"And as I start to run, I stop to breathe..."

Whenever a new year starts I always have to ask myself, "What did I do with my life last year? What did I accomplish?" Sometimes it's hard to remember what happened and if I did anything of significance. At the beginning of last year I made a list of ten areas in which I wanted to improve, and while I did not go 10 for 10, I think 2008 was a successful year in terms of improvement and changes.

I started last year in a very bad place, both physically and emotionally, so my accomplishments are of a more personal nature. I am grateful for the support of family, friends and Heavenly Father for helping me get through the year. Here's a quick overview of the things I accomplished/did in 2008:

• Completed a 6-month internship with Fleishman-Hillard Los Angeles
• Officially graduated from BYU with a bachelor's degree in Public Relations
• Moved out of sunny California to my home-sweet-home in Texas
• Traveled to Europe with two of my sisters (a trip we had been planning for six months)
• Had grand bookstore adventures as a bookseller at the best bookstore on the planet
• Made the decision to go back to school to study English Teaching
• Was accepted as an undergrad transfer student at The University of Texas at Austin
• Moved from Dallas to Austin (with the help of The Romney Family Movers, Inc.)
• Lost 20 lbs. from exercising and eating more healthy

And in the lives of my family and friends:

• Grandpa Layton passed away in March, leaving Grandma Layton as my last living grandparent
• Brother Jason left on his mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to serve in the Eugene Oregon Mission
• Sister Julie graduated from Carroll Senior High School and started her first year at BYU
• Best Friend Joanna returned home from serving in the Las Vegas Nevada Mission
• Best Friend Rachel started her first year of nursing school
• Nephews Ethan and Milo got even more adorable every time I saw them

And finally, here are some of the more random things I did this year:

• Traveled to the following cities: St. George, San Francisco, Provo, London, Paris, Los Angeles, Portland, Austin
• Experienced my first pioneer trek reenactment
• Sprained my ankle while vacationing in Europe
• Bought a new Toyota Tacoma truck (Leona!)
• Finished my first needlepoint project (it only took me eight years)
• Added 891 new songs to my iTunes music library
• Read well over 100 books (didn't keep track, but believe me - I read A LOT)
• Won't even try to count how many movies I saw
• And I don't even want to think about how many hours I spent watching full TV seasons on DVD

So that's 2008! It was great! Now moving on...