved them. They held up well year after year, I shockingly never lost them, and they gave me a really decent sense of protection from the sun. I have incredibly sensitive eyes, so coverage + protection is so important for me. Welp, four years later someone accidentally dropped them. I won’t name names, but I was devastated. I tried to replace them with others from Target, but so far none are doing the trick.
- And these sneakers. I wear sneakers 6 days a week, usually. Mine are from Target. And they’re 2 years old. Hello, worn in. I don’t exercise (whoops) or go on runs, so it’s not like I need a high tech sneaker, but these ones from New Balance are so dang cute, and multiple people that I follow rave about them. I’ll consider this a treat, since my shoes aren’t actually falling apart yet, but hey. I deserve a treat, right? It’s my birthday!
Raise your hand if you own one of these items! And tell me how much you love them, please. What else should I add to my birthday wish list? Leave some ideas in the comments, before this year comes and goes.