I had a pretty solid year, all things considered. There were certainly some downs, but to focus on the positives:
-I self-published a book and even managed to sell a few to folks who don't know me.
-I brought my blog up to 50 articles and got it to a point where it's at least paying for itself (not really saying much but it's the first hobby that's paid for itself).
-We bought a new house, which is the last one I'm buying before retirement. It's a wonderful neighborhood to raise kids in and my son has several (masked) friends. There's got to be 20 kids + / - 3 years of him here.
-At work, I was asked to take on a new unit early in the year that was struggling and managed to turn them around. They're exceeding the expectations I set for them and are leading the pack in several key metrics.
-I brought 4 Civ2 scenarios to the brink of completion (that annoying part where you only have some minor stuff to do but the energy and passion is just plummeting). I made considerable progress on a secret 5th scenario that I consider my magnum opus
-I spent a lot of time exploring local lakes with my son as travel to more distant ones wasn't happening. We found some new spots that we never would have gone to.
-I helped my son learn how to swim now that we have a pool. He went from struggling to stick his head under water to swimming around like a fish.
-I got to see my daughter grow up (she turned two in August). I felt like I watched my son grow up on videos the babysitters took a few years ago. I missed almost everything because I was at work. It's been a blast seeing my sweetheart start jabbering on, learning new words, starting to sing and dance (she's so cute - she has a little princess dress in her toybox and if she feels like dancing, she goes and grabs it). Honestly spending time with her was just the best. It was so great to be able to go downstairs and have a little tea party when I need to step away for a few moments.