year in review - favorite posts of 2015

Along with the most popular posts of the year, I always like to shine a little spotlight on my personal favorites. Here are the posts I enjoyed creating and writing, the ones I enjoyed re-reading the most, and the posts that were most meaningful to me in 2015.

Inner Bookworm: My TBR List - I'm a sucker for surveys that encourage me to reflect on my reading preferences and behaviors - which is no surprise, since I'm constantly asking my students to journal about their goals and progress. I practice what I preach, y'all. I wrote a little here about how I use Interactive Notebooks at school, and I completely changed the way I use those this past semester, so I'll probably write a post about them on my classroom blog soon.

A Letter to My Younger Self - This was a really great topic from The Circle link-up. I decided to write to myself as a first-year college student. I'd also like to write to my middle/high school self and add the advice, participate in P.E. class and learn how sports work.

Style: My Second Stitch Fix - Not my most successful Fix, but it did include my favorite dress, which I refer to as my "Fleetwood Mac dress" because it was perfect concert attire.

If I Could... - Totally ripped off the idea from Micah, Holly, Erin, and Katie, but this post ended up being more personal and insightful than I imagined.

16 Weird Ways to Celebrate Star Wars Day - Once in a while I come up with a really oddball idea for a blog post. I still love this post. It truly was the year of Star Wars.

Retro Summer Style: Aquamarine and Gingham - One of Pantone's colors for summer, a major pattern trend, and a TV show/book that were right up my alley all came together to inspire one of my all-time favorite style boards. Nicole called it "daintiest little inspo board" and I think that comment was right on target - I found myself adding little '60s touches to my outfits throughout late summer and fall. I need this kind of inspiration more often.

Travelogue: Charleston, South Carolina - We had an absolutely lovely, though short vacation to Charleston this summer, and I was so happy to finally be in the city I'd read and dreamed about. It was every bit as beautiful as I'd imagined. We're so lucky to have so many amazing places within driving distance, and I'm hoping we'll have the time and budget for even more travel in 2016. I think the biggest lesson I learned from Charleston was that vacations don't have to be long or obsessively planned - exploring random streets and following friends' recommendations or random Yelp reviews can be just as memorable as a scheduled tour or complicated reservation.

Midsummer According to Instagram - I participated in several Instagram style challenges this summer, primarily to keep myself from defaulting to pajamas every day (#teacherproblems). I did not expect so many compliments from real-life friends who genuinely liked seeing my outfits every day and thought they were creative - one friend even asked if I was buying new things just for the challenges (I wasn't!).

#ROANOKESTRONG - This post was very meaningful for me to write, and I wish I hadn't had to write it. My community experienced tragedy this year that I will never forget, and for a while I wasn't sure we'd ever be able to return to normal life. Seeing Alison Parker and Adam Ward's family and friends out and about, experiencing and enjoying life after such an excruciating loss, has been really inspiring. 

#5FandomFriday: Favorite Fictional Teachers - My topic suggestion got picked for October, and I knew exactly who my list would include.

Halloween Recap: Our Adventures as Cap and Peggy - This was my favorite Halloween ever. Peggy Carter is my favorite Marvel character, I love history, and I love dressing up. It was perfect, and I have the best husband in the world.

Holiday Craft: DIY World Map Ornaments - I'm so happy with how these turned out, and really hoping some other crafty folks will use this idea! When my mom came over for Christmas Eve, I asked her if she liked my new DIY ornaments, and she looked at our tree and said, "I don't see any handmade ornaments." Crafting win!

Bloggers, what were your favorite posts from 2015? 

Share your links in the comments!