2011 has been a year to be proud of. It is amazing to think how different things were a year ago. In 2011 I got pregnant and had a baby! How can the new year possibly top that? I am also hugely proud of everything I have accomplished with The Suburban Mom this year from a trip to LA for The Lion King 3D premiere to an ambassadorship with Whirlpool I have done some really neat things. Plus as my blog has grown, so has the support of my readers who reach out to me to tell me that they appreciate the deals I have passed along and information I share. (You will never fully understand how much that means to me!)

As the New Year draws close and I reflect on everything I accomplished, I can only dream of what is to come in 2012. I am not one to make New Year’s resolutions. Mostly because it is too much pressure to come up with something to change or do that I will actually stick with, and shouldn’t we set and try to keep goals year round instead of just at the New Year? That said, there are a few things I want to do in 2012, so I am going to set a few goals for myself for the New Year. Wish me good luck!

#1 – As a friend recently put it, “I refuse to let my children be jpegs.” I don’t remember the last time I actually had pictures printed. Sure I print one or two here or there, but remember the days when we printed EVERY picture. HA! I stay fairly organized with my pictures, but I just take so many. So my goal is to spend one hour per week on my photos and memories. Either organizing, working on a photo book or just writing down memories. The idea is an hour each Friday, because Fridays are slow any way. More’s great, but if I have to, I will set a timer and make myself take an hour to play with my photos.

#2 – This is the hard one. Somehow, someway I have to find a way to keep the house more organized. Not for myself, not for my husband (although he would be thrilled), but for my girls. I want them to grow up in a house they can be proud of, and my piles aren’t pretty. I don’t know how I will do this, but I need to. For my girls.

#3 – Play more, stress less. Again, not sure how I will accomplish this, but this is also for my girls so I must.

#4 – Watch my blog grow and write more. I started my blog as an outlet for writing, but as it continues to grow I find myself writing less and less just for fun. I have taken on some writing jobs recently to exercise my creative writing side, and I want to write more fun things for my blog. Making time for everything is a challenge, but as I try to squeeze in a few things just for fun I hope you (my loyal readers) will enjoy them. (Feedback is always appreciated.)

So there you have it, my goals for 2012. More than anything else, I hope to have a year filled with laughter and good health. We were so blessed in 2011, I can only hope to be equally blessed in the new year.

I’d love to hear your goals for 2012, anything you’d like to see from The Suburban Mom or even your favorite things from 2011. Please feel free to share. 🙂

And because I STILL have not mailed my Christmas cards (my goal for tonight), here’s my family Christmas photo. (Sorry to friends and family who will see it here first. I guess that’s another goal for 2012, to get my Christmas cards mailed before Christmas!)

Happy New Year!