So tomorrow I turn 29… and just like every other birthday for at least the last 10years I don’t feel ready for it… but I thought it might be nice to take a moment before it happens to reflect on the year that was 28 before it is gone altogether.  A couple of years ago I saw on Instagram… or maybe Facebook, I can’t remember… but it doesn’t really matter, I saw someone post x number of things they learned/loved/lived from the year of x… that might not make sense, right now, but hopefully it will in a minute.  The point is, I really liked it, and even though I can’t find it again now to say thank you to whoever it was, I have decided this is a good way to reflect… So here are 28 things that I have learned, loved and lived in the past year that have helped me prepare for 29… oh and if this idea was yours, please accept my thanks and let me know so I can say thanks properly.

1. Hot Chocolate is better with sprinkles… and yes that is a thing… you can add sprinkles to a Hot Chocolate.
2. I am still enjoying writing my list each year.  I hope this is something that I can keep doing, only as long as I still love it though.
3. 28 has been a year of travel, little trips, big trips, some close and some far away, but all wonderful. I have seen more, been further and done some pretty incredible things.
4. I am stronger and more capable then I think… I should remember this more often.
5. The internet is wonderful for keeping those who move far away, just a little bit closer.
6. I have been able to expand my skills at work and try some new things and found myself in the IT department for a little while.
7. It turns out I really like using some power tools… not the ones with saws or blades, but the drill with lots of attachments, that works.
8. Making small changes at home has made it feel even more like home than ever before.
9. Choosing Dave as my best friend and partner in crime is still the best decision I have ever made, he makes me a better person and in the next 12months I should appreciate him more.  He is strong, clever, loyal, funny, incredibly hard working and ridiculously good-looking at all times.
10. Camping isn’t a phase… I really do love it, I love being outside, I love sleeping under the stars and I love toasting marshmallows.
11. I am getting better at looking after myself, but I still have a long way to go… but I am more determined than ever to get there.
12. I have learned that life is full of unjust things, some of which affect me and lots which I contribute to, often without me knowing.  I need to pay more attention to my impact on the world around me. I can make it better, even if it’s only a little bit.
13. Being deliberate about my actions also applies to lost of other things… work, books, learning, devotions and faith… this year I have learnt that it is time to be deliberate about focusing on what I want/need/would like and making it happen.
14. Parkrun is always worth it, I will always feel better if I get up and exercise, even if it takes 4.5kms of the 5kms to feel that way.
15. Michael Bolton is totally underrated.
16. I love having the right gear to do things… especially my ‘adventure gear’ great jackets, pants, shorts, beanies, gloves, torches, shoes, bags… everything you need for adventures… I just need more adventures to use it.
17. It turns out I know less about a lot more than I thought… this is good news… I have lots to learn and I love learning.  Most recently I have loved learning about WWII, soviet occupation and Australian History.
18. My spatial awareness is still as terrible as ever… I don’t think this will ever change.
19. I am a sucker for a competition… this has been good for my exercise in the last 12months… I will do more kms even if it kills me.
20. I am learning to be satisfied with who I am and where I fit into the world, although this year, while I have found my place in some parts of my life, I have become completely unstuck in others.
21. For a while now I have thought I didn’t have the time/mental capacity to expand my friend network, but over the past 12months I have met a lot of new people and made some really amazing new friends… it turns out I do have the capacity and the time… I hope that 29 keeps bringing people into my life.
22. Skiing and bush walking are actually things I enjoy… that is a sentence I ever thought I would type.
23. There is nothing like the red dirt of the outback.
24. Sunrise and Sunset are always magical.
25. I can get up early if I really want to… and I should practice it more often.
26. Even though my family is complicated at times, it is wonderful, caring, loving and supportive.
27. I like being in a book club, it makes me read books I wouldn’t usually choose, but usually enjoy.
28. I can’t make happiness, or just choose to be happy, but I can choose to fill my life with people, things and places that make me happy, I can choose to see the good and I can choose to seek better… I think that is what I have done this year… or at least tried to do.

Thanks 28, you have been a winner… here is to 29.  May 29 be even better… I hope that I learn more, love more and live more.