It’s the last day of December, and therefore the last day of 2011. That reindeer hat was for the last day of school before vacation, the staff had an ugly sweater contest and this was as far as I was willing to go.

Honestly, some of my 2011 New Year’s Resolutions seem hilariously adorable to me now. I can’t believe how much life and priorities can change in one year, and I know when I look back on this post at the end of 2012 they will have changed even more dramatically. Getting pregnant halfway through this year completely changed the trajectory of my life, in all the best and most unnerving ways. At the end of every year I look forward to a clean slate, a fresh start. But this year more than any other I cannot wait for the date to click over. I’m also completely terrified by it. Impending motherhood has left me giddy, unable to settle on just 1 adorable nursery idea, awed by the responsibilities, and more than anything thoughtful about the kind of woman I want to be for my daughter. I’m also suddenly unsentimental about things I’ve held on to for years, and I’ve been ruthless about cleaning house. I’m not stressing about the small things, like the fact that I’ve only read 202 books this year. And I’m greedy and selfish for the experience of parenthood with Adam—H is like a treasure I’m hoarding, she’s just for us and no one else. I haven’t had the urge to blog or update Facebook with every detail of my pregnancy because I feel really protective of that experience. But when she gets here next year, I can’t wait to meet her and show her everything.

So here’s the recap of my year, as best as I can manage. This list feels like it was written by another person!

1. Set boundaries for myself and speak up. I don’t even remember why I wrote this one. But I’ve definitely spoken up for myself more.
2. Make more time for my friends and my mom. This is a perennial addition to the list, but I think I did alright this year. 
3. Take up knitting/crocheting again. I did, for about a week. Does that count?
4. Make a pie a month. Okay, I made 8 pies. Maybe I’ll do better next year.
5. Learn how to make pasta. Nope, tried and failed.
6. Beat my 2010 Books Read count. Hahaha.
7. Blog more about books in 2011. Nope.
8. Take one big vacation. This one I can definitely cross off, we went to Hawaii! And found out we were having a sprout!
9. Try 5 new quilt blocks this year. I’m calling this one achieved. I made 8 quilts this year, but only a couple of them had traditional blocks. But still, 8 quilts all different!
10. Take a cooking/crafty class, or learn to do something completely new this year (like sew clothes or make pierogies). I became a moonshiner!
11. Throw some parties. 2010 was a quiet year for entertaining. It was even quieter this year. No holiday party, no big cookout. Small cookouts and a birthday dinner, that’s it.
12. Manage my time better (I try for this one almost every year). I think I’ll be chasing this one my entire life.
13. Network more within my profession. It was a tough year for this, since I’ve been so focused on The Sprout for half of it.
14. Go back to yoga/treadmill. Tee hee.

Let’s see what resolutions I feel like setting for myself tomorrow.