2009 was a big year for me, and for my blog. It was a rough year in many respects, but looking back over the highlights, it also seemed to be a year filled with some great opportunities, happy experiences, and fulfilling adventures.  While I’m definitely looking forward to a new year and new prospects, I’m happy to have journeyed through 2009 (and made it out alive!)

This year I:

• Published 193 posts
• Increased my readership by 3 times thanks to a little thing called Twitter
• Got a snazzy new site redesign courtesy of Her Awesome-Awesomeness, Ms. Starrymom (a.k.a Sarah from One Starry Night)
• Launched a Facebook Fan page and racked up 170 “Fans” (and counting) in just over a month
• Launched a reviews blog aptly titled The Feminist Shopper
• Traveled to Philadelphia courtesy of GlaxoSmithKline to tour their vaccination production facility
• Was featured in a Forbes.com article on helping nursing mothers in my workplace
• Helped mothers realize their dreams for a VBAC
• Quit my day job
• Successfully maintained my 4.0 GPA into my Junior year of college
• Got nominated for a Harry S. Truman Scholarship for which I wrote a proposal to reduce the national cesarean rate.
• Filmed a reality show special for TLC/Discovery Health on Gender Neutral/Feminist Parenting
• Made a lot of new friends
• Learned a lot about myself
• Fell even more in love with my family

I also found out more about my own voice through the comments from my readers. My posts this year may have been more revealing, more controversial, and more polarizing than ever, and because of the response to those posts, I saw great some great support along with some great debate. One thing I know for sure is that I have some very intelligent, thoughtful, and kind women and men reading my silly rantings. It’s quite humbling.

Some of this year’s most popular articles included:

Breeding With the Enemy: My Story of Feminist Conversion – The story of my evolution as a feminist

No, Formula is Not “Fine” – My take on those who justify and promote formula use through anecdotal “evidence” that formula-fed children seem “fine.”

Women are the Problem with Women – A painful realization that often women hold women back even more than our male counterparts, especially in terms of what we will allow each other to think or feel.

Trust ME Twitter Friend, You Don’t Need That Cesarean – A note to those twitter birthers who can’t seem to get through any hospital birth without a surgical delivery.

Jonas says “Mommy said Bullshit.” – A personal breakdown that brought out the most supportive, kind, and thoughtful comments from my dear readers.

Growing Up Poor, White Trash – My brief exploration of privilege, class, and the problematic trend of not respecting individual experiences.

I Never Wanted to be a Working Mother – A big nasty rant on my miserable feelings of working outside the home doing a job I hate, being away from my children, and listening to people tell me it’s all my fault.

The Feminist Stockholm Syndrome & What You Owe Me – A letter to those child hating feminists who cannot see the forest for the trees.

A Cesarean Consent Form for the OB to Sign – My repost of the most brilliant letter ever written to an OB from a mom whose doctors refused to support her desire for a VBAC

Raising an Equality-Minded Male – The problem I see with only raising girls to strive for equality and feminism, which includes some excellent commentary from my smart, smart readers.

Thank You Right Back – A tear-jerking thank you letter I received for helping a mother make the decision to breastfeed her second baby

The Bad Mommy Series – a three part manifesto about the inherent problems with labeling ourselves “bad” for the sake of being cool.
— I Bet You Didn’t Know You Were a Bad Mom
— “Bad Mommy” Part Deux — Sleep Training Makes You Evil
— “Bad Mommy” The Finale: Things I Don’t Want to Be Called

Breastfeeding Bigots on Twitter (and the radio) – an LA DJ launches a week long attack on breastfeeding mothers, then on me personally

Backseat Parents: Kick Them Out of the Car – my attempt to regain confidence in my own parenting style, and encourage others to do that same

Feminism is Not my Religion – Why I do not believe it is my biological imperative to support every other woman’s decisions

How to Make Pop-Up Cloth Wipes – a little tutorial I posted on how to make cloth wipes pop up in a container just like disposable wipes. It remains one of my most trafficked posts to date.

That’s just a little taste of the posts that seemed to draw out the most response and readership. This year I cannot wait to see what I’ll learn, what my family will experience, and how I’ll grow as a mother/writer/wife/friend.

Happy New Year to all of my dear readers. May the year 2010 bring a whole new decade of shiny happy adventures to us all. Good luck – Lots of Love – and Be Safe.

And please!  If you have a 2009 recap post on your own blog, leave a link in the comments section – I’d love to read them.

Warmly, TFB