• Florence and Rome, Italy: this can be summed up in a short phrase --food, culture, art, oh my!
• Breckenridge, Colorado: there’s nothing like riding on sweet powder (albeit in 10-degree weather) and taking a holiday with a large group of friends.
• Miami, Florida: 3 separate trips (bachelorette party, with 2 other couples, and one last trip with just me and the hubs –all great experiences)
• Caribbean Cruise to the Bahamas, Belize, and the Cayman Islands.

Financial Progress:

• I religiously put away $150/month into my ROTH IRA account.
• I religiously paid off at least $800/month worth of credit card bills (I have not paid off all my debt yet, but it’s getting there...It’s getting there).
• I religiously put away $250/month into my savings account (which I deplete from time to time to pay off credit cards bills, but come April, I believe I don’t have to sacrifice 90% of my salary to the credit card gods!)

Hobbies/Interests/Passions:

• continued playing in a band. Played actual gigs in front of actual people! Played at legendary CBGB’s!
• read tons of books, and I mean tons. I don’t even know how many.
• spent a lot of time with friends, tried a few new restaurants, saw a lot of shows/concerts including: Interpol, Depeche Mode, Bloc Party, etc.
• got exposed to a lot of great new music!
• threw a "housewarming BBQ" (2 years after we moved in) which a lot of our friends attended

Home and Family:

• spent time with the hubs and in the home; spent a lot of time with family
• successfully conceived a little bebe in less time than it takes to mail a letter to the Philippines from the U.S. --we are blessed!
• experienced/experiencing the “expectant mom” life
• worked on home projects little by little and continue to make our house our home

What am I looking forward to this year? This year will definitely be different that all the rest. For one, I will be a mom come March (or maybe sooner) and that will change my life forever and ever. It will change our lives forever and ever. No longer will the hubs and I be our own little unit. Now, we have to make room for someone else! It'll be a scary adventure, but I'm happy to go down that path with none other than the hubs by my side.

Here’s a few resolutions (both frivolous and serious) in light of the new year (and the new addition):

25 New Year’s Resolutions

1. consciously make better food choices and eat healthier (so I can be healthier and more energetic for the little bunny)
2. incorporate some form of exercise everyday (even 10 minutes of walking is better than none)
3. buy less things for myself and concentrate only on the necessities of the little one (although I think I won't have a choice on this one even if I wanted to buy that new pair of shoes!)
4. be more organized (about everything in general)
5. be conscientious about cleaning the house
6. throw/donate/give away things we don’t need
7. work on lowering my cholesterol. Really.
8. save more money (once I start working again)
9. find a balance between the “mom life” and “me life” that suits me
10. but be sure pursue individual passions and interests and make time for them
11. yet make sure to spend quality time with the hubs
12. work on relationship with mom and dad (and try to end phone conversations with "i love you" at the end)
13. be more patient (with everything and everyone)
14. drive slower and forget about road rage (no, it's not really worth it to chase someone down and honk at them just because they cut you off)
15. stop letting little things get to me
16. resolve not to use credit cards for clothes, books, and other non-necessities
17. borrow more books from the library and buy less books
18. cook more and eat out less
19. spend time and make time for friends who make time for me (everyone says you’ll know who your friends really are once you have kids….hmm)
20. try not to miss church for any reason (and no, 3 out of 4 sundays a month is not good enough)
21. stop being envious of what people have and be happy for what I have
22. stop comparing myself to others and realize that i can only be me
23. wash my face every night (no fail!) and moisturize, moisturize, moisturize! (i'm not getting any younger!)
24. constantly strive to be a better person
25. stop procrastinating --carpe diem!

I have a feeling it's going to be a great year for everyone!