This morning, excited about the prospect of setting out to get a cup of coffee and begin an organized and relatively productive day, I put my computer and charger in my bag and then looked around our home office for a notebook I could use to jot down some ideas and lists. Sometimes the old pen-to-paper deal adds a nice, familiar feel to the daily routine. So I found one of those classic composition books with a mottled cover that had a bunch of blank pages and figured that would work perfectly. I flipped to the front to see what I might have used it for in the past and was overjoyed to find the date 7/16/08 scribbled at the top, followed by the words, "childbirth classes." Childbirth classes! How I'd loved that little enclave of expectant parents...meeting every week to go over the details of bringing our children into the world.

In a bit of a rush but curious to see what I'd taken from that first meeting, I glanced down the page and found that I'd written our instructor's name, her phone number and email address, and then, a few lines down (separate from the rest, as though to mark its importance), one lone statement to kick off my education, that I think really embodies the complex physical and emotional experience of having a baby:

"Practice squatting."

It was a mild winter, which is really saying something in this often harsh climate, but still, when Memorial Day weekend rushed in, all sunshine and heady warmth, I couldn't help myself. SUMMER. Ok, unofficial summer. But still. I opened my windows and turned the music up and breathed in the summery air, and took in the summery scenes; families and friends gathered around grills, red plastic cups in their hands. I've loved making these summer goals, sharing them with you and then trying my best to achieve them. It's like a mini, way-less-committal version of a life list. I admit that last year I didn't do that well. But I'd just had a baby, and as with most things in life, hindsight regarding my situation last summer is much clearer now. The first few months with two children...I don't know. Let's just say those first few months are best categorized with a simple, whispered, "Oh...my god." I had bold ambitions, but when it came right down to it, I spent most of my time just trying to feel normal.

But honestly, I'm at a new juncture. So here are a few goals - some exceedingly ambitious and some less so - and I'm going to make them a priority. Will it cut into my lying-in-bed-reading-my-twitter-feed-time? Probably. Will it be worth it? Of course.

2012 summer goals! Help me out, people. Hold me to them.

1. run a 20K 2. get into tea 3. try cloth diapers 4. take a ride on the carousel at Lighthouse Point 5. sing Irish songs at an Irish bar 6. attend a lecture at Yale 7. plan weekly (or almost weekly!) dates with my darling husband 8. get a book deal 9. improve the home office 10. visit Essex, CT 11. take another cooking class 12. read three novels (not mysteries) 13. see a Puffin 14. take the kids to a baseball game 15. build a sandcastle 16. have a Dark and Stormy at McSeagull's 17. swim laps in a swimming pool 18. take a boat ride 19. spend lots of time in our back yard 20. have a party 21. grill some octopus 22. buy a record 23. make a photo album 24. get some sleep 25. go on a Sunday drive