Well, we did it again. 100 whole Things. They’re not the Things we started with, though, and we almost didn’t make it.

This is part of our 100 Things in 2016 challenge. Here’s the full list.

This year was hard for us. Becky and I both lost a parent. Halfway through the year we made a drastic and difficult change with Will. We moved. Lucy changed schools. Becky’s hip injury and chronic stress led to a near-complete stress/fatigue/anxiety breakdown. I changed jobs. Notice how many of these things are on the list of the most stressful things that can happen to a person.

Honestly, we talked about giving up several times. We were way behind, and had to replace some of our most interesting Things with far easier items. Every time we did this, we asked ourselves “is this really 100 Things anymore?”

But every time we asked that, we went back to first principles. 100 Things isn’t about achievement, and it’s not about follow-through. It’s about keeping our lives interesting, and keeping our personal momentum going. As long as we’re the ones in charge of the list, it’s still authentically us, and it’s still worth it.

In the end, we’re glad we stuck with it. We feel really good about doing this, and things are looking up. Becky’s starting to recover from her injury and getting her emotional stamina back. Will is in the right place, getting all the things he needs. My new job is great, and they seem as happy with me as I am with them. Lucy is absolutely thriving at her new school. Our house is feeling like a home.

So we’re not quitting. In fact, we have a fresh batch of 100 Things for 2017. Just don’t expect the list we start with to be the one we finish with.