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ON TURNING 35 (and EVOLVING THIS BLOG)

On Turning 35 on Belle Meets World blogYesterday I turned 35 years old. Do you ever have moments where you kind of go out of body for a moment and just think, holy cow, how did I get here? How am I turning 35? It’s crazy!

Last year I had a pretty massive identity crisis as I contemplated what it was like to turn 34 and really notice the aging process happening to my body. I was bummed. Magazines, the media, ads all make it seem like you are on your way to becoming invisible, wrinkled and irrelevant – unless you buy all the creams and inject yourself with all the wrinkle-relaxing toxins and for goodness sakes, don’t reveal your age now that you’re in a check box above ’25-34’. I bought into the panic for a while, and experimented with creams and botox and felt deeply conflicted about that (I’ll post about it soon). And then I got really pissed about society’s pressure on aging. And then I was resigned to it. Some people related to my woes. Others thought it was entirely ridiculous and don’t worry about their own aging process. To each her own.

On Turning 35 on Belle Meets World blog

But this year is different – I am owning 35. And it feels freakin’ fantastic! I woke up yesterday happy to be 35 and alive and another year older and ready to commit to a year of growth. I really enjoyed my low-key birthday – there were no blues, no wrinkle-inspections in the close-up mirror, no criticisms of my 30-something body.

Instead, I had the simple and freeing revelation that I am a grown-ass woman! All the pieces are here, and now it’s on me to make sure I learn how to fit them all together into one responsible, engaged, interesting human being and female.

Which means it’s time for me to evolve this blog to reflect the woman I’m learning to be. For a long time now this blog hasn’t been true to myself. I’ve only focused on style and beauty – both of which I LOVE beyond measure – but I haven’t let my real voice come through. I’ve been a follower, trying to do what all the other bloggers do in the hopes that maybe, just maybe I too would explode and find fame (eeek I’m embarrassed to say that out loud). And while I don’t claim to be some ground-breaking thought-leader on what it’s like to be a woman, I’ve got a lot more to say about it than how cute my outfit is. I’m a grown-ass 35 year old woman after all – and that is what my content is going to reflect.

The shift will be gradual, but more and more you’ll start to see me weave in new topics to the old. I’ll still feature style and beauty because I like it, but I’d also like to explore things like:

  • Book reviews
  • Financial literacy
  • Interviews with other interesting women
  • Women’s health topics
  • Basic fitness and food
  • Body image
  • Atlanta events and places
  • Life events like wedding planning
  • Hosting and planning for the holidays
  • Five Things on Friday – my weekly series on what I’m into that week
  • Any other ideas??? PLEASE SHARE!!

In other words, I’d like to create a space dedicated to one person’s perspective on what it means to be a grown-ass woman. To me that is someone who has passions and hobbies, engages in her city, seeks financial stability, reads books, celebrates other women, acknowledges the hurdles she faces, recognizes her milestones, takes care of her body, attempts to eat well and exercise, shares cool things she finds out in the world, works on her relationships, rocks her own style.

On Turning 35 on Belle Meets World blog

For those of you who have been with me from the beginning, thank you! If the evolution of the blog is not your bag, I understand – I just gotta go where I gotta go for my own sanity and strength of character. For those of you who are excited and on board and ready to engage on a deeper level, let’s go there. And if you’ve got ideas for me, please send them my way – either in the comments or to [email protected].

BRING IT ON 35!