Hello 2012....

I'm so happy that it's 2012, 

I have the strongest feeling that it's going to be a Really Really Good Year.

When I look back to the post I wrote on January 1 2011 , I can hardly believe it was whole year ago.

I also wrote a list of things I wanted to see/do/accomplish during the year....and I did many of them. 

It was a great year for me in so many ways.

I travelled to Italy twice and France three times, spending a blissful and unprecedented three weeks there for our family summer holiday.

I wanted to spend more time on my blog and I did. 

I wrote more posts this year, my "Wellness and Wellbeing" theme in November was the most popular  and inspiring (thanks to some amazing guestbloggers) subject I have ever written on and I made many new friends and connections.

I feel very proud of my blog but, more importantly, I love blogging more than ever!

I am so happy to be still writing it and loving it so much, 2.5 years on.

It's definitely one of my "happy places", I get so much from it and am still amazed and so flattered that people comment, share, give of themselves - and donate. 

I have so many fantastic readers.  

I am very excited to see what 2012 brings for The Bottom of the Ironing Basket.

One of the things I wrote on my list was "speak to Dad at least once a week"....for various reasons that just hadn't been possible and was not how our relationship had been for a few years. 

Little did I know that was about to change drastically....

after he was rushed into hospital, we were told in March that he would be lucky to get through another couple of months and several times I raced across London, doing the 90 minute journey in record time after getting "the call" from the hospital. 

Amazingly, here we are on the first day of 2012 and he is still with us. 

He lives in a nursing home now though and there he will remain with my brother and I responsible for him and still attempting to make the best possible choices for him.

I truly know now that you never ever know how strong you are until life gets really serious and you have no other choice.

Hope springs eternal though, as they say, and  I start 2012 with excitement, energy and feeling very positive. I can't help myself really, January 1 seems like a huge blank page for me.....ready to be written on and for new things to happen.

One thing I do know is that good things rarely just happen....you need to make them happen. 

Luck might come into it, but it's often more about hard work.

And so, I do have a plan....another list...places I'd like to visit, personal goals, dreams and aspirations.

My friend Kim wrote a great piece over here ....

we've been good friends for a long time now and I know she often chooses a word which sums up her hopes for the year.

I've been thinking about this all day but ended up not being able to choose just one....
accomplish, focus, plan, explore, achieve, believe

all of the above are on my list.

(one of my favourite quotes....)

I want to do the things that I truly love doing...I think it's the only way.

How often do we hear people say "do what really makes you happy"?
I'm following my heart this year, seeing where it takes me, saying yes and moving forward. 

This year I need to challenge myself and edge myself out of the comfort zone I can sometimes find myself in.

Starting my Philips PerfectCare Project definitely pushed me in the right direction, I began cookery classes (Italian & Thai) last term and next week I start French Cookery :)

  

I want to consolidate certain things and try new ones.

I feel this can be an amazing year.

Most importantly, I want to surprise myself.

I want to get to the end of 2012 and be totally exhausted - in a good way of course!!!

I want to look back and know it was A Year To Remember....

having done things I wanted to do and also thinking "wow, I never thought I'd do that!!"

Here's to a wonderful, exciting, eventful, inspiring, challenging and happy 2012!!

For you and for me :)