Resolutions Revisited

2013 is already halfway over! That means it's time to check in with my resolutions for the first half of the year...

Well, actually, let's back up to the stuff I didn't quite finish from the last half of 2012. 

Get a new license plate. Check! After we paid off our car and received the title, we got ourselves a Washington license plate. So, I guess you can say we're officially moved in.

Finish Claire's Christmas present. Check! I finally finished the six remaining felt alphabet magnets at the very end of June. Good thing she didn't miss them at all. 

Alright, moving onto my resolutions for the first half of 2013. 

Visit our friends in Pittsburgh. Check! We visited our friends in Pittsburgh over the MLK long weekend in January and had the very best time.

Make a photo book for the previous year. Check! I made our first family yearbook, Claire's baby book, and re-did our wedding album. So, now our whole life is documented via photo book.

Teach Claire some baby sign language. Kinda check? So far, she only knows the sign for "all done." We definitely had trouble being consistent with this, just like I predicted. We did tackle our other big parenting challenge, though, and successfully transitioned her from formula to whole milk and from bottles to sippy cups.

Send birthday cards. Check! I sent birthday cards to all of my friends, as well as some homemade birthday gifts to Claire's baby friends.

Get out and explore our new city. Almost check? We missed January and May {not so coincidentally the months we went on cross-country trips} but were successful the other four months. In February, we went to the MOHAI and Adam climbed Mount Si. In March, we went to Pike Place Market and I went to Victoria. In April, we went to the tulip festival. And in June, we went to Snoqualmie, Pike Place Market, and the Chihuly Museum.

Make Claire a quilt for her first birthday. Check! I used the fabric from her monthly photos to make a quilt, doll quilt, and birthday banner.

Build a desk for our bedroom.  Check! We finished this project just under the wire and are completely thrilled with how it turned out. 

Visit our family in Houston. Check! We spent two weeks there in May for both of our sisters' graduations and also got to visit Adam's grandpa in New Orleans.

Make more things from scratch. Kinda check? In particular, I wanted to work on pie crust and pizza dough. Morning sickness threw me off for a few months, but I'm doing really with the pizza dough. Although I found a recipe I really love for pie crust, I often still take the easy way out and use a store-bought crust.

Hire a babysitter every other month. Check! We actually got out for a date night every month besides January. In February, we went out for Valentine's Day. In March, we went to the movies. In April, we celebrated Adam's birthday. In May, we celebrated my birthday. And in June, we actually got to spend a night at a hotel. 

I also made some reading goals for the whole year, so let's see my progress there.

  
One history-related book. Check! I read the Penguin History of Canada and learned so much about my native land.

A spiritual book for the mind, the heart, and the soul. Definitely a ways to go. I am halfway through Saints for Catholic Moms and I've read the first couple chapters of Three to Get Married. Adam and I like to keep track of how many books we read per year. So far, his nine is handily beating my seven!