Goals for 2012

It's that time of year again, the time for new year's resolutions. I'm not vowing to join a gym (I already do, and it's crowded lately!), and I'm not promising to eat healthier food (leave good enough alone). I have two goals for myself, though, and I've already started to work on both of them! 

Let's start with the silly one... I want to bake more this year! I'm going to try to bake more challenging things, like macarons or lattice topped pies, and I'm going to make Martha look like the jailbird hack that she is. Ok, I actually really like Martha, but I'm going to show her a thing or two by the end of the year.

I started on the right note, with this Pumpkin Cake with Browned Butter Icing, courtesy of our favorite hostest with the mostest. Not going to lie, this cake was freaking amazing, and I WILL be making it again. And I made a cute little 6-inch sized cake, so we could enjoy it without feeling too much post-holiday guilt.

My second goal is one I've had for quite some time, and the new year seemed like as good an excuse as any to finally get started. Folks, 2012 is the year that I am going to finally start to volunteer on a regular basis.

I'm going to help with food sorting and distribution at one of the locations of Lakeview Pantry, a food pantry here in Chicago. They have sites with evening pick ups that will coordinate perfectly with my work schedule, and the location I'm going to be at is right between work and home. I will be able to commit to a regular weekly schedule, but they are also very flexible if things come up and I have to switch my times around. Working at a grocery store full of (mostly) very privileged people, it's exciting to me to have this opportunity to help people who are less fortunate. My first official "shift" is tomorrow night... wish me luck!