Saturday, September 10, 2011

End of Year Resolutions

It may only be September, but Fall flowing into Winter always feels like a rush of days and I often find myself thinking about the Holiday season and the New Year right after Labor Day.

It got me thinking about my resolutions for the year and *gasp* I realized I never set any!

I was big ol' pregnant and in the middle of language school (still am, I suppose. In language school, that is, not big ol' pregnant.) and didn't want to put any added pressure on myself.

It was probably wise thinking on my part, but now I'm wishing I accomplished something big on a checklist, besides, you know, birthing a human.

I had a great year with my resolutions in 2009 (read the Old Testament, wrote 300 blog posts, and read 50 books,) but failed epically with my 2010 goals (try 50 new recipes, memorize 25 Scripture verses, and complete project 365.)

Not wanting to set myself up for failure, I have set some smaller, more manageable goals for the rest of 2011.

*Memorize 5 pieces of Scripture
*Complete Grace's baby blanket (that I started last year!)
*Be one credit card out of two, out of debt
*Figure out the perfect brownie recipe
*Order a photo book from our France vacation

And that's it! I think that some of these will occur naturally while some will have to take a little forethought and planning.

Ian and I have been talking lately about what success means to me and how I need to feel successful at something, which living in a foreign country and learning a new language has not helped with. I hope, at the end of the year, to be able to look back and feel proud of all that I have accomplished and that I feel successful!

6 comments:

Tami said...

Those all sound like great goals. I'm doing 101 in 1001 and I haven't been able to cross anything off my list in a few months. Something else seems to take up all my time now... :) Let me know when you find that perfect brownie recipe (and all of the ingredients to make it here!)

Lauren said...

those definitely sound like great goals! And I would think the best part of finding the "perfect" brownie recipe is trying all the brownies in between...I mean, almost any brownie recipe has to be decent, right?!? ;o)

Cara said...

I'm not gonna say they're perfect, but at least in the capital here I can get all these ingredients and they are so yummy when you NEED a chocolate fix! :-)

BEST BROWNIES
½ cup butter or margarine, melted
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla 2 eggs
½ cup flour 1/3 cocoa
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ cup chopped nuts (opt)
Creamy frosting (recipe below)

Heat oven to 350F. Grease 9-inch square baking pan. In medium bowl, stir together butter, sugar, and vanilla. Add eggs; with spoon, beat well. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Add to egg mixture; beat until well blended. Stir in nuts, if desired. Spread batter into prepared pan. Bake 20-25 minutes begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Prepare frosting. Spread over brownies. Enjoy!

Frosting:
3 Tbs butter or margarine, softened
3 Tbs cocoa
1 Tbs corn syrup or honey
½ tsp vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbs milk

In small mixer bowl, beat butter, cocoa, corn syrup, and vanilla until blended. Add powdered sugar and milk; beat until smooth and of spreading consistency. Add additional milk, ½ tsp at a time, if needed.

Callie said...

I don't set New Year's resolutions, because I always look back and realize I never completed them! But I like your list for the rest of 2011 - sheesh, it's weird to think that 2011 is just a few months from being over!

TulipGirl said...

Pregnancy and language school is TOUGH. (#4 was born three weeks before our Russian intensive ended. . .)

The Presutti's said...

I love this idea! Maybe I will do this too!