Year in Pictures - The Last Week

I cannot believe that this project is over. I realized today that this truly was the last day of my 365 project. Where has this year gone and how did it go so quickly. I've been reflecting back on this project over the last week and have some more thinking to do about this project - so look for another post soon! For now, I wanted to share the last 8 photographs I took for this project. I am proud of myself for making it through. I took 363 pictures out of 365 over this past year - but I know for a fact that I took more pictures this year then in any other year, which was my ultimate goal. I don't know if I'm going to be doing Year In Pictures again but I can assure that I will be doing something to ensure that I keep posting pictures on my blog regualray.

With that, I give you the last 8 photos of my year in pictures project, the photos of the last 8 days of my 32nd year. Even though I don't have to take a picture tomorrow on the 6th, I will, just so I do have a photo from every day (but 2!) of my 32nd year!

358:365 - To Go

08/29/2010 - I'm sure I've mentioned before that Shane and I eat a lot of to go food. It is just easier for us - there are only two of us and we each eat different food. It also means there are no dishes. We like to have dinner from P.F. Chang's every few weeks - my favorite is the crispy green beans and Ma Pu Tofu. Yum!

359:365 - Hard Summer

08/30/2010 - It has been a hot yet rainy summer here in Iowa. Our lawn is suffering from this weather. The top has washed out so we are left with a patch of dry dirt and the rest of the lawn is just dead. Dead. There are sprinklers built in but apparently it isn't enough.

360:365 - Texts of Wisdom

08/31/2010 - I am a worrier. I over analyze everything. I am an over thinker. When I'm exhausted it gets worse. That happened today - I was just worn down but had a lot on my mind. Thank goodness for great friends who tell me like it is!

361:365 - Sapphire

09/01/2010 - I received this ring from my grandparents when I graduated from college. It is a beautiful sapphire (my birthstone). I don't tend to wear a lot of jewelry but when I wear this ring I feel comforted, like my grandparents are with me, holding my hand.

362:365 - Knit Night

09/02/2010 - Thursday evenings are something I look forward to every week. I pack my knitting back every morning in anticipation. It is one of the knitting get together for my knitting group. Even if I've had the worst week ever I always leave after knitting feeling happy and up lifted. I am so lucky to have found such a supportive, friendly and funny group of ladies to spend my Thursday evenings with!

363:365 - Disappointment

09/03/2010 - I worked for 12 hours today. It was a long day. I had a few errands to run after work and couldn't resist the Godiva chocolate placed near the cash register to tempt me. I'm a sucker, after a long day I fell for the temptation. When I think Godiva I think of wonderfully tasty chocolate. However, when I ate this I was incredibly disappointed. I don't know if this was a bad batch, if the chocolate was old or what but after Shane tried one & confirmed that it was nasty I threw the entire bag out. I was disappointed as it was a day that really should have been ended in a good piece of chocolate.

364:365 - Pumpkin Spice

09/04/2010 - This is my favorite time of the year. The temperatures have dropped, there is a cool breeze that follows me around. I get to wear hand knit shawls and scarves. I get to take extra long walks with the puppies. I get to look up and see the bright blue skies with incredible clouds. It is also Pumpkin Spice Latte time at Starbucks. These lattes are seasonal and just came out at the beginning of this week. I have already had three "Venti Skinny Pumpkin Spice Latte No Whips". These are expensive but man do I love them and could easily drink them every single day. Thankfully I have wonderful friends and two of them bought me gift cards to Starbucks. The generosity of my friends will make me enjoy my PSLs that much more this season!

365:365 - Delicious

09/05/2010 - Wow. 365 of 365. I really did it! I decided to end this project how I started it. My birthday is 9/7. Last year my very first photo was of the chocolate muffins I made for myself to celebrate my birthday. This year I'm celebrating my birthday (a bit early) with chocolate again so I figured it was the perfect close to this project - full circle with chocolate. This is a brownie baked in a tart pan then I put a layer of homemade hot fudge (wow was that stuff great) and then a layer of raspberry pie filling. I ended up having to work Saturday morning for 5 hours so I was unable to make my own raspberry topping. This dessert was delicious. So wonderful. So rich. A great way to celebrate the end of my 32nd year. I shared it with my husband and friends we had over to share dinner with us. Things always taste better when I can share them with the people in my life.

Number of photos taken this week: 56

I have to admit as I wrote the last words for the 365th picture I actually got a bit choked up. I didn't think I'd make it through this project, I didn't realize how much this project would mean to me and now this year has come to a close. The year has been full of some wonderful moments and some very very difficult moments. Most importatnly to me I've shared this year with my husband who I love so much, my family who is always too far away but always close to my heart, my dogs who keep me sane, and the greatest friends (both near and far) who have been a fantastic support system and provide much of the laughter in my life. I am so glad I did this project and look forward to sharing my reflections on the project in the coming weeks.