2012 got off to something of a rocky start. I was lucky enough to book an amazing babysitting job for a family vacationing on Sullivan's Island, so I spent all of last week playing on the beach and strolling around the island with an adorable 2-year-old all while being paid what I found to be an obscene amount of money considering about 1/3 of my hours involved reading on the sofa while the kids were sleeping. So, that part was good.
Unfortunately, by the time the 31st rolled around, my immune system decided to take a vacation, and shortly after the parents left and the kids were in bed, I found myself shivering on the couch, every blanket in the house piled over my aching body, completely unable to focus on my book I was so wrapped in sickly misery. The parents finally returned home at 12:45 and I was released back into the wild, but before I was a mile down the road, I got pulled over for my license plate holder light being out. This was surprising due to the fact that 1) I had no idea there was such a thing as a license plate holder light and 2) well, no, that's about it. Fortunately, I got busted by a kindly cop who merely gave me a warning ticket before I could continue on my merry way.
I immediately deposited my 101.2 degree body in bed beneath a fleecy robe, a sheet, a blanket, and my down comforter. Then spent the rest of the night drowning in sweat while I shivered ceaselessly until morning. As of today, my fever has vanished, but I'm left with a barking cough and a phone sex operator voice. Happy New Year.
I've decided not to make any resolutions for 2012. I think I'll have plenty of stress and pressure between trying to make a baby, moving to a new country, and completing what I can of my 30 Before 30 list. Anyway, resolutions in review:
Resolution #1: Create a monthly housekeeping chores chart.
I managed to keep up with this pretty well throughout the year. I got away from actually referring to the chart on a daily basis, but I kept up with most of my chores from day to day and rarely let the clutter and mess of the house get away from me. I'm calling this one a win and plan to keep up with it.
Resolution #2: Complete half of my 30 Before 30 List.
I got pretty close on this one. Some of my items are partially completed, some I've had to accept just won't happen by December 20th of this year. Life has changed a lot since I made this list a year and a half ago. Some of the things I thought I wanted to do turned out to be not so important, and others have proved far more difficult than I ever expected--who knew having a baby would be the most expensive and difficult item on the list! Anyway, I'm still working at it, but I've had to adjust my expectations about finishing it by my 30th birthday.
Resolution #3: Read 50 books.
This was a definite success. I wanted to make an effort to spend more of my free time getting back to my first love of reading and less time parked in front of the television. I read 59 books in 2011, and so many of them were amazing that it's going to be hard to pare it down for my top recommendations.





