Dear 30, 

Another 30 days of 30 have come and gone and it's August and it's humid again. I'm writing from our new couch, which is about 3/5 as green as I remember it being. (I'm happy about it) Way-back-when I wrote about the meaning of August. Inspiring Awe. This August has totally been that. Whether it was holding a sweet Paluch triplet, crossing the mighty Mississippi a few times or sharing beers with my favorite Wisconsiner, there was so much awesome around me in these past 30 days. 

As always, much was learned. So let's get to it. The lessons of these past 30 of 30- 90 days in.  

1. Soil matters. This should have been so obvious, but I was so flippin eager to put some tomatoes in this new backyard that I drizzled some soil on the dirt and called it a day. Well now my jalapenos have built a wall to the West and the tomato plants are five feet tall (this is not an exaggeration). I imagine the roots of the plants plunging into the nutrientless backyard Beaverdale soil, probing for water and food-like-things-plant-roots eat. Then as the roots go deeper, the plants grow taller trying to stretch their fuzzy stalks higher towards the rarely seen sun. We currently have three tomatoes, one the size of a third-grader's hand, one the size of a champagne cork and one the size of a marble. A real bounty.

2. Indoor plants hate me. Of the five I purchased back in June, two remain alive. The green in the house will stay on the rug and the couch. I will never run a greenhouse.

3. Selfies are so bizarre. I thought I could handle it. I mean, it's a photo of yourself (I LOVE THOSE) but getting the right pose in the right mirror with the right hashtag-- so much pressure. Instagram is made for photos of giant pretzels, hair blowing in the Des Moines skyline, a 37 year old man in a fur covered girl jacket, avocados stuffed with salsa made using Iowa sweet corn and jalapenos from the backyard or that unexpected moment where you are dressed EXACTLY like the alien statue at the Iowa State Fair, not photos taken of ourselves in Hawaiian gowns. Aloha. 

4. It is safe to eat an egg with a double yolk. I googled it to be sure. Especially during the week of a blue moon. Two yolks in one egg makes sense during blue moon week. 

5. Oriental Trading magazine exists in online form. You can personalize pencils. And you can buy all kinds of things in bulk. I basically want every paper party decoration they have. It feels eerily similar to my Jcrew factory addiction. I ordered blog branded pencils, obviously. 

6. I already knew this, but for as much as I love public speaking, it sure makes the temperature of my face match that of a balmy jungle. I crossed off #6 last night when I PKN-ed again. I'd love to say the highlight of the evening was my presentation all about list making and being me, but Josh, well Josh sang his 6 minutes and 40 seconds. Glad I decided not to do that.
(For the record I'm a terrific singer in the car by myself. So good.)

7. To transfer your 401k from one provider to another, I had to declare I was single in a formal document that had to be faxed with my signature. It's some law that sounds like Marissa. Thank you, Department of Labor, for making me announce I'm thirty and unwed. And for allowing me to use a fax machine for the first time in several years. 

90 days into 30. 26 list items left with 9 months to go in my new year. Better get to work. (To work sounds like twerk. Sort of)  Doing is better than planning. And twirling in a midi-skirt in a parking lot is better than managing a spreadsheet. 

xo-LP