2012 Favorites

Happy 2013!!!

 

Two years ago I started an annual favorites post. 

I thought I'd continue the tradition!

 

2011 Favorites

2010 Favorites

1. Favorite Book - Really, really tough call, but I'm going to go with The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty. I couldn't put this book down.  I enjoyed the historical fiction, the twists and turns, and the discussion that month with my daytime book club, As the Page Turns. Surprising read.

Honorable Mentions - Take a Bow, The Gallagher Girls series, Wild, Zippy, Insurgent, and The Book Thief.  You can find me on goodreads.com.

 

 

 

 

 

2.  Favorite Movie - This was also really hard - there have been some fantastic movies out this fall.  But, I'm going to go with Pitch Perfect.  I had a great time with my chick flick group seeing this movie, then again later with a friend who had missed it.  Said friend then ordered me the CD and my mom and dad gave me the DVD for Christmas.  Sweet!  It was a fun movie, a real surprise.

 

 

Honorable Mentions - The Descendants, Hunger Games, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, The Amazing Spider Man, Bernie, Moonrise Kingdom, Celeste and Jesse Forever, Argo, Perks of Being a Wallflower, Argo, Lincoln, Les Miserables  (yes, I see that's too many honorable mentions)

 

 

3.  Favorite Trip - We were fortunate to go on two BIG trips in 2012.  I really enjoyed our trip out west - the drive from San Francisco to Napa to Yosemite to Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon to Utah was incredible and I really enjoyed the time with the family. 

 

BUT, I would have to say that my favorite trip of 2012 was certainly HAWAII!





 

 

 

Favorite TV Character - Wow.  This is tough.  I forgot about this category.  I thought about Connie Britton's character on Nashville (she's just as fantastic as she was on Friday Night Lights), and Mindy Kaling from The Mindy Project who I absolutely relate to.  We, of course, love everyone from The Big Bang Theory, and I rarely miss catching up on NCIS or Parks and Rec. 

 

But, I am going to go with Sgt. Nicholas Brody from Homeland.  David and I just started watching this show on DVD and I really like his character.  So well written and portrayed by Damian Lewis.

I didn't realize he'd won the Emmy last year.  I really liked him in Band of Brothers too, but he's unbelievably good in Homeland.

 

 

 

Favorite New Hobby - It was easier the last two years when I, in effect, took up one new hobby each year (piano and cooking).  This year though - it's harder to define.  So I'm going to go with "Learning". 

 

In 2012 I learned a lot and took on new challenges that I absolutely love. 

 

I learned a lot about whole foods cooking and I learned a lot through my health coach over 6 months. 

 

I read a lot more non-fiction than I ever have, including books on health and wellness, Asperger's, happiness, parenting, travel, volcanoes, habits, classical music, being grateful, gripping memoirs, and organization.

 

I spent 3 months studying architects and architecture in our city - in preparation to become a tour guide through the visitor's center.  Sooo much to learn, and so much left to learn.  It is a fascinating new area for me though.

 

I even took up math late in the year.  I finished one book on "basic math and pre-algebra" and I've jumped into "algebra" now.  It's been a great review and I've actually really enjoyed it.  And now I'll be able to keep up with the boys' homework!

 

 

Wishing you a very happy 2013!