'All the Things That Keep Us Here'

Tina Fey spends quite a bit of time in "Bossypants" (which everyone should read) gushing over her dear friend Amy Poehler, and understandably so. In this installment, I'd like to gush a bit over my sister-in-law Carrie, whose story of life at 35 you can read below.

Carrie is a great mom to my nieces and nephews and a great partner to my brother. As you'll read, they've gone through so much during their six-year marriage but have made it work together. I'm extraordinarily grateful that my brother has such a strong, caring, fantastic person by his side, and that my nieces and nephews have her for a mom.

"Well, again, there is so much to tell," Carrie said of her life since turning 35. "My husband and I suffered what I hope to be the worst loss of our lives when our baby Daniel was born too early and did not make it. My oldest daughter Bree was married. We have had some ups and downs with job loss in a terrible economy. We celebrated the births of our beautiful son Logan and our second granddaughter Violet."

Here's Carrie's life at 35.

Your name: Carrie S.

What year did you turn 35? 2006

Where were you living then? Upland, California

What were you doing then (working, going to school, raising kids, etc.)? Working, being a mom to two incredible teenagers, planning a wedding, planning a baby

What big personal milestones happened when you were 35 (got married, bought a house, moved to a new city, started a new job, etc.)? Well, where to begin? Thirty-five was an amazingly good year for me. Right before turning 35, I had a tubal reversal with the hopes of being able to give my future husband a child. The month I turned 35, we purchased a home. We found out shortly after that my daughter was pregnant and I would be a grandma before the year was through. A few months later, I became the luckiest girl in the world and married my husband (not to mention marrying into a pretty great family). The following day we found out that, yes, in fact the tubal reversal had worked and I was PREGNANT!!! In June of that year my first grandchild Lily was born! And six weeks after that (a few days before my 36th birthday) our beautiful daughter Quinn came to join the party. This had been a crazy, crazy year.

What major events happened in the world that year? Who knows. I would look it up but really I was in my own little bubble of happiness that year and could care less what was happening in the world.

What are your favorite memories of being 35? I had it all. Everything was finally falling into place in my life. I was happy.

What did you like best about yourself at that age? Everything

What did you like least about yourself at that age? Nothing

What were the biggest lessons you learned at that age? I learned that 35 is not old. Don't be afraid to follow your heart—it will work out.

What were the biggest misconceptions you had about being 35? I kind of always felt that 35 was the half-way mark. Young was over and old is coming. I was wrong. I can be young for a few more years.

What was the most surprising thing about being 35? That I like myself more at 35 than I did at 25. I almost can't (but can) wait to be 45.

If you could go back to that age knowing what you know now, what would you do differently? Not a thing. I am very happy with the choices that I made at 35. I hope that I have another year where things work out so well. If not, I will always have 35.

What advice can you offer to other 35-year-old women? Live your life without regrets. You're not old yet, but you will be.