Congratulations on moving forward. You write you feel comfortable 43, wait til you become 45. That is so much fun, if you are like me, your fountain of life will be giving you so much energy.
Hope you have the best birthday ever and know the best is yet to come!!!!
Happy, Prosperous, Healthy, Amazing Birthday Julie! Yes, you do seem content at this time in your life and exactly where you're supposed to be. You and your young family are still building your life together, but with a surety and sense of stability that I find comforting.
I'm thrilled to pieces about the new property and the adventures ahead of you, though I may need to fly over with buckets of oils to help clean cobwebs and remnant ghosts.
May this be a year of nothing but goodness. xo Liz
HAPPY BIRTHDAY sweet Julochka!! And you look great the way you are - what do you mean lose weight? Did you use a body double for those shots of you (or "you") in the orange coat?
I believe in having goals when you need them and be open to whatever happens when you need it. Too many goals or conditions seems like control to me; I'd feel caged. I hope that your goal or instinct today is to have delicious birthday cake!
Happy Birthday! And I for one can´t wait to see what will happen to you in the next year! What an adventure! I have to catch up with your other posts....I just got out of hibernation. Have a wonderful day, Jeannette
Happy, happy birthday!! xxoo Boy do I love this post and reading of how you're content and pleased with your life. Good for you! It's nice to read this. (I'm 44 and not so content really). You're a wonderful writer by the way.
i think the 40s are the time to have whatever you want on your list and to live life like want to, on your very own terms. it's a time where i've earned every wrinkle on my face and every gray hair that i have so far. so, that being said - i think you wear it well my dear.
many, many, many happy returns for a wonderful year with many more wonderful years to come.
Happy Birthday! The new place sounds amazing, and like it was meant to be...I love serendipity! The 40's...after a certain point, you just move right past so many of the tiny, insignificant things and start to focus on what is truly important in life. I'm not exactly looking forward to fifty, (especially what fifty will actually look like), but I would not want to go back, ever... And it is always great to give yourself a little present!
March 22, 2010 at 6:43 PM
Anonymous said...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY and congrats on your new home to-be!!! I'm sure you'll have an amazing time making a new life for you and your family out on a farm in Jutland and I can't wait to read about it! Isn't 2010 going to be exciting?
I got the date wrong - sent you a telepathic happy birthday yesterday - so glad I can wish you on The Day and goddamn congratulations on the farm! That is truly exciting. Happy Birthday dear one x
Happy Birthday! Even though we've not met in person (yet!), please know that you are a fantastic source of inspiration and fun. Cheers to you and congratulations on what's to come!
I'm so happy for you! I would love to be moving into a romantic old farm house built in 1895! And I get what you mean about being comfortable at 43 (although I'll be 44 in May). It doesn't seem like I should be any older or any younger. Just fits, somehow. I LOVE that window.
Have been racing through your last few posts to get to the bit about the property and house. Sounds fantastic! So happy for you.
March 28, 2010 at 7:36 PM
[Image]
a lake makes a nice birthday present. but i got that loom too.
i got an early birthday present yesterday when the realtor called and said that the seller had accepted the terms we'd offered on the property over in jutland (this is property #2, to our knowledge, the dog sled has never arrived at the owner of property #1, as we've heard nothing from those clowns). things are really falling into place. it seems both like it's taken an eternity and that it's happened in the blink of an eye. in just two short months, everything we thought about moving to a farm has changed. we thought we'd move to one here in our area, but now, we're packing up and moving across the country. it's funny to think that the whole thing was initiated by a friday afternoon phone call from a friend as i walked from one terminal to the other at copenhagen airport, picking up the blog campers back in january. one phone call can change your whole life.
[Image]
window on a whole new life.
since it's my birthday, i had mulled over making one of those lists of things to do before my next birthday, but in light of the enormous shift that's happened in our thinking and in our lives, i'm not sure that it's worth setting out such a list. because it's so hard to know where life will take you and if you're too focused on a specific list, you just might miss some golden opportunities. what if we'd not opened our minds to the possibility of a move to a new area? then we'd not have new jobs and a 17-acre farm with a lake and a house built in 1895 (for a good quarter of the price of what a similar property would have been here). what if we'd stayed focused on our original little list of things we thought we wanted? i shudder at the thought.
of course, that's not entirely fair to lists of goals and many of the goals on a list as long as mine would be - if i were making one of those 43 things to do before i turn 44 typelists - would be more frivolous goals, like the one from last year's list that said, "become blog of note." i also had more ephemeral things on the list like "be more present," and "dare more" and "believe more." i suppose some days i fulfilled those goals and some days i didn't. i never had things on my list like "run a marathon" or "lose weight" (tho' i undoubtedly should) or those typical resolution-type goals. it would be more fun to have something on it like "make cupcakes once a week" or "talk to a stranger once a day," but my photo-a-day and art journal calendar projects are enough for me and since they're not specific to my birthday, it seems a moot point to make a list.
but it's weird with birthdays when you've reached my age. tho' it's a bit ho hum, i feel comfortable being 43, it feels like the right age to be. it's where i'm at. i wouldn't want to go back and i feel there's still loads to look forward to. it's likely that i'll never run a marathon, but that's ok, i never wanted to anyway. it's interesting that as i look both back and forward on this day, i'm quite content to be right where i am.
[Image]
a little self-present for my birthday. a felt brooch from lilfish studios.
* * *
i've written more about the new property over on livet på landet.
25 Comments
Close this window Jump to comment formCongratulations on moving forward. You write you feel comfortable 43, wait til you become 45. That is so much fun, if you are like me, your fountain of life will be giving you so much energy.
Hope you have the best birthday ever and know the best is yet to come!!!!
March 22, 2010 at 10:08 AM
Happy, Prosperous, Healthy, Amazing Birthday Julie! Yes, you do seem content at this time in your life and exactly where you're supposed to be. You and your young family are still building your life together, but with a surety and sense of stability that I find comforting.
I'm thrilled to pieces about the new property and the adventures ahead of you, though I may need to fly over with buckets of oils to help clean cobwebs and remnant ghosts.
May this be a year of nothing but goodness. xo Liz
March 22, 2010 at 11:52 AM
I think you must be feeling content, because you have gone from being 30-12 to being 43!
happy birthday!
March 22, 2010 at 11:53 AM
Sounds like you are at the right place. Good for you! :)
March 22, 2010 at 11:59 AM
Congratulations on a wonderful move forward! You have such an exciting time ahead of you!
March 22, 2010 at 12:03 PM
HAPPY BIRTHDAY sweet Julochka!! And you look great the way you are - what do you mean lose weight? Did you use a body double for those shots of you (or "you") in the orange coat?
I believe in having goals when you need them and be open to whatever happens when you need it. Too many goals or conditions seems like control to me; I'd feel caged.
I hope that your goal or instinct today is to have delicious birthday cake!
March 22, 2010 at 12:21 PM
A very happy birthday to you! Sounds like new adventures are running up to greet you, good luck and congratulations!
(and a big thanks for showing off my brooch here - I blushed a little)
March 22, 2010 at 12:57 PM
Happy Birthday! And I for one can´t wait to see what will happen to you in the next year! What an adventure!
I have to catch up with your other posts....I just got out of hibernation.
Have a wonderful day,
Jeannette
March 22, 2010 at 1:20 PM
Happy Birthday Julie!
Hope you have a great day :o)
March 22, 2010 at 1:51 PM
Happy, happy birthday!! xxoo Boy do I love this post and reading of how you're content and pleased with your life. Good for you! It's nice to read this. (I'm 44 and not so content really). You're a wonderful writer by the way.
And congrats on the move too! YAY!
March 22, 2010 at 1:58 PM
Happy birthday, sweetie! Have a big glass of sauvignon blanc for me, and I'll have one up my end :-)
So glad for you that everything is falling into place with the farm.
Big hugs,
A.
xxx
March 22, 2010 at 2:06 PM
Happy birthday--I do hope you will have a very special day!! Love the house and how lucky to have a lake to yourself.
Have a great week!
Best
Tracy :)
March 22, 2010 at 2:42 PM
i think the 40s are the time to have whatever you want on your list and to live life like want to, on your very own terms. it's a time where i've earned every wrinkle on my face and every gray hair that i have so far. so, that being said - i think you wear it well my dear.
many, many, many happy returns for a wonderful year with many more wonderful years to come.
March 22, 2010 at 3:29 PM
Happy Birthday, and happy new house! I very much look forward to reading your tales of this new year of your life, and of your new home!
March 22, 2010 at 3:38 PM
Happy Birthday! The new place sounds amazing, and like it was meant to be...I love serendipity!
The 40's...after a certain point, you just move right past so many of the tiny, insignificant things and start to focus on what is truly important in life. I'm not exactly looking forward to fifty, (especially what fifty will actually look like), but I would not want to go back, ever...
And it is always great to give yourself a little present!
March 22, 2010 at 6:43 PM
HAPPY BIRTHDAY and congrats on your new home to-be!!! I'm sure you'll have an amazing time making a new life for you and your family out on a farm in Jutland and I can't wait to read about it!
Isn't 2010 going to be exciting?
March 22, 2010 at 7:28 PM
I got the date wrong - sent you a telepathic happy birthday yesterday - so glad I can wish you on The Day and goddamn congratulations on the farm! That is truly exciting.
Happy Birthday dear one x
March 22, 2010 at 7:42 PM
Congrats on the property! That is so exciting!
Also--HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I sincerely hope that you have a fabulous day and it is the beginning of an even more fabulous year.
Lots of love and cupcakes,
xox
March 22, 2010 at 8:35 PM
Sometimes life is much richer than our small little imaginings. Celebrate!
March 22, 2010 at 9:21 PM
Happy Birthday! Even though we've not met in person (yet!), please know that you are a fantastic source of inspiration and fun. Cheers to you and congratulations on what's to come!
March 22, 2010 at 10:45 PM
I'm so happy for you! I would love to be moving into a romantic old farm house built in 1895! And I get what you mean about being comfortable at 43 (although I'll be 44 in May). It doesn't seem like I should be any older or any younger. Just fits, somehow. I LOVE that window.
March 22, 2010 at 11:29 PM
Grattis Julie och lycka till!! :)
March 23, 2010 at 7:03 PM
Congratulations on getting the property! What a wonderful birthday present... just what you deserve!
March 23, 2010 at 11:42 PM
cheers to your birthday (event though I am a little late)!
and congratulations on having your offer accepted!
March 26, 2010 at 6:05 PM
Have been racing through your last few posts to get to the bit about the property and house. Sounds fantastic! So happy for you.
March 28, 2010 at 7:36 PM