A Year in Instagram: 2014

It’s that time of year again – can you believe it? Time for another year-end roundup, Instagram style. This year was full of ups (engagement!) and downs (cancer), but we made it and are ready to head into 2015 and all kinds of new adventures (getting married) and challenges (remembering to notify my credit card companies of my name change).

Let’s review what 2014 brought, shall we? Remember to follow along on Instagram (I’m @StephieCooks) to see what’s coming in 2015!

January: Dove into one of the most amazing books I’ve ever read…

…gave a cat a bath (not an experience I care to repeat in 2015)…

…and celebrated our beautiful niece’s first birthday. (We’ll soon be celebrating her second…why do they have to grow up?!)

February: Attended my first gala for work (because when you work in PR, you get to attend fancy things such as galas)…

…and pulled out my old clarinet for the first time in far too long.

March: Got my creative juices flowing with a custom crocheted afghan.

 April: Watched the master at work…

…and got tattoo #1 of the year. (“Timshel” comes from my favorite novel, East of Eden – check out a more thorough explanation HERE.)

May: Visited Christina and her husband in St. Louis and made some great new friends (hi, Andrea!)…

…and met the queen herself, Ree.

June: Shot a fun video for Nielsen-Massey Vanillas (check out the final video)…

…and was the hallmark of pale.

July: Attended my first pro sporting event, all for the love of a man who loves Premier League soccer football.

August: Was rocked by my mom’s diagnosis of colon cancer, but was amazed by the response to our request for blue toenails for colon cancer awareness.

September: Finally got to meet my darling Julia and spend a lovely weekend gallivanting about…

…and got tattoo #2 of the year with my momma for colon cancer awareness.

October: Spent my first weekend in Ann Arbor, MI, for a dear friend’s wedding.

November: Said yes to my best friend and dearest love and began the craziness that is planning a wedding in less than 5 months.

December: Cuddled a tiny chihuahua in pink leopard print pajamas…

…and rocked some awesome socks from my future mother-in-law. (Find your own inappropriate socks at Blue Q! <– Totally not sponsored, just awesome.)

And now, as a bonus – the top 10 recipes from the site in 2014 (in order, as determined by popularity):

1. Cream Cheese Ranch Rollups
2. The Best Chicken Pot Pie
3. Frosted Orange Rolls
4. Apple Cinnamon Crockpot Oatmeal
5. Fluffy No-Knead Refrigerator Rolls
6. Cinnamon Honey Butter
7. Texas Roadhouse Rolls
8. Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix
9. Caramel Pecan Bars
10. Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

And the top 10 recipes posted in 2014 (again, in order because I’m anal):

1. Apple Cinnamon Crockpot Oatmeal
2. No-Knead Fluffy Refrigerator Rolls
3. Cinnamon Honey Butter
4. Texas Roadhouse Rolls
5. Bacon Ranch Cream Cheese Rollups
6. Buttermilk Cake with Raspberry Buttercream
7. Paleo Strawberry Crumble
8. No Chill Sugar Cookies
9. Apple Pie Cookies
10. Alaska Oatmeal Cookies

And that does it! Thank you so much for reading, commenting and generally hanging out this year. Let’s go into 2015 ready for plenty of bread and cookies. Amen.