Fearless at Thirty with Olay (Plus, a Giveaway!)

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Olay. The opinions and text are all mine. Comments submitted may be displayed on other websites owned by the sponsoring brand.

In February, I celebrated a big milestone birthday when I turned thirty. I’d been planning a trip to Paris with friends for years, and it turned out to be everything I’d ever dreamed of. It’s funny, because when I was in high school, thirty seemed so old. As I neared my thirties, people constantly told me that their thirties were the best years of their lives. I believe it too. Every year on my birthday, Sasha asks me what my favorite thing was from the past year and what I’m looking forward to in the coming year. This time, he asked what I was most excited about for this new decade. I would love to have one more baby, I want to continue to grow my photography business and spend more time teaching, I want to be involved in the girls’ schools in whatever capacity is available, I want to take a few trips with girlfriends, I want to go on more dates with Sasha, and last, but not least: I want to spend more time loving the skin I’m in. As I mentioned, one of my main goals is to continue growing my photography practice. Since I started my business three years ago, I have dreamed of having an in-home studio space where I can photograph clients and also teach classes. I currently just have a desk setup in our master bedroom (Sasha does too!). I used to have so much self-doubt when I started my photography business, and it has taken a lot of confidence and courage to get to where I am today. I wanted to teach classes for a long time but was worried nobody would sign up to take them!

Fortunately, this hasn’t been the case so far, and I’ve gotten such an adrenaline rush while teaching them. Being fearless has taken work but is way more fun than being nervous about what others think of you and Olay has been empowering women for many generations and I’m excited to share with you how being fearless and thirty has led me to accomplish a big dream of mine. My dream of having an at-home studio a reality in the house we’re building, and I’m incredibly excited for this room to be complete (very soon!). I chose wood paneling which I have painted Sherwin Williams Alabaster White, there are two big windows for natural light, and I am having a custom table built that seats up to eight people. In this space, I can teach classes, but also roll the table over and take headshots and portrait sessions thanks to the amazing natural light. In the fall, I hope to teach four or more classes every month! Below you’ll see the plans I have for this room.

When work gets busy, my self-care has always fallen to the wayside in the past. I’ll be swamped with photo edits, emails, posts, etc. and “don’t have time” to get to the gym, to take proper care of my face, get enough sleep, etc. In high school and college, I spent way too much time in the sun with far too little sunscreen and I’m feeling the effects now. Now that I’m 30, I know it’s increasingly more important to prioritize my skin. I started getting monthly facials in January of this year, and I love the difference I’ve seen in my skin so far.

For my birthday, I received this fun Birthday Box from Olay and love the products inside (pink silk pillowcase? Yes, please!). I’ve been using Olay Whips regularly in the morning and evening since my friend, Alex, introduced me to the product (while I was photographing it!) about six months ago. I love how light it feels on my skin. I’m definitely breakout prone and it doesn’t clog my pore and leaves my skin feeling silky smooth. After a long day of work now, I’ve been slowing down, listening to a favorite podcast and taking time to cleanse and moisturize my face. It feels like an at-home spa experience, as opposed to me in the past, falling asleep with makeup on (yikes).

And now for the giveaway!

I’m excited to share that I’ve partnered with Olay to give THIRTY lucky readers birthday boxes of their own! All you need to do is follow @snapshotsandmythoughts and @olay on Instagram, ‘Like’ this photo and leave comments tagging three friends. The giveaway will end on June 8 at midnight, and I’ll pick 30 winners the following day and will contact them to let them know they’re a winner. Good luck!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Olay. The opinions and text are all mine.