31 and Back to Reality

Confession: Hi my name is Channing and in MY mind I am only 18.

You guys this past week I was forced to wake up to reality and it has not been pretty. You know, the reality that I am actually 31.

Let me set the scene for you….

I got home from work (the job I hold as an actual adult), greet my 3 children, get the mail, and start chatting with my babysitter (she’s 18). We started talking about things like graduation coming up, clothes, her boyfriend, you know, just general “girl talk.” I listened and nodded my head, thought about what a great girl she was, and then I chimed in responding with something like oh, I totally understand.

And do you know what happened next?

I got the look.

You know the look I am talking about ladies. I got the look that said um….you know you are like a super old lady right? *Gasp*

And then it hit me, I AM A SUPER OLD LADY! What happened? What happened to this girl? Where did she go?

I’ll tell you what happened, a whole heck of a LIFE happened and it FLEW by.

It flew by so fast that I sometimes forget how old I actually am. I look back on this tiny (I thought I was fat), vibrant, 18 year old girl (I thought I was grown) and wish I could just tell her these 6 things before she jumped into the real world.

6 Must Do’s for my REAL 18 Year Old Self

1. Put God first. No matter the circumstance, no matter your feelings, no matter what, put Him first. It WILL be worth it.

2. Be patient for love. Someone really awesome is out there for you and he is better than you could imagine. Btw he is also SUPER cute!

3. Don’t let fear hold you back.

4. Finish college. For goodness sake, finish college!

5. Travel. Go see the world!

6. Don’t try to grow up too fast. You have a lot ahead of you so slow down and enjoy each day.

In the craziness of life it is easy to forget all that has been accomplished and experienced in my last 13 years of life. I have been blessed with a life story that is full of ups and downs and many more ups. I have already lived a life full of hardships, joy, pain, excitement, surprise, beauty and so much more. It has been wonderful!

Hi my name is Channing and to my 18 year old self just wait….