Take a break from your screen this weekend. 📲 ...

Midweek reminder to put your oxygen mask on first. 🗣 ...

Today, I turn 5️⃣0️⃣. FIFTY! Like, half a century. I’m not sure how that happened because in my head I’m still 29 (but with better boundaries and worse joints).

As I cross this milestone with a few more laugh lines, a couple of scars, and a stronger appreciation for stretchy pants, here are a few things I’ve learned:

🏃‍♀️ Chase joy like it’s your job.

Life is loud and hectic, and it will gladly eat up every minute if you let it. Make time for things that make you laugh and bring you joy. Those are the moments that matter.

✨ Prioritize your people.

Your job is important, but it’s not your identity. The people you love are the greatest predictor of your happiness, health, and even how long you stick around. Nurture those relationships like your life depends on it—because it kinda does.

💪 Get uncomfortable.

Comfort zones feel safe but they are cozy little traps. Stay there too long and you start to shrink instead of grow. Try stuff that scares you a little. Be bad at something new. Say yes before you feel ready. Awkward is the price of admission for awesome.

🧠 Your body is not a rental.

It’s the only one you get. After a tumor, back surgery, and a triple fusion neck surgery in the not too distant future, I’ve learned the hard way: do not take your health for granted. Move and be active while you can.

🔌 Don’t waste your energy sweating the small stuff.

Because the big stuff will hit the fan—and that’s when you’ll need your mental and emotional strength. The rest will work itself out (or at least give you a funny story to tell later).

Thanks for being in my life. I appreciate you.

Here’s to another 50 years of grit, grace, and mildly inappropriate humor. 🎉 ...

Be someone’s #MindfulMonday today.

Humans are social creatures with emotional needs for relationships and positive connection to others. ...