This post was inspired by Meg Tietz’s 48 things post. I turned 50 in September and spent a month truly leaning into this milestone. I believe that birthdays should be celebrated for however long you want and this year I wanted a full month of celebrating! Here is a list of 50 things I have loved in my first 50 years:

• My mom, who gifted me my love of laughter, writing, music, and deep friendships
• My dad, from whom I get my organized, early, Type A, reader personality
• My brother, who is my opposite in many ways, my weekly cook, and, luckily, my friend too
• New Kids on the Block
• Learning the lyrics to every song I love, starting from taping songs like Pour Some Sugar on Me and We Didn’t Start the Fire off the radio and writing the lyrics on paper plates
• Skiing with my family all over, and then getting college PE credit on the lamest mountain ever
• Spain (all 5 times I’ve visited or lived there!)
• Africa safaris (don’t make me pick a favorite animal!)
• Galapagos adventures
• Card games – from Oh Hell to Spades to Canasta to Blitz to 99 and more
• Board games – don’t bring up how I used to cheat on Monopoly to my brother (he is still mad!)
• Roller skating
• Snorkeling
• Sunsets
• Sunflowers
• Cats
• My work
• Writing – from letters to blog posts to journals and more, writing is a tool for reflection, for sharing, and staying in touch
• Sea glass – I still remember the snowy day my dad and I collected over 100 pieces!
• Reading
• The Jersey Shore – Yelling “over” or “under” before each wave came with my Mom
• Any beach any time
• FaceTimes with my nephews
• 1:1 dates with my nephews
• Having all 4 of my grandparents alive and well for my entire childhood (and well beyond!)
• Getting closer to my brother as we get older
• Sleeping in
• Early morning workouts
• Peloton bike rides
• Walks at the bay
• Pool reading
• Mojitos and Iced Tea and Gin & Tonic and crushed ice
• Live concerts
• Vacations and traveling
• Coconut – the small, the taste, the tropic islands where they grow
• My hardwood floors
• The day I paid off my mortgage
• Making M.A.S.H. notes in middle school
• The Babysitter’s Club books and Ann M. Martin
• My 80’s jean jacket
• When Harry Met Sally
• Meeting up with our CA cousins every other year at our grandparents’ house in Florida
• The trip to Virginia Beach my other grandparents took me on when I was about 11.
• Strawberry Shortcake dolls and Cabbage Patch Kids
• Watching 90210 and Melrose Place in our college suite and waiting for the next week’s coming attractions with baited breath, to the point of ignoring fire alarms!
• Riding bikes around Coronado, CA with out-of-town visitors
• Playing Fusion Frenzy with friends until our sides ache from all of the laughter
• Reading The Polar Express on Christmas Eve with my father and brother
• The amazing friendships I have made with work colleagues at each of my jobs, and personal friends who are like family now
• Sea turtles (and my tatoos!)

Thank you for indulging my joy as I walked down memory lane for my 50th birthday!