If I Were 25 Again….

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My first child was born just a few weeks after I turned 25. He is quickly approaching 14. I now have to reach UP to hug him. He has the beginnings of a moustache. And when I’m in another room and hear his voice, I think it’s my husband or my brother talking.

Yes, the  time goes quickly.

I was thinking the other day about what I would do differently if I could turn back the clock and be a first time mom again — and 25 and skinny….

If I were 25 again,

1. I’d moisturize my skin more often. Wrinkles come faster than you think they will.

2. I’d find a sport or exercise that I liked and get in the habit of doing it before gravity started working against me.

3. I’d laugh more and not take myself too seriously.

4. I’d stand more firmly in my convictions.

5. I’d make my kids (and my husband) eat more vegetables. But, I would not try to sneak in tofu and then live to regret it.

6. I’d value sleep and not take “fat mornings” for granted.

7. I’d never buy cheap coffee. Ever.

8. I’d grow thicker skin.

9. I’d never touch a credit card.

10. I’d laugh at the days to come.

There’s no time like the present.

While I can’t turn back the clock, I can still do a lot of these things now. Better late than never.

And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that iall things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

2 Corinthians 9:8

What can YOU do today that you might have missed out on before?

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20 Comments

  1. At 25 I had not yet become a mother. I was still, I thought, living life to the fullest, doing exactly what I wanted to, when I wanted to. When my first child came along at age 31, my life did in fact change forever. Much better. If I could go back to 25 I would be more aware of the effects of my actions, and I would plan more and better for my future. The best part of my life did not begin until I was over 30… so there is still hope for all you “babies”! Great article that I will definitely share with my younger friends.

    1. It’s funny. I wrote that almost a year ago. And I’ve since started to put plans into action for most of these things, esp 1 and 2.

  2. Love your post! I actually had 4 kids by the time I was 25 lol! and now they are 21, 20, 19, and 17 and the youngest is 12. Now there dad couldnt grow a mustache till he was in his 30’s, so I was shocked when my boys started sprouting ones in their teens. I kept saying your face is dirty, go wash your face, and here it wasn’t dirt it was a little stash going on! And they all are taller then me. I wish I could go back and have them all little some days, they grow up way way to fast! But I am sooooooo lucky because they all talk to me. A half hour in the car alone with one of them, you can find out alot of information, lol! Sometimes, more then you want to know. Love your blog! Jen

  3. When I was 25 my first born child entered kindergarten. Generally speaking, this was a terrific year for me as I landed my first full-time teaching position and settled into our current community. However, I miss that little girl, now 14 herself. I didn’t have any other children until she was nearly 8 so I did savor each moment, but perhaps I could have taken life less seriously and played more! Even with the Barbies which I did not enjoy but she did 🙂 I would have focused less on each milestone and just enjoyed her. I would have also enjoyed the silence because as much joy as my 2 little boys bring me they also create quite a lot of NOISE!

  4. Well, my oldest child, a son, will turn 24 in December. I already had 2 boys at 25, and would still give birth 8 more times and say goodbye to one more, lost at 10 wks. gestation.
    I am definitely taking the time to savor my 6 and 4 yr olds. I spend more time holding them in my lap, more time carrying them, just trying to soak up all the goodness I can! I know how fast it goes by!
    God is so faithful to care for our every need. I have always been a SAHM, and have been homeschooling for nearly 16 yrs now.
    If I could go back, I would be a LOT more kind to my husband, and a LOT less critical of everybody. I have wounded my loved ones with my tongue far too often, and I deeply regret that.
    I also would spend a lot more time reading the Bible and in prayer. It’s much harder now with so many folks to care for. But, I wouldn’t trade my babies for anything.
    Neat post, Jessica! Thanks for the chance to think this through!!

  5. I’m only 29(30 in sept), but my adult life began earlier than most. I got married at 19 to my high school sweetheart, bought a house, car and racked up thousands in credit card debt. At 25, I had a 2yo and was working full-time and going to school. I was spending little time with my dd and quickly becoming burned out.

    Now I am a sahm with dd7 and dd2 next month. I’m realizing how much I missed with my oldest daughter and wish I could get that back. She is now a mini-teen(smaller size, full-size attitude) and wants to spend little time with mom and dad.

    In 10 years of marriage, dh and I have had cancer scares, possible infertility issues, medical issues, sick children, financial strain and job losses. Through it all, we were scared but God carried, and is still carrying, us in His hands.

  6. Thanks for this-I’m 23, baby boy no. 3 on the way and lately feeling behind in life (that may sound crazy, but the Christian/wife/mommy I want to be is so far away!) I keep trying to remind myself I won’t get ‘there’ all at once, and my children will survive my (many)mistakes. 🙂

    1. @Sarah Jean, haha, I just realized that some may wonder how that applies to this post-I guess you never know how encouragement may occur 😉

  7. When I was 25,I had gotten engaged but it would take him 4 more years to get me to the altar.I had big dreams of traveling and a really nice savings account.Then I busted my knee that year and had two surgery’s and many months out of work.That was not a year I would like to repeat.The year after was much better.

  8. WOW – it’s like you looked into my heart and put my feelings into words. 🙂

  9. How much do I LOVE this post!

    When I was 25 I was still in the “never going to get married, never going to have kids” phase of my life … and I’d love to go back to that girl and just giggle at her for not knowing all the wonderful ways her life would change in just a few years 🙂

    I’d love to tell myself to learn to let go and relax … something I wish I’d learned before having kids. I think it would have made my life much happier to stop thinking that I could somehow be in charge all the time (or that I had to be). Many wonderful things come from realizing that the ultimate plans aren’t my own and that usually what I had planned isn’t nearly as wonderful as the way life really turns out!

    Best Wishes!

  10. Wonderful post! I turned 25 three weeks after my first daughter was born. I can relate to so many of the things you listed. Mainly, I can identify with how much your body changes after the baby is born. You somehow expect that things will just return to the way they were before the baby was born but that is not the case.

    Also, like some of the other moms said I wish I would of taken more time to just sit and enjoy my daughter rather than rushing from one play group to another. Time goes by too quickly – enjoy the good moments are even the bad – its all a learning experience right !

  11. Love your list. Soooo though provoking! I became an empty nester this year and have also been thinking along these lines.

    I might add for me: Drink in the little things and not rush through life. As my daughter was growing up, I always seemed to be so doggoned busy!

    Also, I would NEVER touch a diet coke (or anything else artificially sweetened or flavored again!).

  12. Wow! I can relate! not quite 25 when i had my son Jess- who is now 17 going on 18 this summer- Its scary how fast time flies now,isint it? I love your list and it got me thinking too! thank you!! Im gonna work on my own list 🙂

  13. Thanks for this post. I’m only 28 myself, but I’m realizing how quickly times flies by… and it’s good to be reminded of these things – the big ones and the little ones. (I never would have thought of moisturizer or coffee!) I’m learning to not take my little girl for granted and to savor our time together – she’s 10 months old, going on 15 years…

  14. I was chuckling when I saw the beginning of this article. I turned 25 just 2 months before my oldest was born. I had a girl, but I also have a boy that will turn 14 this month. More mustache (only visible when milk is stuck to it!), he’s starting to inch past me in height, and I just said to my oldest daughter that I’m starting to hear my son’s voice from another room and think it is daddy, instead of his sister! lol…so I very much felt on the same page. But even though we aren’t 25 anymore, nothing says we can’t start some of those things today, so thank you for the ‘food for thought’. 🙂

  15. Hmmm, that gets me thinking. When I was 25, I was pregnant with my first child, also a boy that is now 15 and yes, I have to look up to as well. I was already eating well, but when I started working, even though I cooked, I did take some things for granted and bought some industrial stuff. So, I’d get more serious about ecology. Other than that, there isn’t much I’d change. What I think a lot about nowadays is what I want to do for the next 20 years. And for me that is a very, very difficult question.