Dear Younger Self

You know those people that say (think high pitched annoying voice) "if I could go back and do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing! All of my mistakes made me the person I am today!" Really? You wouldn't have listened to your mom when she told you to stay away from Randy- cause he's trouble? Cause he was you know.... Would you really have registered for classic Winnie the Pooh bathroom towels and shower curtain? Just sayin- cause I totally would NEVER do that :) Would you have really bought a house in 2008 to have the market crash in '09? Let's be honest, there are some mistakes & hairstyles we wish we could take back and on that note:

Dear Younger Self,

-Don't waste another second worrying about if everyone likes you. You don't really love everyone, so don't be that surprised if you can't make everyone love you!

-Remember 11th grade Calculus when the teacher told you to invest $100 every month from the age 18-25 and you'd have a million dollars when you reached 55. Yeah, you should've done that!

-You should've taken the photography classes in college. You thought they were too much money but you would've loved it and you could've saved yourself some really lame Sears portraits when your girls were babies. (No offense Sears- your kid on a chair with a sunset background was totally cutting edge)

-You need to relax as a new mom. It really won't hurt to leave the house with your child in a ridiculous costume because it makes her feel pretty. It would've saved you an hour long debate and 4 packages of fruit snacks & a ring pop promise....

-Journal more. Take more video- my babies were so stinkin' cute! Did I even realize how stinkin' cute they were?! Probably not because of sleep deprivation. I haven't slept 8 hours straight since the day I got pregnant with my first....

-Go on vacations before you have children. Why oh why did we not do this? Oh, yeah right.... we said we couldn't afford it. Guess what? You really can't afford it once you have kids!

-Take care of yourself physically. Don't go all stretchy pants & hubby t-shirts after having kids. Have girls night outs and force yourself to dress up every day! You feel better and look better and get more done, if you dress up a little....

-That ridiculous green plaid couch set that you had custom made- well lets just say you'll hate it 2yrs later but will be stuck with it for the next 8 years!

-If I could do it all over again. I wouldn't waste any time on being upset by 90% of what upset me. I would love more. I would definitely vacation more. I'd laugh more too. I'd hug my children & hubby more. And I'd smile more.

Good thing I have time to do all of this a little longer. The last 30 (maybe a wee more) years has taught me that I need to choose happiness. And if buying an orchid makes me happy, then do it. If planning getaways with my husband brings us closer together, do it. And do it more often. Surprise your kids with mini-dates. Write more love notes. And most important. Above everything else. Don't get started on Pinterest, you'll never want to get off!