I turn 40 in 40 days! Eek!

I really wanted to make these last days of my thirties memorable. Maybe especially because we’ve been so cooped up for so long. So I’m working through remembering the past, leaving some things behind, planning for the future, and celebrating where I am.

You can follow along my 40 days on my social media (Facebook and Instagram) or I’d love to know if you do something similar or use this format!

40 by 40 Challenge

Every day: Eat and drink something I’ve never had before.

The Early Days

Day 1 – Post a photo and memory of you from the year you were born

Day 2 – Watch a movie from the year you were born

Day 3 – Create a Top 40 Playlist, one song for each year you have been alive

Day 4 – Re-read a favorite book from your childhood

Day 5 – Research your family genealogy and share something about an ancestor

Day 6 – Share a childhood memory you haven’t shared before

Day 7 – Watch a cartoon you liked when you were young, and eat your favorite childhood cereal while watching it

Day 8 – Look through old photos with a loved one

Day 9 – Color (with crayons!) a picture

Day 10 – Make a totally nostalgic meal

Changing it Up

Day 11 – Donate 40 items from your home

Day 12 – Throw out or recycle 40 things from your home

Day 13 – Write a letter to someone from your past saying what you couldn’t say

Day 14 – Give some advice you could have used when you were young

Day 15 – Ask someone else to choose a movie for you to watch

Day 16 – Go somewhere you’ve never been

Day 17 – Commit to stopping one habit for the next 40 days

Day 18 – Tip someone $40 extra

Day 19 – Do a task for someone else

Day 20 – Cook or bake something you have always wanted to try

Looking Ahead

Day 21 – Make a list of 40 places you would like to visit

Day 22 – Make a list of 50 things you want to do before 50

Day 23 – Collect 40 new recipes to try

Day 24 – Set a goal for each month of your 40th year. Finances? Fun? Professional? Home?

Day 25 – Commit to starting and maintaining one new daily habit for the next 40 days

Day 26 – Make a list of 40 movies to watch before you turn 41

Day 27 – Make a list of 40 books to read before you turn 45

Day 28 – Learn and share about a youth doing positive work

Day 29 – Make a list of 40 new foods or dishes you want to try

Day 30 – Write a letter to yourself to open in 40 years.

Living in the Now

Day 31 – Buy yourself flowers

Day 32 – Spend 40 minutes doing that thing you never get around to but love to do

Day 33 – Reply with 40 positive/encouraging social media posts

Day 34 – Write a 40-word poem about today

Day 35 – Go completely without phone or Internet all day

Day 26 – List 40 things you’re proud of yourself for

Day 37 – Eat out somewhere you’ve never been

Day 38 – Take photos of 40 different things in the outdoors

Day 39 – List 40 things you are grateful for

Day 40 – Get all dressed up and celebrate being 40!

Bonus: Journal every day with a memory from your life

Growing old is weird.