What I did in 2015

I bought a house.

I traveled a lot. I don't remember how many times or to how many places.

I read 75 books.

I went through the entire holiday day season without baking anything. Lots of plans for things to bake. Ingredients bought. Yet, no baking. Or candy making. This is a lifetime first. I'm not sad either. Weird.

I made and froze whole apple pies, unbaked, with whole wheat crusts. I plan to eat my first slice tonight.

I tried one new variety of apple. It was tart and crunchy and will make amazing pie or crisp. It would be super good as a caramel apple.

I fell in love with upstate new york in the springtime. Also, their farmer's market.

I bombed on all of my 2015 new year resolutions. The only one I remember is adding $12,000 to my down payment fund by the end of the year. Fail.

I drove nearly 10,000 miles going cross country and back multiple times.

I bought 20 lbs of poly fil.

I used about 18 pounds of it.

The rest I ditched in Kentucky so the nieces and nephews can stop cutting up tiny bits of knit fabric to use as stuffing for their sock cats and hand-sewn monsters.

I might be the best aunt ever. For reals.

I am favorite aunt to at least two of my nieces and nephews. I'm a serious contender for seven more. Bam.

I tried to take care of myself emotionally. It was hard. And weird. I preferring ignoring my emotional angst.

I started seeing a witch doctor. The general populace knows him as a chiropractor that believes in alternative healing.

He's nearly fixed my wrists.

He also gave me pills for my frequent gagging. Who knew you could supplement gagging? It didn't help. It made me gag more. A lot more.

I practiced piano for the first time in 12 years. I used to think I was bad at sixteen notes.

I'm super super bad at sixteenth notes.

My sugar cravings have been tamed.

I wore out two pairs of boots.

I decreased my scarf wardrobe to about 18.

I bought five cake stands. Only four survived.

I had big plans. I did big things.

What I planned and what I did has almost no overlap.

I reconnected with a dear, childhood friend. Without facebook.

I realized that it doesn't matter how much money I make (I got a fabulous raise earlier in the year). I will always feel poor because I will always want more money. I will never save enough money.  Thus, I will never have enough money. I've decided to deal with it. I'm trying to be less o
f a freak about money.

I sewed dozens of letter pillows.

Most of my Christmas gifts were perfect. I love getting the perfect gift for the perfect person.

I went to Mexico for the first time and loved it.

I met my Mom's cousin that she didn't know existed from the side of the family that I've never met.

I bought my first large appliance. Yay for fridges.

I bought my second large appliance. Yay for extra freezers.

I had a birthday veggie platter instead of a birthday cake.

I bought a dozen eclairs the day after the birthday veggie platter. I shared four and ate the rest in about 24 hours.

I installed my own water softener.

I opened a scribd.com account. With all the travel, it was life changing.

I cancelled my scribd account.

I was gifted a samsung galaxy nook tablet days after I cancelled my scribd account.

I'm seriously considering reopening my scribd account.

I also cancelled my B&N membership. I don't buy books anymore. It's not a money priority.

My parents gifted me a B&N membership for my birthday. They didn't actually spend the money. They gave me a pamphlet with the gift written on it. I'm supposed to use my credit card and then get reimbursed. I don't buy books. I think I'll keep the pamphlet and not renew my membership. To remind me how much my parents love me.

I dug out all of my projects. I didn't finish a single one, but I've got plans. So many plans.

I got rid of boxes and boxes of books.

I still have enough books to fill three full-size shelves with leftovers.

I decided to accept myself as I am.

I learned that when I'm overly stressed I stop eating. It's much easier to crawl back into bed under stress than to find food.

I bought myself an ice cream maker. I only made a single batch of ice cream in it. I've made dozens of batches of ice cream in my brother's, my sister's, and my mother's ice cream tub.

I made my own reusable dryer sheets.

I started cleaning with vinegar and water.

I've learned that vinegar and water followed by olive oil is like magic on stainless steel appliances.

I bought my first Christmas decorations.

I acquired a small green ukelele. I don't know how to play it yet.

I wore through another sterling silver ring. I nearly always wear one on one of my fingers. I like my jewelry to be small and delicate which means that constant wear leads to wearing out. I've learned from experience that once the ring splits on one side, it won't be long until it splits on the other side. I split a ring completely in half. I have a ring on a necklace that I wore until it split on one side. Now I have another one.

I might be the only person I know that has actually worn out a ring.

I started wearing the green uggs that I've had for two or three years but never worn. It was necessary after wearing out two pairs of boots.

Mostly this year was a whirl of travel, babies, work, and not enough sleep. It's hard to get a lot of things done when you spend most of your time other places.

I'm sure I did things that I'm not remembering.

I feel good about this list as it is.

Now it's time to start making a new list. The best part of every new everything.