I feel like 2011 has been a really, really good year for me. Probably the best year I’ve ever had, honestly. Friends came to visit us. Eric asked me to marry him. We started planning our wedding and saving money. We did something really impulsive – but totally awesome – on our 5th anniversary. We moved into an incredibly, lovely new house in an amazing neighborhood (and I just realized I haven’t put up a house tour yet! I think I know what I’ll be doing this weekend…). I finished the first draft of one novel and began another. I won NaNoWriMo. I’ve made some amazing new friends and reconnected with old friends. I danced on stage in front of an audience and didn’t suck.  I made the decision to be confident in my own abilities and keep writing. I decided that I want to do this writing thing for real – or try my hardest, anyway.

In other words, 2011 has set the bar pretty high as far as awesome years go. If 2012 is HALF as good, I’ll consider myself lucky.

I decided to go ahead and make a list of ten things I want to do in 2012:

1. Go on a trip. Eric and I most likely won’t be able to afford a honeymoon, but I’d still like to go on a little trip, even if it’s only for a weekend.
2. Have a wonderful, beautiful wedding. And not stress out TOO much over it – I just want an honest, heartfelt celebration with the people I love most in this world.
3. Finish my MS.
4. Find a Crit Partner or a writing group.
5. Be accepted into the fiction program here at Hopkins & start taking classes!
6. Run a 5k.
7. Start querying!
8. Continue to decorate our home and fill it up with pretty things and, most importantly, love.
9. Make new friends, and find time to catch up with old ones.
10. Remember to be happy and thankful every day. Sometimes it’s easy to forget how wonderful I really have it.

I think these are realistic goals – and I hope that posting them here publicly will help me follow through on them.

What about you? How was 2011 for you – and what do you hope to accomplish in 2012?