I'm 30! How bonkers is that! Well, probably not for you, but it certainy is for me! 30!! I can't quite fathom the fact that I've been doing life for 30 years, it's all gone by so flipping quickly. I'm actually super excited to be in my thirties, to be on the third floor of life and I'm really, REALLY, happy with all that I've done and achieved so far. I thought it might be nice to do a little reflective style post of 30 things I'm proud of having done before I'm 30. Just a little bit of fun and something for me to look back on when I'm 40, 50 and so forth. Let's go.
1. Goldie Rae- my biggest, proudest and most magical of achievements, my beautiful, funny, adventurous, strong willed daughter Goldie
2. My Blog- this slice of internet will be turning 10 years old(!!!!) early next year which once again, has blown my tiny mind. How on earth has it been 10 years since I innocently started an "online diary" for university, documenting my internships in the fashion industry, naively thinking only I could read it... I'll be forever proud of myself for setting my blog up and for some how turning it into my career, ohhh what a ride it's been.
3. Our Home- I am so proud of the home George and I have created together, it truly is my dream home and I absolutely love each and every aspect of our space, even though there is still so much to be done. It's the kind of space that makes me grateful every single day, a place I look forward to getting back to and a place that feels like one big ole, cosy cuddle.
4. My Old House- In a similar vein to point 3, I am SO super proud that I was able to buy our last house myself. I never, ever thought I'd be able to do something like that and it was probably one of my most proud of moments when I got the keys to my first home that I did all by myself, and what a home it was eh!
5. Taking time to Read- This isn't always easy but it makes me feel so much more calm and relaxed when I find the time to read. I'm proud of myself for putting this time into my schedule and having a little moment for myself each day.
6. Loving my body at last- I am SO proud of the relationship I have with my body at long last. I grew up being SO self conscious about everything, whether that be my tummy, thighs, face, feet, honestly I had a really rubbish relationship with myself and the way I look. Fast forward a number of years and since becoming pregnant and watching my body grow to house my baby was truly one of the most incredible things I've ever seen. I absolutely LOVED being pregnant and have never loved myself more, it was a real turning point for me.
Naturally after giving birth my confidence took one almighty nose dive as I got to know this brand new body of mine. But once again, as I began to exercise again and documented how my body changed once more, it really gave me the love I never had for my body before. I realised that growing up, my distaste for my body was never about my body, it was about my mind, and once I realised that, I became completely in awe of what our bodies can do.
7. Playing Hockey For The North West of England
8. Saturday By Megan Ellaby- I've always dreamt of having my own fashion line and I am SO insanely proud that this is something I actually managed to do. It always felt so totally out of reach and I still have to pinch myself that this has become a reality. It is harder than anything I've ever done before but my goodness do I adore the bones of it. I'm excited for the future of Saturday.
9. Growing Stronger- both inside and out! Being in this industry has definitely taught me how to be strong on the inside. I'm still sensitive and soft as I will always be, it's just who I am. BUT I am a much stronger person than ever before. Maybe it's the industry, maybe it's just age, who knows, but I'm proud of the strong woman I am today.
10. Finding that work x life balance, it took me a while, but I got there!
11. Taking Time To be With My Baby- I'm really proud (and SO grateful) that I took some time out from my work to spend the first 3 precious months with my baby. I only wish I'd taken more. Being self employed doesn't leave much by way of maternity leave, but I am really proud of myself for stepping back from work to focus on my family. I'll take longer next time, should there be a next time, but I'll look back on those early months with such fondness, the most beautiful of my entire life.
12. Interning- When I look back over my career, I LOVE reminiscing over my interning days. The excitement, the buzz, the uncertainty, the stress, the adrenaline, it was all such a magic time and something I will never ever forget. I interned at House of Holland, ASOS, Alexander McQueen and JD Sports and truly had one of the most amazing and exciting years of my life. Living in hotels, in friends living rooms and working for free, it was a really crazy time and I loved every minute of it. I will always be so insanely proud of that year.
13. My First Job- With the above in mind, one of my proudest moments was when I was head hunted for a new role at ASOS, BEFORE I'd even graduated university. I'll never forget the moment that, that email arrived in my inbox asking me to interview for the role as Personal Stylist at ASOS HQ! It was a dream come true! And after the most intense interview process EVER (think X factor style- styling outfits on camera in front of an audience...YES 21 year old Megan did that WTH!) I some how managed to bag the gig, what a dream come true.
14. Uni- TOTAAALLY doing these in the wrong order but hey ho, I'm really proud that I went to university, and I spent 4 yers absolutely LOVING it and getting my degree. Some of the best years of my life were spent at the University of Huddersfield.
15. Being a Good Friend
16. Being a Good Mama & Wife
17. Travelling- I'm so glad I managed to travel as much as possible before having my daughter and I am SO grateful for the amazing places I've seen. I'm proud that the travelling hasn't stopped since Goldie Rae arrived and I really hope it will continue.
18. Getting a Camper Van- I'd dreamt of trips in a 70's VW Camper Van since I was a teenager and lucky for me so had George. What a dream come true to be able to turn this into a reality. It was such a fun process completely renovating our van, "Janis", and we've already had so many fun times with her, I'm extremely excited for more adventures.
19. Giving Oysters Another Go- Just before lockdown kicked off, myself, my husband and my mother-in-law got horrific food poisoning from a batch of oysters. It was honestly AWFUL and I thought I'd never be able to look at them ever again, let alone eat them. However, the temptation was too high and I found myself back to them. They're just too delicious to give up for life, amiright!?
20. Working With My Sister- What a dream come true that is, I am forever proud that I'm able to work alongside Faye every day.
21. Being Able To Say Sorry and admit when I'm wrong
22. Growing and nourishing a baby and now a toddler
23. Buying a Chanel Bag- This was a real biggie for me, having dreamt of going into store and walking out with the beautiful Chanel packaging on my arm, knowing there's a very special something inside. Being a huge fashion fan and student all my life, I'd dreamt of this moment for such a long time. In 2020 I was able to do this and I will forever be proud of this moment.
24. Starting a YouTube channel, but also shutting it down- I was proud of myself for starting a YouTube channel and for the "success" that it had for the few years that it was live. But what I was more proud of was shutting it down, for realising that it wasn't serving me in the correct ways, how it was affecting my mental health, changing me as a person and how it just wasn't right for me anymore. Stepping away from an income stream and a passion in favour of my mental health wasn't an easy thing to do but I'm so proud that I did it. It's made me a happier and more fulfilled person and putting my health first was the best thing I ever did.
25. Not freaking out when our wedding photographer got Covid two days before the big day- Yeah, REALLY! It's not something I've actually spoken about online but just two days before our wedding day, I got a phone call from our wedding photographer to say she'd caught the 'Rona. I was absolutley devastated, confused and a tad stressed but after going for a long walk (alone) I managed to keep my cool and somehow we managed to find an incredible photographer to take on our day. I am extremely impressed with how George and I dealt with this drama, we stayed relatively calm and pragmatic and managed to solve a rather massive problem. Go us!
26. Learning to drive- I finally learnt how to drive back in 2019 and I was so super proud of myself (still am) but then lockdown hit, I didn't drive for months and months and I lost ALL MY CONFIDENCE. I'm really not mad about driving, I have no confidence and I'm quite the nervous wreck when behind the wheel. One day I'll get there with it but for now, I'm taking the fact that I actually passed my test as a win!
27. Staying true to myself- Being on the internet for 10 years can take it's toll on a person, I guess it's like any job that you're in for that amount of time. You tend to go through stages of losing yourself or having imposter syndrome and doubting EVERYTHING you were once so certain on. I'm proud of myself for allowing myself to feel those things and then, when the time is right, pulling myself together and finding myself once more. Staying true to my core values, my likes, dislikes and personal style has always been something super important to me and I'm proud of the person I've become.
28. Forgiving George after serving apple crumble AND CUSTARD on a plate- yeah he did that
29. Winning awards for best blogger/fashion influencer with Cosmopolitan, Company & In Style magazine- That was so cool!
30. The life I've created- And to finish off on the cringiest note of all, I'm proud of the life I have. Of everything in it, I'm SO SO SO grateful, and that means you guys, I'm so grateful for all of you, for your love and support over the years and for everything in between, thank you!
x M
This was such a lovely read, I love these reflection posts! Happy belated 30th by the way!
Kathleen @ http://www.madeinthe1990s.com
I love this!!! All the feels
Wow 10 years that you have been blogging, well done. I find it difficult to keep coming up with new ideas to write about.