Turning 30 is a big milestone. Leaving your 20s behind feels very different than leaving behind your teens. Both are huge milestones in life, but I have to say that when I entered my 20s, I felt like I had been there for some time. But now that I am entering my 30s and celebrating my 30th birthday, it just feels like it’s time to REALLY adult. After 25, I was someone who didn’t really throw birthday parties for myself. My celebrations were mostly dinners with the family and gatherings at home with some drinks and games.
This year, I felt like I needed to celebrate. I have been throwing extravagant birthday parties for my son and now it’s time for me to throw something extravagant for myself. As I began planning for how I was going to celebrate there were many ideas that ran through my mind, and I realized that there are quite a few ways to celebrate turning 30 than one may think. In the end, you want the celebration to be something that you’ll enjoy and something that you won’t regret doing after because you let others sway your plans.
This birthday is also different for me because, compared to previous years, I had friends and family asking me what I wanted for my birthday. As many know, as you get into adulthood, that question doesn’t get asked as much and, honestly, it’s a difficult one to answer. Most of the things that we want in our thirties are things that we need and aren’t things that you would ask someone for.
With that in mind, I wanted to share how I am celebrating turning thirty along with some ideas other ideas that didn’t quite make the cut but are great ideas. And, along with that, I am going to share some gift ideas of things that someone turning 30 might ask for, or if you are the gift giver, gifts that you can give.
Ideas FOR CELEBRATING TURNING 30
For my 30th birthday, I decided to take a trip to Las Vegas with some close friends and family and check the city off my travel bucketlist. I’ve always wanted to go to Vegas, but each time that I thought about going it just didn’t feel like the right time. But as I began planning for my birthday, it just felt right. I reached out to those who I wanted to join me on this experience and booked a place to stay. As it got closer to the date, we put together a plan of where we would eat, go out to, and what experiences we wanted to have and off we went to celebrate my major milestone. Now, if Vegas is a place that you want to visit, I say go for it, but if it’s not really on your list, here are some other ideas of how to celebrate turning 30:
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HAVE A BIRTHDAY PHOTOSHOOT
Photoshoots to celebrate milestones are a big thing these days, and they are very easy to put together. Before reaching out to a photographer or booking a studio, the first thing I would say to do it make a plan. When planning out your birthday shoot, orchestrate the shoot around showing the world who you are. Consider colors, vibe, and the overall look you want to show off. You can rent yourself a gown and have an indoor or outdoor photoshoot with a local photographer whose style matches the aesthetic you’re going for. Then once you have that photoshoot, share your photos on social or print them and hang them in a space that is personal to you. -
TAKE A TRIP
Whether you want to do a group trip or a solo trip, celebrate turning 30 by knocking a location off your bucket list. There is never any time like the present and this milestone birthday is one that you can round up some funds and treat yourself to a trip. Many of the places on your bucket list are a lot more affordable to travel to than a lot of people may think. Just do your research and make a plan at least six months prior and off you go. -
HAVE A SOLO STAYCATION
Sometimes a birthday is a day that you just want to relax and spend time by yourself. So plan a mini staycation in your local city at a luxury resort and treat yourself to all the amenities. Arrange a full spa package and relax in your room as you indulge in room service or one of the restaurants in the area. -
GO ON A CRUISE
This is a way to celebrate the also connects with taking a trip, but taking a cruise is a great way to celebrate. You can invite others to come along with you and enjoy a cruise that sails to a specific destination, multiple destinations, or is a cruise that you just enjoy the entire time on the boat. In my opinion, a cruise like Celebrity Cruise where you can stop at multiple destinations is the way to go so that you can see multiple places for a cheaper price than flying around to all of them.
Gifts FOR A 30TH BIRTHDAY
Gift giving is always difficult no matter the age. When you give gifts to children, you often find yourself picking out toys and thinking “Will this child actually play with it?” And as you start trying to pick out gifts for adults, either the person is looking for a pricier need or they don’t really ask for anything at all. So if you’re thinking about something to ask for as you are turning thirty or if you’re someone looking to give a gift to someone turning 30, I’ve rounded up a collection of great gifts to give.
Birthday Gifts Shop
Reflecting ON TURNING 30
As I look back at my 20s, I realized that in this past decade I’ve achieved a lot and many things have changed. I went from being in college, studying to become a teacher to a married mom with a master’s who isn’t teaching but running her own successful business and working a second full time job in the tech world. If anyone would have asked me in my early 20s if I would imagine myself being where I am, I probably would have said no. In my early 20s, I thought I had it all planned out and I knew where I was going to be. I never thought that my side hustle would turn into a business generating me six-figures a year. I never would have thought I wouldn’t be teaching. And I never thought that I would have self-published a book and traveled to 15+ destinations within six years after graduating from graduate school.
It’s been quite a whirlwind of a decade and I can’t sit here and say that I know where my life is going because I don’t want to limit myself to the things that I can do. If I have learned anything from this past decade is that the world is changing each and every day, but that I can handle it and if I set my mind to a specific goal, there is nothing that I can’t overcome to get to where I want to be. So I want to end with saying – Here’s to 30! A decade that I know will bring challenges but will also bring lots of triumphs.
