It's my Birthday!

So today I am officially 25 years old. Wahhh! I’m really starting to feel less like a child and more like an adult today. You know how on most birthdays you don’t feel any different? Well this one does feel different. I don’t know if it’s because I am a quarter of a century old, or because so much has changed for me in the last year?

Last year on this day: I had just completed my first year of graduate school; I was living at home with my parents (all expenses paid- oh yeah!); I drove an adorable red, two-seater, convertible; I babysat for a living; The only room I had to keep clean was my bedroom; I was secretly (or not so secretly to my girlfriends) hoping Derek and I would get engaged SOON; And finally I was turning 24, and something about the age 24 still sounds young enough to get away with being “young and dumb.”

I know, I know, 25 isn’t THAT old but something about this age seems to bring with it a new set of expectations. I feel this incredible drive inside of me to light my career on fire! I am ready to tackle this 2-year residency head on, and would like to make a decent living while doing so. I want to work on my craft and try new techniques and interventions out. I want to be on the cutting edge of my field, and further my research on couples. (In case you are wondering I am a mental health therapist) I want to make our house into a home, and be the best wife I can possibly be. I want to make my family proud, and I want to make myself proud!

Wow- that is a whole lot of wanting! Though I guess it’s a good thing to always want for more because if you stop wanting, you stop growing, learning, and achieving (at least this is what I am telling my over-achieving self).

Here are some of the goals that I would like to have achieved by my next milestone birthday (30 years old).

In five years, I hope to:

-Be happily married to my handsome hubby, Derek

·          -Have a child- or two :)

·          -Be strongly considering the possibility of opening my own practice

·          -Be published

·          -Be the exact same size (I will not let kids ruin this bod)…haha!

·          -Have a significantly bigger home with a big yard for the animals and kiddos

·          -Have done appearances in television and/ or radio as an expert couple’s therapist

·          -Still have frequent dinners and outings with my best girlfriends

·          -Become more involved with my church and community outreach

I love goal setting because it gives me a clear path to follow, and a list that I can check off (which is one of my favorite things to do)!

What do you hope to have accomplished by your next milestone birthday?