Another year older

Tomorrow I will turn 28 — I wonder if others are as contemplative about their birthdays as I am? I just read my blog post from when I turned 25 and it seems decades away, yet the sentiment is pretty much the same as I feel today.

While I think I will hold on to a bitterness each year of growing older, I can also bask in the brief contentment of growing, improving and dreaming. I reach goals and reach further for new ones. As I read my 25-year-old thoughts, it's comforting to know I've accomplished many of those goals, overcome some of those anxieties and Matt and I are well on our way to being where we want to be at 30.

At 25, we were just married and barely living together and making ends meet. Since then we've taken chances together and those risks have paid off. We moved to Florida for better opportunities. We made the best of it though it wasn't our ideal location — enjoyed time with my mom and sister.

I grew professionally — became the editor of a community newspaper by 26 and produced work that I can be proud of for years to come. I formed relationships with amazing people and passed on everything I love and learned about journalism to two reporters. Their persistence and encouragement pushed me to do my best and I pushed them to be better in return.

We earned the most prestigious awards in the state for editorials, investigative reporting, feature writing,  First Amendment Defense and more. I couldn't be more proud of my short tenure there. But I always know when it's time for me to go.

I had the opportunity to not only continue my career at a larger paper and use the master's degree I worked so hard to earn — but we had the opportunity to move to one of the most beautiful parts of the country. So here we are near Asheville, North Carolina. As my dad likes to say, "We're living the dream."

I have a great job, great co-workers and a supporter editor. I get to write the news and also serve as editor of an arts and entertainment publication. Matt and I have been playing more shows around town and feel like we're thriving in this community rich with culture and fine arts.

I try to keep that in mind as I whine about turning 28. It's a weird age. It's not quite 30, but close enough. It’s an age where you feel you should be closer to getting your priorities straight but a part of you wants to hold on to your 20s for as long as you can.

For example — Matt and I are trying to decide whether we want to use the money we’ve saved for the past year (not as much as it should be) to go on an epic vacation this fall or use that money to put a down payment on a house. Adventure or first time home ownership? It’s really a hard decision. Trying to keep your life on schedule or throwing caution (and money) to the wind and going where life takes you — preferably a road trip up the East coast.

I'm still contemplating that one. But in the meantime and do my best to live in the moment and remember that as much as I may try, I can't plan every moment in my life — and why would I want to? It's always the unexpected that makes life worth living. Like my new puppy Atticus!