28 Before 28: The Results

There are only two words to describe my success rate with my 28 Before 28 goals: EPIC FAIL.
There was a lot going on in my 27th year of life. I mean, I was super-busy fending off burglars and feral cats, travelling the world, and - oh yeah, making a baby. :)

Enough excuses. Here is the embarrassing truth:

1. Take a cooking class at the Fort Worth Culinary Institute.

Well, after pricing classes at the FWCI, I decided that Central Market was more my speed. But that was as far as that got.

2. Ride in a hot air balloon.

Again, why are my goals so expensive? Cost is the main reason this one didn't happen, which means I'll be saving it for a special occasion (I'm in charge of the anniversary plans this year :)).

3. Watch less news/ TV in general (two hours a day MAX).

One I actually achieved! Which is totally surprising now that I'm at home all day.

4. Do a Bible study with my sister.
I have been keeping my eyes peeled for ideas, and I think we've settled on starting So Long Insecurity by Beth Moore in January. I know her studies are intense, but we'll take it reeeeeal slow.

5. Plant more things in my "container garden."

If by "plant more things" I meant that I would replace all the things that died in the previous year's container garden, then yes, I achieved this one. ;)

 6. Go paperless in the kitchen.
Getting closer! We use cloth napkins and sometimes rags to wipe up messes. Paper towels are just so hard to let go...

7. Revive AndWritelySo, my old handwriting/ calligraphy business.

Ummm, no.

8. Make it through a chataranga in yoga without cheating. :D
This one didn't really happen since my pregnant belly got in the way!

9. Stop buying greeting cards from the store and make them myself instead!
Time management has not been my friend the past few months and I'm ashamed to say that I have not achieved this one. But this coming year is a clean slate! :)

10. Floss. Everyday.

Nothing like the threat of pregnancy gingivitis to motivate - and create a habit that I've kept up!

11. Find a place to volunteer regularly.
Still working on this one - though I'm not sure having a four month-old lends itself to this. :)

12. Host a craft day with my cousin Laura and sister-in-law Tara.
We sort of did this at Thanksgiving last year, helping Laura to get ready for an upcoming craft fair. It was lots of impromptu fun!

13. Invite someone over for dinner once a month.
While we had several friends over for dinner, I didn't quite hit the once a month mark. :(

14. Make photo books/ scrapbooks for our vacations.
I just ordered two and am working on three more. (Thank you, Groupon!)

15. Get in the habit of taking better care of my skin (wearing sunscreen daily, using moisturizer, etc.) so I can wear less makeup.

I think I have done pretty well with this - despite the pregnancy hormones and the havoc they wreaked on my face. :) Still not makeup-free, but I'm working on it.

16. Try resale shopping more often.

I went to Just Between Friends twice and plan to check out local consignment stores more often.

17. Take a certification course so I can drive the scooter legally!
I would still love to do this - if only I could figure out how to safely take Max with me. ;)

18. Read 28 (or more!) new books.

I'm sure I read at least that many parenting books - ha!

19. Get into the habit of washing dishes every day or every other day...instead of every seven. :{
We wash dishes at least three times a week, which is a HUGE improvement. (But I'm also home all day staring at the pile of dirties - and cooking a lot more often, so I'm forced to wash if I need a certain dish!)

20. Finish painting those dead-gum baseboards.
Yeah...no. (Next year is not looking promising either.)

21. Plan a fun reunion weekend for my college roommates.
This one didn't happen, but when your former roomies live in Alaska, Colorado, and Indiana (and some in Texas), that makes it tricky.

22. Practice using the little Spanish that I know more often.
The doorknockers from the local Hispanic church have been giving me lots of practice. :)

23. Pray with Clay every night before bed.
We'll keep working on it!

24. Start composting.
I have a cute little composting pail on the counter. That's a good start, right?

25. Travel somewhere I have never been (preferrably an international locale :)).

Weatherford, Texas was as international as it got. :)

26. Take an art class.
I didn't take an art class per se, but I did go paint pottery with a few girlfriends around Christmastime last year. It was artsy - and fun!

27. Stay within my budget categories.
I think this is something I will always be working towards.

28. Keep up with (and document) all these goals!

This blog post was a great start...but that was as far as I got. But I guess since I didn't complete many of these, there wasn't much to document - ha!

So I think what I've learned is that having a baby (and life in general) really kept me busy this past year. Maybe I'll take the demands of our newest family member into consideration when setting this year's goals! :)