thirty-two for 32

I got this idea from my friend Emilie (though other friends have followed suit) and, since tomorrow is my 32nd birthday (!!!), I thought I’d share my goals (big and small) for the coming year with you all:

1. Knit a scarf
2. Sew a simple project—pillow cover, drapes, apron, etc.
3. Learn how to roast a chicken (I am told this is easy; for some reason it intimidates me)
4. Lose 20 more pounds. (I’ve lost 47 pounds since last year. Of course, I was 36 weeks pregnant on my last birthday so it sounds a lot more impressive than it really is! I can’t say I recommend labor & delivery as a weight loss strategy. It’s fast, but it’s kind of hard.)
5. Start a college fund for Anna
6. Do our wills & health care directives
7. Finish the wills & health care directives I was working on for my parents the day before Anna was born (sorry, Mom & Dad)
8. Get really comfortable shooting in manual mode on our camera
9. Watch the Oscar Best Picture nominees
10. Join a CSA and/or buy more local produce
11. Read Seth’s favorite book, Watership Down
12. Make a photo book of Anna’s first year
13. Floss my teeth every day
14. Send birthday cards on time
15. Have date nights with Seth once a week, even if they are at home!
16. Do something special for our five-year anniversary
17. Throw Anna’s first birthday party
18. Update all our life insurance policies
19. Really clean out my closet and give away clothes that don’t fit or that I no longer wear (I am moderately good about this, but could always be better)
20. Actually try yoga (I have a DVD that came highly recommended, but apparently just having the DVD doesn’t count as doing yoga)
21. Dip my baby toe into the stock market
22. Start doing guardian ad litem work
23. Run a 5K (Ha! Hahaha! But I thought I should challenge myself… ‘cause the knitting and sewing weren’t enough, I guess.)
24. Dust off my cello and re-learn some of the Bach cello suites
25. Organize my photos
26. Get frames for the miscellaneous artwork lying around
27. Keep a gratefulness journal
28. Find a signature dessert that I can learn to bake really well
29. Learn more about wine
30. Finish bottles of things (shampoo, cleaning products, etc.) before buying new ones
31. Read Crime and Punishment and Anna Karenina, two books I own but have never finished
32. Figure out what I want to do with my life (actually I think this is a lifelong pursuit, but I’ll include it here anyway, mostly for the sake of finishing this list!)

Whew! Now wish me luck!