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Sunday, January 02, 2011

2010, The Year In Review

Sorry about the delay in getting my annual "Year In Review" post up, I had really intended to do it yesterday, then the letter "i" broke on my laptop keyboard.  Do you know how hard it is to get by without the letter i?  Pretty darned hard.  So today when the shops opened up not only did we do the grocery shopping, I got a new wireless keyboard, wireless printer (silly me though its not compatible with the air print on my iPhone... shoulda done my research first but it was dirt cheap!), and a new laptop.  Did I REALLY need a new laptop?  No, my old one has been performing beautifully but all of you know I do hit the roads quite regularly and you loose the point of a laptop when you have to have a keyboard, it kinda becomes a glorified desktop computer.  The reason we did get the new keyboard for it is so that Todd can inherit it.  He's been using a really old laptop for sometime now and I'm tired of hearing him curse and swear over it so in the end it will reduce my stress level.  I've moved up in the world to a 17.6 inch monitor and I quite like it.  I'll probably change my mind when I lug it with me!

Let's get to the interesting stuff first....

The ceremonial emptying of the Ort Jar on New Year's Day!  I've noticed many of my online stitching friends have adopted this annual tradition as well.  Doesn't it feel great/therapeutic to dispose of all of those orts to start fresh?  I think this year I'll have to hit some of those neat shops I went to in the fall with my friend Tracey to find myself a nicer, more interesting ort jar than a plain old Mason Jar.

The Ort Jar stuffed full by December 31, 2010

Emptied and awaiting 2011 orts!

Stitching Year In Review :

I completed 30 projects in 2010 all of varying sizes from the tiny to the very big!  The finishes I'm most proud of are :


Tour des Marques by The Silver Lining
(psst I have another SL waiting in the wings)

Celestial Dragon by Teresa Wentzler

I had hoped to finish Art Deco Spirits as well in 2010 but I got close, with finishing up 3/4 on New Year's Day ( I didn't quite make the midnight deadline, but I was backstitching as the clock struck midnight at Rebecca's).

3/4 of Art Deco Spirits completed

Air Panel finished on New Year's Day

So this year there's not big New Year's Day start as there has been in previous years. My good friends Bonnie and Christin (she's got a pic of the flower frog I bought her on her blog go take a look!) indulged themselves by starting Ink Circle's Cirque des Cirques. I may join them later in the year.  For now I'm going to carry on with last year's focus, to empty out what's left in my stitching basket!  I did very well this past year with finishing off Tour Des Marques and Celestial Dragon, both very big projects!

Here's what's left to stitch up in 2011

Art Deco Spirits by Mirabilia

The Accolade - Timeless Designs, Gitta's

Delightful Dragon Fob by Teresa Wentzler

Enchantment of Winter by Dimples Designs -- my next focus piece

This little kit I started on my DR trip last year and I've had no interest in picking it back up

Byzantine Ornament #3 by Teresa Wenztler

I of course will be continuing my ornament a month which I have been doing for years!  I think this year I'll be stitching up all the JBW mittens to match the stockings I gave the girls in the office for Christmas this past year, and I'll finish up the Teresa Wentzler Byzantine Ornaments.

Personal Highlights of 2010....

My Dominican Experience Trip for sure!  What an amazing experience (see my posts from March 2010), and to share it with teenagers just made it so much more rewarding.  I'm very fortunate and my Principal has allowed me to run the trip again for 2011 and in a few short weeks I'll be back in The Dominican Republic again, this time with 12 different students!  I'm looking forward to my trip February 18-25th, and of course I will have photos for you!

My summer vacation was just so wonderful this year!  I got to spend a couple of days up in the gorgeous Georgian Bay area with my friend Sheila, it was a treat for sure!

Then I got to spend 3 days in Quebec City with my Mum.  If you're ever in Canada or are a Canadian everyone should make a trip to Quebec City once in their lives!  I definitely want to go back and explore it some more.

Of  course there have been the wonderful retreats and get togethers I've been lucky to attend this last year!  I enjoy and cherish each an every one of them.  There's nothing more pleasing than being in a room full of people intent on one purpose that's to stitch!!!  I of course am looking forward to more of these great days with friends in 2011!!!

Billy Talent

Nickleback
Concerts!  There's not been too many of them in 2010 here in Ottawa but I did get to go to two great shows with Christin early on in the year, Billy Talent and Nickleback!  Two of my favourite bands!

I got to see a once in a lifetime show this fall with my Mum when Roger Waters went on tour with Pink Floyd's The Wall from start to finish.  Wow!  What a show!

There was a hurricane named after me this year!  However I do think it was a fairly well behaved hurricane... as well as a hurricane can be.

I participated in my 3rd Run For the Cure and thanks to many of you I raised $1,410.00 for breast cancer research.  I'll be running again the first Sunday in October of 2011.  Speaking of running I've set two goals for myself this year and they're BIG!  I've already registered for the 10K in the Ottawa Race Weekend on Saturday May 28th.  This will be my first official timed race!  I'm hoping this will lead to registering and completing the Ottawa Army Run Half Marathon in September (not yet registered for).

Despite running this blog for 7 years, in July I stared a second blog : Battle of the Bulge, I wanted to separate my stitching blog from my weight loss experience.  Over at my new blog I'm sharing my weekly progress, Weight Watchers meeting topics, ideas and insights.  Speaking of my weight, I rung in the New Years 2lbs lighter than before the Christmas holidays started!  I was so happy to come out of this holiday season with a loss (very hard to do).  Ideally I'd like to loose 6 more pounds to get within my "healthy" BMI.  This year has definitely been a challenge to maintain my weight loss, back in March I gained about 6-8 lbs and it took me until August to get those pesky pounds off... they went on in 3 weeks and took me MONTHS to get off again.  Since then I've maintained my goal weight and have even dipped a little bit below every once in awhile.

This fall I was back to teaching at Taekwon-Do after a very long break (like 3 years!), its great to be back at the front of the class again.  I'm teaching the "Little Tigers" 4-6 year olds and loving it!  They are so much fun and life is just so simple and straightforward to them.  I also competed for the first time in just as long, coming home from a friendship tournament with a gold and bronze medals.  I look forward to competing some more this year.

I was very proud this year to remember to and fully participate in NaBloPoMo!  I posted once a day on TWO blogs for the whole month of November.  Imagine doing 60 blog entries in 30 days?  Yup I'm that crazy!

I've enjoyed getting back to sharing my PhotoHunt pictures with you in 2010 and I intend to continue in 2011.  I've got some catching up to do!!!

Finally on the fun side of life, I got to drive a Corvette for the first time ever!

So I think that covers EVERYTHING!  What I have done and what I hope to do both in my stitching life and my personal life.  I hope everyone has a fantastic New Year!

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wishing you and Todd a wonderful 2011. You've had an amazing year. I hope 2011 is even better.

Hugs!

Meadows08 said...

Loved seeing your year in review! Great projects and experiences too! All the best to you in the New Year.

Blu said...

What an eventful year! Hope 2011 is even better!

mbroider said...

Wishing you and Todd a great year ahead!

I loved the "how hard it is to get by without the letter i". LOL

'i' is important either in letter or non-letter form, on keyboard or as a person, itself!! It is capital!!!

Mary said...

Your post was definitely worth the wait. You had many accomplishments this year. All very inspiring ones. I wish you lots of great health and fun in 2011. Hugs! Mary

P.S. You may have finally convinced me that I need to go to Quebec City. I've avoided going for at least 20 years. Maybe in 2011 I will take that trip. :-)

Anonymous said...

What a great, and very busy, year 2010 was for you. Here's hoping 2011 will be just as good, with plenty of stitching to share.

Erna said...

Hi Dani Wishing you and Todd and even better 2011, but hey girl 2010 must have been wonderful too as I can read and see.
Hugs
Erna

Lesleyanne said...

Happy New Year. Loved your post. Hope 2011 is a good as 2010 for you.

Lynn said...

I loved seeing your year in review with all those great stitches. On with 2011! I'm sure it will be a good one.

Alice said...

Great memories Dani! I've enjoyed your blogging and look forward to seeing what happens in 2011.

jayne@~an eye for threads~ said...

What a year Dani, I wish you all the best in 2011 and maybe, just maybe our paths will cross.
Be always in stitches.

Christine said...

You had quite a year! Hope 2011 is even better.

riona said...

A good year ... may 2011 be even better.

Carol said...

What a year you've had, Dani; wonderful stitching and amazing travel experiences! Wishing you more of both in 2011...

Lisa said...

Wow! What a wonderful review of 2010! Lots of wonderful projects completed, great oppotunities taken and experiences enjoyed! Now onto 2011 and may it be filled with even more - love, laughter, health and happiness!
Take care!

Karen said...

2010 will be a year to remember for you! What a great start to a new decade. You had some amazing finishes and wonderful events this past year. Best wishes in 2011!

Bekca said...

Wow, it looks like you had a great 2010 - here's hoping for the same (or better even) in 2011!

Kathy A. said...

Great post Dani. Look forward to sharing 2011 with you.

geeky Heather said...

Great year in review! You look fantastic, Dani, congratulations on all the lost weight.

Does Todd ever smile in pictures?? =)

Best wishes on a wonderful new year!

Brigitte said...

I loved to read your review - what an eventful year it was for you. Great trips, great stitching and stitching events! Wishing you a just as eventful and happy 2011!

Jodie said...

Good for you for registering in the 10k!! I'm so excited for you! I ran my very first timed race ever last year, the 5k at Ottawa Race Weekend! The energy there is absolutely amazing...can't wait to hear about it! One of my goals for 2011 is to run a half marathon...and am thinking of the Ottawa Half.

Lisa said...

Wow you had a very busy and exciting 2010 from where I'm standing!
Some wonderful stitchy finishes and great progress on some wips.