Resolutions

I try not to make New Years resolutions. I never seem to stick to them and therefore they seem a bit pointless to me. But I decided I would try again this year. I'm trying NOT to make the standard "Lose weight" or "Exercise more" type resolution - I *know* I won't do it, so I'm not going to pretend.

I decided that this was the year I would try and make a difference in the world. Very lofty goal. Now, I know that I can't do much about all the troubles in the world, but I could do my best to try and help where I can. Having said that......here I go:

1. Volunteer more. I used to be a back-up Meals-on-Wheels driver, but once the kids came, it got hard to coordinate a schedule. I'm going to call and get back on the substitute driver list.

2. Knit for charity. I already participate in a "Odd-Ball" charity blanket drive. We knit baby blankets for an area hospital. This year, I plan on knitting hats and mittens: One of the Ravelry gals I knit with teaches 1st grade at a local school. It's a relatively low-income area and she said that many of her students come to school without hats or mittens. In Minnesota, it's just too cold on most winter days not to have a pair of mittens and a hat. My resolution is to knit 2 hat/mitten sets per month. I hope to keep a few area children a little warmer this winter.

3. Donate Blood. It's fast, easy, and almost anyone can do it. I actually just scheduled my first appointment to give blood. I'll be heading to a local blood bank this Wednesday at 9:40 to donate my first pint. (I have a moderately rare blood type so I feel like this is a small way I can give back to my community.) The max I can donate is once every 8 weeks, so this first visit counts for my resolution! My goal is to donate 6 times this year.

That's it. Nothing earth shattering, but these are all easy things I can do to try and make the world a better place. What about you, any New Years resolutions?