How things change in 10 years

As I near my 33rd birthday and the 10 year anniversary of my move to DC, I have lately been reflecting on how much my life and priorities have changed in the last decade.   Here are some examples:

Age 23: Meetings & conference calls
Age 33: Playdates & school committee meetings

Age 23: Thongs and Wonderbras
Age 33: Spanx and nursing bras

Age 23: Taxis, Metro
Age 33: Mini-van

Age 23: Friends and Felicity watched religiously at air time with roommates
Age 33: House and Lost watched whenever via DVR with husband

Age 23: Babysitting the boss's children on weekends for extra cash
Age 33: Paying weekend babysitters more than I made hourly at first post-college job

Age 23: Girlfriends and I analyze pseudo-boyfriends and hookups
Age 33: Girlfriends and I analyze husbands and fiances

Age 23: "Breast exams" performed on Saturday nights with Dave Matthews Band playing in background
Age 33: I voluntarily begin annual mammograms

Age 23: Hole, Smashing Pumpkins CDs in stereo
Age 33: The Lauri Berkner Band and Lazy Town soundtrack on iPod

Age 23: Gwen singing in No Doubt about being dumped by Tony   
Age 33: Gwen singing solo about babies in her tummy

Age 23: Sharing a bathroom with four other women
Age 33: Sharing a bathroom with one man, two children and 1,000 brightly-colored bath toys

Age 23: Happy hour twice a week at hottest spots in town
Age 33: Moms night out twice a year at chain restaurant or jewelry/purse/cooking tool party

Age 23: Vacation getaway - beach & drinkfest
Age 33: Vacation getaway - friends' weddings, visits to see grandparents

Age 23: High heels for every event besides exercise
Age 33: Tennis shoes or ballet flats for anything before 8pm

Age 23: Used men's Levis bought at thrift store for $15
Age 33: Strategically cut women's jeans that cost more than a small car

Age 23: Only food in apartment is protein powder, vodka & peanut butter
Age 33: Fridge and pantry stocked with entire inventory of Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Safeway

Age 23: Parties with kegs
Age 33: Parties with moonbounces

Age 23: Ducking behind posts in bars to avoid old flames
Age 33: Dodging around grocery aisles to avoid "Debbie Downer" mothers

Age 23: Read What Men Want and The Rules with equal parts scorn and interest
Age 33: Hear all the WMW guys are married daddies and The Rules women are divorced

Age 23: The Diary of Bridget Jones
Age 33: Diary of a Wombat

Age 23: Horrible vice - Malboro Lights
Age 33: Horrible vice - letting the kids watch TV

Age 23: I use pay phones to call cabs and boys
Age 33: I am on my 100th mobile phone & 200th charger

Age 23: I use e-mail to send jokes to friends I see every day
Age 33: I use e-mail and instant messenger to communicate with all family and friends, perform everyday functions

Age 23: My office finally ditches MS-DOS and installs Windows
Age 33: I use all free Google software to publish a website from home

Age 23: Love = a care package from mom, a free beer from a boy, purrs from my cat
Age 33: Love = a life shared with my husband and kids

And how about you, fair reader, much happen in your life in the last 10 years?

Original DC Metro Moms Blog post

Jessica can also be found firmly rooted in 2008 at A Parent in Silver Spring