I was promised 30, flirty and thriving

In 2004, when I was 9 years old, Jennifer Garner promised me “30, flirty and thriving” in the movie “13 Going on 30.”

Now that I’m turning 30 in a few days while in the third trimester of pregnancy, I can tell you all I feel is 30, weary and surviving. I know most of this has more to do with the pregnancy than the age, but I wasn’t feeling like a spring chicken before pregnancy either!

I know people older than me will tell me I’m in the prime of my life, and maybe I am, but dang does it not feel like it some days. Covering sports makes the change even more obvious. “I used to be able to do that,” I say as I’m wheezing trying to get cross country pictures.

My husband and I have been trying to plan something to do for my 30th birthday, but the options are limited. There are some nice indoor waterparks (some parts of me will never grow up), but I can’t use the slides or go in the hot tub.

He came up with the idea of taking me to the Omaha Zoo — we still haven’t been there. But that zoo sits on 160 acres of land and requires extensive walking. At my current state, the only way I’d be getting around is if he pushed me in a wheelchair.

I thought a couples massage sounded fun, but I can’t get a regular massage. I’d need to get a prenatal massage, but he can’t get a prenatal massage. Is there a place that offers a prenatal massage for the woman and a couples massage for the man? I have no idea.

I wondered if we could maybe go to an Iowa Cubs game or an Iowa Wild game. We like sports and that would be mostly sitting. Naturally the Cubs are out of town all of next week and apparently the Wild’s season ends three days before my birthday.

Even walking around a bookstore is getting to be too much for me. As much as I’d love to have some kind of 30th birthday/last hoorah before the baby, it’s just not as simple as I thought.

Growing up, I always wanted four kids. In my mind, I’d be done having them by the time I was 30 — obviously. Now I see people my age with three kids and I’m shocked they managed it this young.

There’s certainly an allure with turning a certain age. At that age, I’ll be an adult. That age is really different. Somedays I feel worlds older and more mature than I was at 18 or 22. Other days I feel like I’m still trying to find the adult in the room to tell us what to do.

I’m at this weird point in life where I feel like I can’t make plans for the future because I just don’t know what it will look like. I think to myself, once I have the baby, I can get back in shape and I’ll be able to move around freely again. But I don’t know what being parents will look like for us. It’s not a universal experience.

I was a colicky baby so bad my single dad didn’t sleep for nearly six months. Between working a full-time job and dealing with me, there wasn’t time for anything else.

Some people have a great experience becoming new parents. I’d like to think we set ourselves up for success. We have a spot reserved at Greater Connections and I’m not going to be doing it on my own.

As a Type A person, it’s hard to not know. As someone who’s been wanting a family for as long as I can remember, it’s a magical time to imagine what our future will look like. I may not be 30, flirty and thriving, but I am still grateful for the life I have.