• LTK SHOP
  • AMAZON SHOP
  • DISCOUNT CODES
  • INFERTILITY
    • INFERTILITY COACHING
    • BEGINNING OF OUR INFERTILITY JOURNEY
    • 3RD ROUND OF IVF – TWINS
    • TWIN’S IVF CYCLE THAT WORKED – WHAT WAS DIFFERENT
    • TWIN PREGNANCY
    • TWIN BIRTH STORY
    • SINGELTON FROZEN EMBRYO TRANSFER
  • CONTACT
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube

A Slice of Style

  • blog posts
    • Fashion
    • Amazon
    • Walmart Favorites
    • Skincare
    • Home Decor
    • Family
    • To My Beautiful Child
    • Food
      • Appetizers
    • Travel

31 Lessons in 31 Years

Etc

19 Mar

Top | Similar skirt | Shoes

It’s my 31st birthday today!! I get really excited for my birthday every year. I have never been the person who shies away from people knowing it’s her birthday. I’m the one that reminds you a week before you don’t forget to say, “happy birthday!” when you see me. I think it’s fun! Life is hard, so birthdays are a fun way to forget it all for a day and just celebrate that you have breathed and learned and grown for a whole year. 365 days of miracles!


31 Things I’ve Learned in 31 Years


  1. Life is hard about 95% of the time. It sucks. It’s not fun. It’s heartbreaking. This is NORMAL. Everyone feels this way a lot of the time. The trick is to start each day with gratitude for the good parts of life and remind yourself of those things over and over and over again throughout the day.
  2. Relationships are life’s #1 gift. Put your family first.
  3. You can learn SO much from kids. Be in the MOMENT. Be PRESENT! When you get excited, scream with delight! Smile and laugh! Don’t care about who’s watching.
  4. You’re never going to feel like you have completed your to-do list. It’s never ending. Enjoy each day despite it not getting done. You’ll remember the small joys you had in life rather than the to-do list you checked off.
  5. I’ve heard people say that nothing tastes as good as skinny feels, which is completely untrue, because they have obviously never tasted the chocolate chip cookies from The Chocolate.
  6. No one else can give you self-esteem and self-worth except for the knowledge that you have that you are a daughter or son of God. That makes you good enough, worthy enough, and capable of doing great, big, powerful things in this world for good.
  7. If you think of your spouse before yourself, and they do the same, you’ll both be happy. Tyler and I make sure that we let the other do things that bring them joy. He loves snowmobiling, so when he goes, I don’t nag him about when he’s going to be home. He knows I love going to dinner with my girlfriends every now and then, so he encourages me to “stay out until midnight and don’t worry about a thing!” I don’t ever stay out that late (mama needs her sleep), but my mind is at peace knowing that he has my best interests at heart.
  8. Winter sucks. There are things that make it better, like skiing, but it mostly just sucks.
  9. Being pregnant is horribly, terribly hard even if you are so incredibly grateful for it and have gone through years of infertility to get there. It’s hard, but most things that are worthwhile are.
  10. Sunshine on your face is one of the best things in the whole wide world.
  11. No one can really take care of you but you…because you are you.No one can read your mind. If you need to go to the gym to feed your body and soul every day, communicate to the people that will help you make it happen. You are the boss of you, and that includes self care.
  12. God made your body, and when you constantly talk negatively about it, it’s an insult to Him. He made you perfect. Period.
  13. Cell phones can suck the life out of you and it’s your job to plug it in and step away every now and then.
  14. Mistakes and successes are really just the same thing. They are experiences that you can learn from.
  15. Take time each day to feed your soul. I listened to this talk yesterday and it uplifted me and gave me peace.
  16. Warm showers and warm baths are one of the best things in life.
  17. And so is candy. I don’t discriminate. I pretty much like it all.
  18. Oh, and so when your husband does the dishes and cleans the house while you write 31 things you have learned in life in 31 years. That’s what’s happening now. I’ll do pretty much anything to not have to clean my house, and my birthday is probably one of the best excuses I have. You need to milk it, people. You only get one birthday each year. Capitalize.
  19. Don’t get desperate and drink a sugar free Red Bull at 11 am on Wednesday because you’re so sick of being exhausted all of the time. You might not be able to sleep that night…
  20. Small acts of kindness can literally change the world. A smile, a nice compliment from a stranger, an invite.
  21. Get 8 hours of sleep each night. Somehow the sun shines brighter and the birds chirp on days when you are well rested.
  22. Read good books.
  23. Remember that you are in control of your life. You are powerful. Always. Remind yourself daily. Ask yourself “why NOT me?” Someone has to do that amazing thing that you have wanted to do. Why couldn’t it be you?
  24. Even though it sucks so bad and makes you want to die a little because you are so exhausted that you just want to collapse, clean up your house before you go to bed because waking up to a clean house in the morning will give you LIFE. Obviously have your spouse help you. Ain’t nobody doing that alone.
  25. Exercise and push your body, even if you don’t feel like it. You’ll always feel better when you are done with your workout than you did before you started. Endorphins are real.
  26. Your babies will grow so, so fast. There will be really hard days, and more easy ones. Remind yourself in the hard days that that they will go so quickly. Try to memorize how it feels to hold their little bodies against yours.
  27. You don’t need a hundred friends, you just need one really good one.
  28. Stop beating yourself up over not being perfect, making stupid mistakes, and not measuring up. You’re doing great. Forgive yourself and move forward because sinking low doesn’t help you or anyone else around you. Keep trying and talk positively to yourself.
  29. Forgive others. You are not perfect, and neither is anyone else. Most people are just trying their best and they make mistakes.
  30. You’re never too old to try something new or pick up a new hobby that you have always wanted to try. The only limitations you have are those that you put on yourself.
  31. God is real, God is invested in your life, and God answer prayers. I know this for certain.

You can read my blog post on 30 Things I Learned in 30 Years here. I haven’t read it in a year since I wrote it so it will be interesting to see if anything is the same!


I love you all and really appreciate connecting with you in this space. Thank for being here and thank you for your positive influence in this world! xo Jenica

Related Posts

  • Prettiest Shoes for New Years Eve

    Red dress: ASOS, similar…

  • Dillards New Years Sale Top Picks!

    !function(d,s,id){var e, p =…

  • 30 Things I've Learned in 30 Years

    Scary! I was on…

15 Comments

Previous Post: « Spring Dresses
Next Post: 3 Favorite Parts of Daily Routine »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Abigail says

    March 19, 2018 at 1:29 pm

    Happy Birthday!!! It is always so fun to watch your InstaStories!!! Hope you have the best day ever!!

    Reply
    • Jenica Parcell says

      March 20, 2018 at 5:45 pm

      Aw thank you so much!! You are so sweet!! 🙂

      Reply
  2. Kathleen Harper says

    March 19, 2018 at 1:30 pm

    Happy Birthday! Hope you have a great fun day,and week, and year!???????? I love your blog and IG! I tell all my friends to follow you! Thanks for sharing your fun positive outlook ! You’re an inspiration!

    Reply
    • Jenica Parcell says

      March 20, 2018 at 5:45 pm

      What a sweet comment!! Thank you so much!! Your comment made my day. It means a lot!

      Reply
  3. Alison says

    March 19, 2018 at 2:22 pm

    Happy Birthday, Jenica! Love your positive sunny attitude on life. Thanks for being so much fun to follow on Instagram!

    Reply
    • Jenica Parcell says

      March 20, 2018 at 5:44 pm

      Thank you for your kindness!! I really appreciate it!

      Reply
  4. Lily says

    March 19, 2018 at 3:00 pm

    I love this! You are so sweet and your blog is wonderful. Thank you for being you! Xxoo and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

    Reply
    • Jenica Parcell says

      March 20, 2018 at 5:44 pm

      You are so kind, Lily! Thank you so much!

      Reply
  5. Bianca Roman says

    March 19, 2018 at 3:02 pm

    YES YES YES to numbers 5,6 and 12! I’m single but number 7 makes absolute sense. And so does number 12. I’ve never looked at it that way.

    Happiest of birthdays to you. I hope you’ve had a wonderful day!

    Reply
    • Jenica Parcell says

      March 20, 2018 at 5:44 pm

      Thank you so much! You are so sweet. It was a great day!

      Reply
  6. pam myers says

    March 19, 2018 at 5:47 pm

    you are very wise for being only 31…happy birthday sweet girl..

    Reply
    • Jenica Parcell says

      March 20, 2018 at 5:43 pm

      You are so sweet. Thank you so much!

      Reply
  7. Brittany says

    March 19, 2018 at 9:27 pm

    Agree with it all! great post! Happy Birthday!!

    Reply
    • Jenica Parcell says

      March 20, 2018 at 5:43 pm

      Thank you so much!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Let’s Connect

  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube

MEET JENICA

I SAVE YOU LOTS OF TIME AND MONEY sharing high quality AND affordable fashion and lifestyle tips since 2014 so you can get back to what you love doing! Mama to IVF twins and IVF baby boy. Infertility coach and podcaster at Fearless Infertility. So glad you're here!

A Slice of Style Newsletter

Save more time + lots of money with the best finds sent to your inbox!

Shop My Instagram Pictures!

“You’re right on time.” Warner stayed home “You’re right on time.”

Warner stayed home sick from church today and Tyler and I swapped after the first hour so we could each attend half. I took the older 2 kids to sacrament meeting, but we were running about 10 minutes late - it was rainy and we had some umbrella malfunctions, they were trying to check the mail for their sticker book that should have arrived and kept dropping the mail into the puddles 🤣…we just weren’t as prompt today like we normally like to be.

I was a little flustered because I didn’t want to miss the prayer and passing of the bread and water for the sacrament. We bustled in the doors just as they were about to close. The older gentleman that held the door whispered to me, with a knowing smile as we walked through, “You’re right on time.”

What a beautiful thing to say someone. He could tell I wanted to be there, settled in my seat, as the meeting started. His reassuring words that it was all okay made me think of my Heavenly Father telling me the same thing.

“I see you’re trying. I know your heart. You’re learning what you need to learn. You’re right on time.” 🥹

He sees you, too.

Ps these precious matching dresses and ties are from @ivycityco and we love them! I love matching with my family. They also have shirts in this print! Comment LINK and I’ll DM you my 15% off discount code 🤍

#parcellsundayselfie 12/3/23 #sundaybest #familytime #familymatching #familymatchingoutfits
Comment LINK and I’ll DM you the link to these P Comment LINK and I’ll DM you the link to these PJ’s and my fav popcorn maker (that’s so easy to clean 🙌🏻😅)

One of my favorite new traditions is to have my kids unwrap Christmas pajamas, pop popcorn and cuddle up to watch a Christmas movie together! I just realized my kids have never seen ELF and we are SO EXCITED to watch that together!

What are you favorite family traditions? Share below so we can all get ideas.

These are priceless, precious moments. Matching pajamas with @sparkleinpink! #ad Follow my shop @jenicaparcell on the @shop.LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content!
https://liketk.it/4ptA3 #sparkleinpink

#traditionalchristmas #christmasevetraditions #familychristmastraditions #christmastraditions🎄🎅 #christmastraditionsinthemaking #christmastraditionsarethebest #christmastraditions🎄❤️ #christmastraditionscontinue #christmastraditions #ilovechristmas #christmasevebox #christmasshop #christmasideas #christmastraditions🎄 #christmasornaments #celebrate #christmasgifts #christmasshopping #handmadechristmas
Comment LINK below and I’ll DM you the affordabl Comment LINK below and I’ll DM you the affordable pieces I’ve been wearing over and over again this season!

The key to getting dressed every day is wearing the same pieces again and again so it’s SIMPLE! AND you can look incredible while doing it in a VERY affordable way.

I’m here to help the budget conscious get the luxury lifestyle. 🙌🏻

#affordablefashion #budgetfriendly #budgetplanner #budgeting #budgetingtips #budgetdecor #budgetplanning
Comment LINK to get a shoppable link for all of my Comment LINK to get a shoppable link for all of my favorite wrapping essentials on Amazon sent right to your DM’s!

When wrapping for Christmas, each person gets a different colored ribbon!

SIMPLIFY gift giving for Christmas, birthdays, baby showers and everything in between with this simple system! Brown paper bags, brown wrapping paper and charming ribbon depending on the occasion.

I always keep these stocked and it saves SO much money and time!!

#affordablelifestyle #affordable #shopwithme #greatprices #affordablestyle #wrappingpapereverywhere #paperwrapping #wrappingpaperdesign #brownpaperwrapping #wrappingpaperideas #giftwrappingpaper #christmaswrappingpaper #wrappingpaper #birthdaycards #greetingcards #thankyoucard #greetingcard #thankyoucards #papergoods
You do NOT need to buy Christmas decor every year You do NOT need to buy Christmas decor every year because trends change and your personal preference and style evolves. Here’s how I use the same decor over and over again:

- Buy NEUTRAL colored decor! You can mix in small items that have color if you want to decorate with color one year (maybe you’re loving red this year?!) but always keeps the base the same. You’ll use these year after year!
- Ribbon goes a long way! If you have neutral colored wreaths, you can add a bright pop of a color you love.

Comment LINK below and I’ll DM you my neutral Christmas decor recommendations!

I use this same strategy when buying anything for my house. When all of the colors feel cohesive, your world seems more orderly and your brain has less to process.

#affordabletips #savemoneytips #christmasdecor #tipstosave #budgetfriendly #budgettips
Comment LINK to get a shoppable link sent directly Comment LINK to get a shoppable link sent directly to your DMs!

These flameless candles are the COZIEST addition to your home! Winter is the season to feel peace and comfort and adding in these candles throughout your home is such an affordable way to elevate the ambience.

My whole family (including my husband which is shocking, honestly! 😂) are loving these and commenting on how much they love them!

Creating a classy and high quality home and personal style can be affordable when you know how and I’m here to show you! 👊🏼

#affordablechristmas #affordablechristmasgifts #affordablechristmasgift #affordablechristmasdecor #affordablechristmaspresent #affordablechristmaspresents #affordablechristmastree #affordablechristmasornaments #christmasmantle #christmasdecors #traditionalchristmas #christmasdecor #christmascollection #christmasdecoration #christmasdecorations🎄 #christmasdecorideas #christmastreedecor
Life is short but your impact is BIG! The question Life is short but your impact is BIG! The questions I’m asking myself today as I prepare for a new week are:

- Where am I wasting my time on negative energy?

- What habits are getting in the way of what I want to create?

- How can I have future Jenica’s back to set her up for success?

We are powerful beyond our wildest dreams and I hope you take back the control you may have been giving away. Here’s to another week that we get to create! 🙌🏻 #parcellsundayselfie 11/26/23 #sundayvibes #sundaybest #familytime
Comment link and I’ll DM you the links to these Comment link and I’ll DM you the links to these outfits!

Super affordable ALWAYS (my mom commented last night how they are all so soft and high quality!) and right the Black Friday deals are amazing! Code BF25 gets you 25% or you can choose from premium bonuses! @sparkleinpink #ad 
I’m also giving away 3 $50 gift cards to shop Sparkle in Pink! Simply comment below and share any of my Reels to your IG story to enter! I’ll choose a winner tomorrow! #blackfridaydeals #sparkleinpink

Follow my shop @jenicaparcell on the @shop.LTK app to shop this post and get my exclusive app-only content!
https://liketk.it/4oNoC #liketkit
Comment LINK to get a shoppable link with sizing i Comment LINK to get a shoppable link with sizing info sent directly to your DMs!

This set comes in 7 colors and is so cute and comfy! I even like feeling pulled together at home when not many people see me because it’s about ME and how I FEEL! My opinion matters the most!

You can look and feel INCREDIBLE and it can ALSO be affordable!

#velourset #joggersets #sweatsuits #matchingset #twopieceset #joggerstyle #affordablefashionstore #affordablefashionblogger #affordablefashion #affordablejewelry #affordable #affordableaccessories #blackfridayspecial #cybermondaysale #earlyblackfriday #preblackfriday #blackfridayshopping

Copyright © 2023 · Refined theme by Restored 316

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings.

A Slice of Style
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.