Slowly but surely over the years we started doing Birthday weeks at my house for myself and my girls, little surprises and treats and fun outings the week of our birthdays. Then I met Casey 3 years ago. Right before my birthday week I started to tell her about it, expecting the usual eye roll and you're ridiculous from her, she laughed and said a week! I do a whole month! My draw dropped to the floor and I looked at her in pure admiration! There really are others like me out there! That celebrate life and love it! That say," Hey! Let us make a big deal here, because you know what? I am kinda a big deal and I'm not going to let you make me feel bad about it! " The 20 days of Tressie then came to be. With every day leading up to my birthday I do something special for myself.
Now hold the eye rolls, and the OMG you are such a spoiled brat and you are ridiculous. It is not about others getting me gifts or doing anything for me in these 20 days. (although my family and friends have jumped on the bandwagon a bit) It's about me myself and I. It's about celebrating my life! It's about self reflection and looking back at the last year, setting goals for the year to come. It's about being thankful and feeling blessed for what I have and taking time out of my busy crazy life and thinking about it and appreciating it. Appreciating my life and the fact I have lived yet another year.
It is hard for anyone to take time out to celebrate life, and for people like me, a busy mom and career women it just does not happen often. The long soak in the bath is interrupted 50 times, the massage you schedule gets put off because you are to busy at work, the $50 goes to dance shoes instead of stilettos. There is always something else I should be doing or something else I should be buying or calories I should not be consuming or time I just don't have. There are always others that need my energy and affection. Always work that needs to get done. In these next 20 days it's time for me to put things on hold even for a few min each day. Yes I may have a bit of laundry build up and Yes I may have some work that gets put off and Yes, I may gain a few lbs, things might be let go. Those things will be there in 20 days. I choose to celebrate another year of life and treat myself and take time out to enjoy the simple small things in life that I normally don't take time to enjoy. Everyday I will do something for myself that I normally don't do because of time or whatever the reason. I'm going to take long baths while drinking wine, I'm going to eat a big piece of chocolate and not feel even a little guilty! I'm going to go to Starbucks and not think how it's ridiculous this cost $5. I'm going to get a massage and a Pedi, I'm going to curl up with a book and not worry about the laundry or the 100 other things that need to get done. I'm going to meet up with friends for coffee, lunch, or drinks. I'm going to have a whole day (this one is going to be hard) where I don't have to go anywhere or do anything and stay in yoga pants and no makeup all day! For the love of sweet baby Jesus I'm going to take a nap!! And I'm going to buy the damn shoes! Because life is short people! I'm going to live mine! Who's with me!?
Remember: Those who matter don't mind, and those who mind well they just don't matter!
XO
Tressie