I'm Baaaaacccckkkk

SOOOOOOO as you can see, I totally slacked off with keeping up the whole blog thing during the latter part of 2012. In fact, I think my last post was sometime in June or July. Pretty pathetic for someone who loves to write as much as I do.

I say this all the time, but I really am going to try to do a better job with keeping up my blog. I'm really tempted to just scrap it all together and start over, but my pride just won't let me do that, at least until I turn 30, and then I can start anew.

2012 turned out to be a huge year of growth for me, particularly concerning my job. I have made leaps and bounds this past year at work, even earning a promotion in November for all of my hard work, but it hasn't been easy, and the hard work is not over yet. Not that I haven't enjoyed myself along the way, I have, but as with any really challenging experience, I've had my fair share of ups and downs.

I'm really hoping to take my career to the next level this year and step up to the plate and show everyone what I'm all about! I'd say my biggest challenge on the job is maintaining my confidence and recognizing that though I may not be the most experienced person on the team, I still have a lot to contribute and need to do a better job of recognizing that I am a valuable asset to the team. I never really struggled with work confidence in the past, but ever since I got laid off from my previous job, I've started doubting myself and my abilities and I have to stop doing that. I know that I am very smart and very capable. Sometimes it just takes time to build confidence, and that often comes along with knowledge about what I'm doing. So, I've made it my resolution (one of them, at least) to step up my game this year at work and become an MVP at work.

But enough about that, I feel like I should recap 2012 before diving any more into 2013. Here is a recap of the top moments of my year:

1. Sam and I built our very first home together. Holla!
2. FINALLY bought a new car for myself. It was an extremely stressful process, one that took months to navigate and lots of lying cars salesman to deal with, but we finally made it happen and I got my dream car. Couldn't be happier with it!
3. Went to our very first Texans game! How sad is it that I've lived in Houston since the Texans were created and I've NEVER been to a Texans game?! Thank God for good friends who were generous enough to share their tickets with us.



 

4. As mentioned previously, got a promotion at work!
5. Visited family and friends in Pennsylvania & Marlyand, including a cousin I haven't seen in roughly 7 years. Felt so good to see everyone!

There were definitely more great things that happened in 2012, but these are the top 5 that stick out in my mind. I took some time to revisit the Resolutions I made in December of 2011 to see how I did over the last year. Here's a brief recap of each Resolution:

Become financially healthy - Meehhh, Sam and I kinda got financially healthier, but we're definitely not where I'd like us to be. In fact, I'm currently working on putting together a budget for us for 2013.

Sign up for my first 5k - Nope, didn't happen.

Tap into my creativity - Okay, I think I've gotten better about this. I still haven't been scrapbooking as much as I'd like to, but my creativity has gotten better over the last year. We'll consider this an ongoing goal.

Blog more - Yeah that totally didn't happen as much as I would've liked. Although in my defense, it has been difficult to blog since my lap top is ancient and moves at the pace of snail stuck in molasses, but I did finally get my office desktop computer set up this weekend, so I really don't have any excuses now.

Go to Las Vegas - Uhhhh nope. Next.

Get a promotion at work - YES! Here's one I actually accomplished.

Budoir Photoshoot - YES! Did this one in October. Sorry, probly won't be posting any of these photos!

Buy a house - Or build, but another YES!

Buy a new car - YES!

Start horseback riding again - Nooooo. Just didn't have it in the funds this year. And to be honest, it isn't likely this will happen in 2013 either. But, stranger things have happened.

Work on my writing - No, not nearly as much as I wanted to!

Get in shape - Periodically, yes. I was doing exceptionally well August-October, and then kinda fell off the wagon. Hoping to jump back on the wagon starting this week.

So, overall, I'll give myself a strong D. I almost accomplished half of what I aimed for (and that's looking on the bright side). Not saying much, but the good news is, there's always 2013 to do better! I'm still working on my resolutions for the year, but will post soon about what those will be.