The year in photos, the top 40 songs, the 100 most influential people…that’s right, the ‘BEST of’ season has officially arrived. With New Years Eve quickly approaching, every magazine, newspaper and website in the world suddenly appears to be focused on that one all important question: what the hell did we do with the last 365 days?

I usually prefer to avoid any such inquiry—usually out of the fear that I won’t be able to come up with anything–however this year I decided to take the plunge and look back on what I did in 2012. And thankfully, the year didn’t turn out to be the black void of waste and nothingness that I thought it would.

Surprisingly, somewhere between working and being a mom and the (very) occasional vacuuming, I finished my third YA manuscript (think Pretty Little Liars meets America’s Next Top Model), started an instagram account that I am now thoroughly addicted to, and finally got back to working on my blog. Call me crazy, but I may actually be getting somewhere. Not sure where still, but for now the getting part is encouraging enough.

So thank you ‘Best Ofs’, you inspire me.