I AM 40!!! New Blogging Journeys

Hello blogging world.

First of all, some of you asked to see my face.  Being that my blog is over, I feel that I can now honor that request – here you go!  (I was a bit younger than 40 in this photo, but those who know me will testify that I have not changed a bit!)

This is my encore post.  I am now already 40, which means that my 400 days ’til 40 blogging journey is officially over.  This also means that this blog has run its course.  As mentioned yesterday – it is bitter-sweet, as I enjoyed the journey immensely.  This particular blog has to end, but I do have new ones on the horizon.  Stay subscribed here and in the future weeks/ months I will post a note directing you to my new blogging adventures.

 

1 Day ’til 40: Lessons Learned on my 400 Days ’til 40 Journey

This is IT – my 400th post!  I have now officially blogged the 400 days ’til my 40th birthday – AND I am still here to tell about it!  Tomorrow is the day that inspired this 400 day writing journey.  It is hard for me to believe that the time has passed as quickly as it has.  Was it really 400 days ago that, on a whim, I thought it would be fun to blog the 400 days before I turned 40?  (What on earth WAS I thinking?!?) It seems like only yesterday……… they do say that time starts to slip away faster as we age….

 

2 Days ’til 40: 40 Favorite Posts from My 400 Days ’til 40 Journey

I must say that it was much easier to choose 40 photos than to choose 40 posts!  One of the fun things about this particular journey is that I allowed myself to write (or post photos) about whatever I felt on any particular day.  As a result, I have a wide array of followers who each connect in different ways to what I write – this has been amazing.  I imagine that in the future, as I become a bit more focused, I may have a less diverse group of readers, though I hope not!

Here is my top 40 list of posts, hopefully as eclectic as my readers are.  Some I chose because of the importance of the content, some because they make me laugh (yes, I realize that I have a weird sense of humor that others do not always appreciate) and some because I like the way the words flow.

 

3 Days ’til 40: My 40 Favorite Photos from My 400 Days ’til 40 Journey

As my 400 days ’til 40 blogging journey is almost to an end, I wanted to dedicate this post to my top 40 favorite photos from the journey.  Blogging each day also meant taking many original photos so that I could include an image with each post.  I have never used my camera as much as I have this year!  I hope you enjoy!

~400days’til40

 

5 Days ’til 40: Losing my Necklace (Or Maybe My Sanity?)

 

Well, when you get old senility sets in first, right?  Apparently as I run this final stretch towards 40 it is all going downhill!!!

 

6 Days ’til 40: Delicious Delicacies

Yesterday was Valentine’s Day and my partner and I had a wonderful dinner in a nice restaurant, something we do not normally do because we are very budget conscious.  It was such a lovely experience and I am so glad we went out.  We had a delicious meal and the atmosphere was pleasant and there were no kids – we were in heaven.

Yet, as I looked around the restaurant, something saddened me.  I realized that many people, even on a special occasion like Valentine’s Day, struggle with whether to go for a diet dinner or a delicious delicacy.  Where is the balance in the equation?

 

9 Days ’til 40: I Am My Own Cheerleader

 

Okay, so maybe I am not – but I should be.  This is a concept that has been more clearly solidified for me during my past year of blogging.  External encouragement feels great, but it is the internal motivation and self-encouragement and self-inspiration that are critical to life’s journey.

Fall seven times, stand up eight. ~ Japanese Proverb

Instead of giving myself reasons why I can’t, I give myself reasons why I can. ~ Author Unknown

 

13 Days ’til 40: Winter Pine and Winter Cactus Photos

 

14 Days ’til 40: Waiting Games

The tree that is pictured above is the inspiring force behind my post today.  If you look carefully, you will see that the entire top half is about to fall off the tree (it was snapped in half by a snow storm almost one month ago).  This tree is very close to our school playground, which has forced us to close half the playground until we can get the tree cut down properly.  Apparently there is only one company in our area that cuts down trees and the company is not equipped to cope with all the trees that collapsed in our city during the last snow.  So, for now we wait.  We wait for the tree removal company or for mother nature to take her course.  Either way, the students are a little less entertained on the playground until we can declare the half near the dangling tree safe again.

 

19 Days ’til 40: Blog Award Thank-Yous

Over the past 381 days many of my fellow bloggers have nominated me for a variety of peer-based awards.  I have NEVER received so many award nominations in my life!!!  There are 98 award nominations listed below!!!  These are very popular in the blogging world and allow bloggers a venue to support and encourage one another during their blogging journeys.  I am shocked at how many times I have been nominated for awards since I began my blog.  Today I want to thank all of my fellow bloggers who have nominated and supported me!  You mean a lot to me, as you have given me so much encouragement and feedback throughout my 400 day blogging journey – you are what makes blogging so rewarding!!!  I have listed each award I have been nominated for (and the blogger who nominated me)!