2012 Resolutions

The Resolutions: 
January 2012
1) Cook a new recipe once a month. (And post them here if I like it.)
2) Run 500 miles. I have already signed up for 2 half marathons (One in April and one in May)
3) Lose the 7-8 lbs I'm still carrying of baby weight.
4) Try new classes. Look for groupons or deals to experiment with different fitness classes in my area. I've already started a boot camp class that I bought on groupon.
5) Read 50 books. (I'm on book two right now.)
6) Host several dinners for my friends, especially the ones I haven't seen in ages.

What I've accomplished so far:  As of June 2012
1) I have attempted a few new recipes...I will have to post them here.
2) I'm up to 300 miles ran this year. :)
3) I have lost all of the baby weight!!  A couple of months ago I accomplished this one!
4) Other than the boot camp class I haven't tried another fitness class or other class.
5) I"m only on book 15, gotta speed up my reading.
6) I've had 2 dinner parties so far, well big dinner parties.  

Now as of September 2012
1) New recipe trying sort of dwindled as well as me posting them.  I have been reading magazines and ripping recipes out but those have just ended up in a pile in my kitchen.
2) I'm up to 454.48 miles...and I have a 10k coming up this Friday, a half marathon in 3 weeks, definitely will accomplish this goal.
3) In June I ate something that threw my stomach out of whack where I ended up eating only bread and water for 3-4 days and ended up losing 4 more pounds.  I thought it would come back and I'd be back to my pre-baby weight, but 3 months and it's still stayed off despite not changing anything in my diet or exercise.  So I'm now down to my college days weight, the college days when I wasn't in training/athletic mode.  When I was in college/early 20's and working out a lot for a race, I always gained a few pounds.  I'm hoping I keep it off.  :)
4) I attended a local Adventure Run at Road Runner Sports in my town.  Does that count?  It was something new.  I really enjoyed it and hope to do a few more this year.  I'm working with my boss at the YMCA to attend a training or two on some new classes for me to teach.  We'll see what I get into.
5) I'm up to book 30.  I gotta really cram to reach this goal.
6) I've had a few more dinner parties, not as much as I'd like, so I'd better start setting up some more.  Off to send some emails...

Books Read 2012

Books I've Read 2012
1. A Vintage Affair by Isabel Wolff
2. The World We Found by Thrity Umrigar This book was intriguing, a page turner, but it left me wanting more. I didn't feel the book had ended yet. 
3. The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom Very powerful book. I kept wanting to put it down but not, if that makes sense. I was thinking that it would be a heartwarming book but it was a series of tragedies. I fell in love or hated some of the characters and was engrossed with the story the whole time. Definitely a book I'll be thinking about for some time. 
4. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh I'd actually like to give this book 3.5 stars but since I can't I went with 3. I was frustrated reading this book. I was angry with the main character and the way she was acting. Funny I'm using such bad terms for a book I liked. But I guess I was just very engrossed with the book and felt connected to the characters in such a way that I had strong feelings toward them. 
5. Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes and the Greatest Race the World Has Seen by Chirstopher McDougall
6. Mrs. Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.  I loved this book.  It kept me enthralled and I loved the concept that the author wrote the book from some old photos he found at flea markets.  I'm eagerly waiting the next book. 
7. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
8. The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Allen Addison
9. I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
10. The Hangman's Daughter by Oliver Potzch
11. Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year by Anne Lamott Great book for mothers. I laughed out loud and commiserated with Anne and her first year of parenting.
 12. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
13. Seriously...I'm Kidding by Ellen Degeneres
14. Another Piece of My Heart by Jane Green I really liked this book. I don't know what part of it I was attached to, but it was a truly lovely story.
 15. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
16. The Dolphin in the Mirror: Exploring Dolphin Minds and Saving Dolphin Lives by Diana Reiss.  I really liked this book but I majored in Marine Biology and really wanted to study dolphin cognition.  Until I worked in a dolphin lab in Hawaii and realized how much work it would be for no money.  So I gave up my dream for a different one.  This book talked about many of the things I studied in Hawaii and about the lead researchers in this topic which I read about years ago.  It may be dry for non-science majors, but for me I really enjoyed reading it.
17. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
18. Your Five-Year-Old Sunny and Serene: by Frances Ilg
19. The Next Best Thing by Jennifer Weiner
20. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins.  I was so liking the series until this book.  Got too sci-fi on me, too graphic and gory for me and ended in a disappointment.
21. I Feel Bad about My Neck: And Other thoughts on being a Woman by Nora Ephron.  More of a chick-lit for the 60 year old's.  Too old for me to really enjoy the humor.
22. When Did I Get Like This? The Screamer, the Worrier, the Dinosaur-Chicken-Nugget-Buyer, and Other Mother's I Swore I'd Never Be by Amy Wilson This book was hilarious. So many times I was laughing out loud or reading sections to my husband. I felt that I could relate to many of the things that happened to Amy. It was nice to hear other mom's going though what I'm going through, and it was perfect that she was a mom of 3 too. I have already passed the book on to another mom for a quick read and good laugh.
23. The Young Wan by Brendan O'Carroll, I love this series, all of the books have kept me super entertained.  Definitely recommend the series.
24. A Secret Kept by Tatiana de Rosnay
25. Hissy Fit by Mary Kay Andrews
26. The Bungalow by Sarah Jio Definitely a page turner that kept me up all hours finishing it. Loved the story, very well written and captivating.
27. Train Like A Mother: How to Get Across Any Finish Line and Not Lose Your Family, Job or Sanity by Dimity Mcdowell and Sarah Bowen Shea.  I was mentioned in the beginning of the book.  I was one of the ladies at the Nike Women's Marathon book reading who was questioned whether they wanted a training log as their next book.  I was hoping for a book just like Train Like A Mother.  So glad they went this route.
28. Where We Belong by Emily Giffin This was a wonderful story. A story about an adopted girl finding her birth mother and father and finding herself. I was moved by both main characters as the author wove both their stories together (daughter and birth mother). It was well written and kept me enthralled. I just finished the book and the ending was well done. It could have ended in so many ways, but I like how the author concluded the story.
29. Beyond Sibling Rivalry: How to Help Your Children Become Cooperative, Caring and Compassionate by Peter Goldenthal
30. The Violets of March by Sarah Jio