I wasn't going to bother going over last year's list, but I had a couple of requests to go ahead and do it, and I decided it would be good for me to face my achievements and shortcomings, and learn from the experience. So I'll go through the list, and see where I went right and wrong, and maybe this exercise will help me set up a more realistic and useful list for next year.
What I achieved:
What I achieved:
1. Make homemade pasta from scratch.
I used my pasta attachment on my Kitchenaid mixer and got some great pasta out of the adventure. My lasagna, fettuccine to go with chicken parmesan, and homemade ravioli were all a result of my pasta experiments, and I plan on doing more in the next year, because they were great.
2. Bake homemade bread from scratch. The real stuff. With yeast!
I made the no-knead bread recipe recently and suddenly I believe that bread baking is within the realm of my abilities. I will be tackling (and eating) more bread!
3. Start my retirement savings.
Done. Of course, I then left that job, so I have to start over with the new job, but I got off my butt and started contributing to a 403(b) for my future.
4. Plant a tree in the yard.
I planted a lilac tree in the front yard, and I love it. It’s tiny but it did flower this year.
5. Blog at least once a week - and blog about everything I accomplish off the list!
I may have missed a week here and there, but I posted multiple times other weeks (sometimes a few posts in one day), so I will count this as done.
6. Get a filing system set up so I stop having to hunt for all my important paperwork.
Honestly? This one was more Dave’s doing than mine, because he got us a filing cabinet and got to work on sorting everything. I participated, though, and the piles are definitely receding. The next trick will be to prevent the piles from ever forming in the first place.
7. Speak up for myself at my annual review at work and tell them I'm awesome.
I did. And it didn’t get me very far, unfortunately. So I found a new job and I’m much happier. Call this one double accomplished.
8. Read 50 books, or about one a week, this year.
I think I hit 50 sometime in October. I haven’t been blogging about them, because blogging book reviews was boring for me a lot of the time, and I didn’t see the point of posting for the sake of posting. When a book really spoke to me, I told you all about it, and I think that’s how my book posts will be from now on.
9. Participate in Thing-a-day in February.
While I didn’t complete the commitment to Thing-A-Day, I did fairly well, and discovered my crafty side. I enjoyed it, which is what counts.
2. Bake homemade bread from scratch. The real stuff. With yeast!
I made the no-knead bread recipe recently and suddenly I believe that bread baking is within the realm of my abilities. I will be tackling (and eating) more bread!
3. Start my retirement savings.
Done. Of course, I then left that job, so I have to start over with the new job, but I got off my butt and started contributing to a 403(b) for my future.
4. Plant a tree in the yard.
I planted a lilac tree in the front yard, and I love it. It’s tiny but it did flower this year.
5. Blog at least once a week - and blog about everything I accomplish off the list!
I may have missed a week here and there, but I posted multiple times other weeks (sometimes a few posts in one day), so I will count this as done.
6. Get a filing system set up so I stop having to hunt for all my important paperwork.
Honestly? This one was more Dave’s doing than mine, because he got us a filing cabinet and got to work on sorting everything. I participated, though, and the piles are definitely receding. The next trick will be to prevent the piles from ever forming in the first place.
7. Speak up for myself at my annual review at work and tell them I'm awesome.
I did. And it didn’t get me very far, unfortunately. So I found a new job and I’m much happier. Call this one double accomplished.
8. Read 50 books, or about one a week, this year.
I think I hit 50 sometime in October. I haven’t been blogging about them, because blogging book reviews was boring for me a lot of the time, and I didn’t see the point of posting for the sake of posting. When a book really spoke to me, I told you all about it, and I think that’s how my book posts will be from now on.
9. Participate in Thing-a-day in February.
While I didn’t complete the commitment to Thing-A-Day, I did fairly well, and discovered my crafty side. I enjoyed it, which is what counts.
10. Go on a wonderful anniversary trip with my husband.
California was awesome, and we’ve got bottles of wine labeled and stored to open on our 10th anniversary.
11. Celebrate getting my green card with a party or fancy night out.
We went to Fleming’s in Baltimore and had a fun night together.
What I kinda almost accomplished:
12. Learn to hem pants and sew on buttons.
I did hem some pants this year, but the hems didn't stay sewn for very long. I obviously need more practice. I didn't have any buttons that needed repair, or I probably would have tackled the second part of this one. No excuses, though, I had thread and buttons and scrap fabric - I could have done it.
13. Paint the red room yellow.
We got one coat done. It’s not a red room anymore, so it’s an improvement, but it still needs a second coat and some trim.
14. Find a GYN and stop stalling about it!
I didn’t bother with this one because my primary care doc is good enough for now with regards to the annual girl-parts checkups. I’m putting this in the “kinda” category because I did go for a checkup.
15. Go through all our STUFF and have a yard sale to get rid of what we don't need (or give it to charity). I want to keep what we need, and what matters.
I have some boxes and bags full of “yard sale” junk, but we haven’t had a yard sale. I think we need to decide whether we’re going to bother with a sale or just give it all away. At least now the stuff is mostly localized in one room, in boxes.
16. Drink 8 cups of water EVERY DAY.
I did a lot better with this at the beginning of the year, and slacked off a lot more in the fall.
17. Wear my face moisturizer with SPF so I don't get wrinkly.
I managed to remember to use my moisturizer 3 or 4 days per week. Not great, but not nothing.
18. Cook things from the family cookbook Mom gave me.
I only made a couple of recipes from the actual cookbook, but I’ve made several of my Mom and Grandmaman’s recipes this year.
19. Write. More than just blogs. Start a writing notebook, fill it up, get another.
I haven’t written anywhere other than my blog, but I feel like I’ve gotten more personal and shared more and drifted a little further from my recipes and projects to talk about life, and I’m happy with that.
11. Celebrate getting my green card with a party or fancy night out.
We went to Fleming’s in Baltimore and had a fun night together.
What I kinda almost accomplished:
12. Learn to hem pants and sew on buttons.
I did hem some pants this year, but the hems didn't stay sewn for very long. I obviously need more practice. I didn't have any buttons that needed repair, or I probably would have tackled the second part of this one. No excuses, though, I had thread and buttons and scrap fabric - I could have done it.
13. Paint the red room yellow.
We got one coat done. It’s not a red room anymore, so it’s an improvement, but it still needs a second coat and some trim.
14. Find a GYN and stop stalling about it!
I didn’t bother with this one because my primary care doc is good enough for now with regards to the annual girl-parts checkups. I’m putting this in the “kinda” category because I did go for a checkup.
15. Go through all our STUFF and have a yard sale to get rid of what we don't need (or give it to charity). I want to keep what we need, and what matters.
I have some boxes and bags full of “yard sale” junk, but we haven’t had a yard sale. I think we need to decide whether we’re going to bother with a sale or just give it all away. At least now the stuff is mostly localized in one room, in boxes.
16. Drink 8 cups of water EVERY DAY.
I did a lot better with this at the beginning of the year, and slacked off a lot more in the fall.
17. Wear my face moisturizer with SPF so I don't get wrinkly.
I managed to remember to use my moisturizer 3 or 4 days per week. Not great, but not nothing.
18. Cook things from the family cookbook Mom gave me.
I only made a couple of recipes from the actual cookbook, but I’ve made several of my Mom and Grandmaman’s recipes this year.
19. Write. More than just blogs. Start a writing notebook, fill it up, get another.
I haven’t written anywhere other than my blog, but I feel like I’ve gotten more personal and shared more and drifted a little further from my recipes and projects to talk about life, and I’m happy with that.
Complete misses:
20. Figure out how to French braid my hair.
Never got around to it. Not sure why it’s on the list. I think I was just bored with ponytails and too scared to chop all my hair off, so I challenged myself to try something different.
21. Drive on 95.
I’m a wimp. I need to get over the nerves.
22. Get my body into good enough shape to start growing a baby in it. This includes the loss of 20 pounds, but is mostly about feeling healthier.
HA! Next year’s version of this goal will have to say “25 pounds”. Dammit.
23. Take a yoga class.
I did look for one, but working the evening shift made it harder to find something convenient, since most classes are afternoons and evenings. Morning classes worried me because I'd always be stressing over the time and wondering if I'd be late to work.
24. Learn how to identify different trees by their leaves/needles/bark/whatever. I used to know this and forgot everything, so I'm going to read up on it and put it back in my head.
I still want to do this, if only for trivia reasons, but I didn’t make any progress this year.
25. Learn to change a tire.
I had a tire changed when it unraveled, but I had a garage do it. Why do I need to do this, anyway, when AAA exists?
26. See the night sky from somewhere dark enough that I can see the stripe of the Milky Way.
The B&B in Sonoma was in a great spot for it, but it was cloudy.
27. Find out how to get tuition reimbursement from work, and then apply for an online class.
I couldn’t find a class I wanted to take. I got too tied up in what certificate or degree I wanted to work towards that I couldn't just take "a class". Especially since the hospital would only pay for it if it related to my job, and I wasn't sure what would count.
28. Do one of the FlyLady challenges weekly.
I moved her emails to my spam folder. I love her stuff in theory but I’m lazy.
29. Try to relax and be less critical of myself (and others).
An ongoing project that I’m not sure I’ll ever manage completely. The new job is helping with my overall stress level, but I'm still hard on myself.
30. Visit the Museum of American History and see every part of it (and read as much as I can handle of the info posted beside everything). I've been but the visit was so hurried and I need to go back.
I haven’t made it back to DC in forever. There have been too many other things that needed doing on my days off.
The B&B in Sonoma was in a great spot for it, but it was cloudy.
27. Find out how to get tuition reimbursement from work, and then apply for an online class.
I couldn’t find a class I wanted to take. I got too tied up in what certificate or degree I wanted to work towards that I couldn't just take "a class". Especially since the hospital would only pay for it if it related to my job, and I wasn't sure what would count.
28. Do one of the FlyLady challenges weekly.
I moved her emails to my spam folder. I love her stuff in theory but I’m lazy.
29. Try to relax and be less critical of myself (and others).
An ongoing project that I’m not sure I’ll ever manage completely. The new job is helping with my overall stress level, but I'm still hard on myself.
30. Visit the Museum of American History and see every part of it (and read as much as I can handle of the info posted beside everything). I've been but the visit was so hurried and I need to go back.
I haven’t made it back to DC in forever. There have been too many other things that needed doing on my days off.
So there you have it. Not quite as bad as I thought, actually, which is encouraging. I'm working on my list for next year and I will share it with you once I have it all figured out.
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