Everyone keeps acting like at any second it's going to occur to me that I'm about to turn 40 and I'll suddenly lose my mind and freak out and have a meltdown.  

Sorry to disapoint folks, but ain't gonna happen.  I could care less.  I feel the same as I did last year and each of the years before other than the fact that my life is actually in much better shape than it was when I was turning 20 or 30.  I am in love with the love of my life.  He seems to find me pretty acceptable in return so that's a plus.  In June we will celebrate our 3rd anniversary as married folks, and since most of our friends gave us about six months, I'd say we're doing pretty good.  My babies are happy, healthy and reasonably well adjusted considering.  knock wood.  I have a job that I enjoy and coworkers I adore.  We have a decent roof over our heads, the bills, for the most part, are paid up to date.  We have health insurance at long last and no longer have to give blood BEFORE going to the doctor.  We even have a nice car (again, knock wood).  I am now eight chapters into my book and if I do say so myself, it's some of the best work I"ve done.  I'm finding my own voice at last.  It's hard, I still slip into Nora Roberts or [shudder] Danielle Steel now and then and then I'm forced to nuke entire chapters and start over.  But it's progressing and nicely.  

I've been lucky so far in the physical dept. and I'm going on the theory that all this chub is plumping me up so much I've yet to really wrinkle.  I have a tiny touch of crows feet (those are laugh lines folks) and despite liberal applications of all kinds of skin toner and firmer and lotions, I'm starting to get that old lady crinkling in my cleavage but only when I lay on my side so as long as I'm upright I'm cool.  Dear God I'm not ready for the day I'll have to put my cleavage away forever...eek.  I have yet to find a gray hair and considering I just colored my hair I think I'll make it all the way to 40 without finding one.  I did get a wierd spot on the back of my wrist that might be an age spot.  Might be melanoma.  Or a freckle.  Who knows.  The point is I'm not gonna freak about it.  

So having taken stock of my life, my bod, my emotional/mental state, I'd have to say I'm in pretty darn good shape for an old lady.  And as long as the cute boys in sales keep acting shocked when I say I'm turning 40 and guessing my age closer to 30, I think I'm gonna live...a little longer anyway....