31 and Grateful: What This Past Year Taught Me

If you’d told me a year ago that I’d be writing a birthday blog at 31, pregnant, settled and finally doing the things that have lived in my heart for years—I probably would’ve blinked at you in disbelief (and then cried because… hormones).

But here I am. Thirty-one. And while it’s not the life I imagined, it’s somehow everything I didn’t know I needed.

This year has been full. Full of big changes, quiet miracles, and slow, holy healing. I’ve let go of things I never expected to release… and somehow, God filled every empty space with something better.

I don’t want to spend much time talking about what I’ve lost, because even though some of it hurt, it also made space for the deep, fulfilling joy I have now. I found a little village here. People who love us, check in on us, pray with us, and feel like home. And for the first time in a long time, I feel truly, deeply happy. Settled. Whole.

A few things I’m taking with me into this next year:

– God’s goodness is not seasonal. It doesn’t shift with my emotions or change when I do. It’s steady, even when I’m not.

– You don’t have to carry it all. And you’re not weak for needing rest.

– Growth happens quietly. In the unseen, unshared places. When no one’s watching and you’re simply being obedient.

– Letting go isn’t the end of the story. Sometimes it’s the beginning of becoming.

– Joy looks different now. It’s slower. Softer. Less about hype and more about presence. God’s presence.

So here’s to 31. To a year that’s already stretching me in ways I didn’t expect. To the baby growing in my belly. To stepping out of my comfort zone. To the friends who stayed. To the prayers that became real life. I’m still learning, growing, and figuring it all out, but if you ask me what this past year taught me? It’s that God is faithful, even in the in-between

“Because of the Lord’s faithful love we do not perish, for his mercies never end. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness!”

— Lamentations 3:22–23 (CSB)

Until next time,

Charnè.