Resolutions: One Year Later

At the beginning of this year, I posted a scrapbook layout that I did all about my 2010 New Year's Resolutions. In the past, I make resolutions and then I don't do them, nor do I remember what they were one year later. But I didn't want to go that route this year, nor did I want to let down those blog readers who were rooting for me to get each and every resolution done this year. (I'm sure there were blog readers like that out there, right?) I think it's important that I hold myself accountable so I can see where I succeeded and where I failed and try again in 2011, perhaps making my resolutions a tad easier to attain. So here we go:

Resolution 1: Take the physical challenge
I would give myself an A on this resolution. While I wasn't able to do the Fitness magazine half-marathon like I had wanted, I did speed-walk two 5Ks in June, one to benefit my husband's former school district and the other to raise money for a middle school student with bone cancer. And then on our cruise, I did a 5K on the (very wet and windy) promenade deck for Susan G. Komen.

Resolution 2: Memorize a chapter of the Bible.
I hate to say it but I totally failed on this one. The only time I really have to sit down and memorize Bible chapters would be during my morning and evening commutes. And... there are just so many other books that I wanted to read first that I never got around to memorizing that chapter. Although, I did make an attempt one day, but I think my memorization skills are not what they used to be back in elementary school. Perhaps I should retry this one in 2011. Or make it more attainable, such as memorize my favorite Bible verse(s). I can't even remember those, let alone a whole chapter.

Resolution 3: Reduce your carbon footprint in one major way.
Maybe a B on this one? We still recycle, when the Waste Management guys remember to come by our house and take the recycling, but I can't really think of anything else that we do that is green. My parents bought us an eco-friendly shower head. Does that count?

Resolution 4: Learn to cook one mouth-watering dish.
Uh, have you been reading this blog? Check and check. A++++

Resolution 5: Learn to pray in a whole new way.
I wrote in January that I was looking for a good devotional book, but I didn't really find one. Although, I didn't really make much of an effort to look. I think this is still something I should work on for 2011 and probably for the rest of my life, right? A friend just recommended the book Praying In Color, so perhaps I can get that from the library next month and check it out.

Resolution 6: Do something you've been putting off.
For me, that was writing a book. And while I can't say that I've written an actual published book, I did "win" National Novel Writing Month in November. Now I have to take those 50,216 words and turn them into something that could be published. Editing is not something I can put off for 2011.

Resolution 7: Start a new relationship that's not about you.
I really did try to make this happen this year. I signed up to become a Life Book volunteer, someone who meets with local senior citizens and records their stories, then writes them down on paper for the person so that their stories can be preserved for their families. If you know me, you'll know that I've had some scary encounters with seniors, so I figured this volunteer thing would be perfect for resolution 7. Plus, it would be combining my love of scrapbooking and writing with volunteering. Except that you have to go through a training session first and the training sessions are on weekday mornings. Well, I work during the week and I just didn't have enough vacation time to attend a training session. I'm still on the list to receive info on future training sessions, so hopefully in 2011 I'll be able to attend one and get started with this project.


Resolution 8: Do something that freaks you out.
Does going to New York every day in the middle of a bed bug breakout count? No, seriously. Last year my something that freaked me out was buying food for a homeless person. But you know what? I finally did it! Sure it took me all year to do it (December 14 was the fateful day) but I did it. Of course, I always worry that the person is just running a scam and they aren't really homeless. But if this guy was scamming me, then he was totally committed to the cause. The guy had no gloves on and it was freezing outside. My hands were cold and I was wearing gloves. I certainly wouldn't be able to put up with the cold like that just so I could scam a medium hot chocolate and ham and cheese toasted flatbread sandwich from Dunkin' Donuts out of somebody. But if that guy could, then more power to him. However, I don't think he was faking it. And he said thank you. :)

Resolution 9: Reduce as much debt as possible.
We didn't really have any debt, so I wasn't too worried about this one. I think that instead of reducing debt in 2010, we really just reduced the amount of money in our checking accounts. lol Anyone else feeling me on that one?

Resolution 10: Donate your time to a cause that matters to you.
Well, I'm still not donating time to an organization that educates women in third-world countries, but I did sign up to be a volunteer at a nearby food pantry and after the holidays I am meeting with someone there to discuss how I can help out with the pantry's newsletter. And of course, I've already explained to you about the Life Book project, so hopefully 2011 will be full of time donations.

What about the rest of you? Did you make resolutions for 2010? How'd ya do? Are you making new ones for 2011? I'm not sure what else my 2011 list will look like, but I'll keep you posted once I figure it out. In the meantime, I'll have to make a scrapbook page about this.