40 Questions

I did these last year. Maybe I’ll do them every year.

1. What did you do in 2006 that you’d never done before?
Got knocked up.

2. Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions and will you make more for next year?
According to these very notes, I resolved to get fit and organised. I did neither of the sort. I will not make a resolution for this year; the plan is to simply get through my first year as a mummy without losing all my hair.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My best friend Devon and her husband Robert had their first baby in the summer. Sarah and Jonathan had their first baby in the spring. The rest of my mummy friends are due in 2007.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
No, no one close to me. Scott’s grandpa died, but we’ve never met him.

5. What countries did you visit?
Just the United States, twice. I don’t believe I even ventured out of Scotland besides that.

6. What would you like to have in 2007 that you lacked in 2006?
A baby. :) A new house. Less clutter.

7. What date from 2006 will remain etched upon your memory?
I don’t remember the date, but I will never forget the morning I woke Scott up to show him the positive pregnancy test. And then he woke up half an hour later and asked if he’d been dreaming.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Funnily, last year it was 'not getting pregnant on a NFP method'. This year, it’s getting pregnant. I’m also pretty proud to have been Devon’s maid of honour and to have gotten my British license.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Getting three points on my license after having it only a week.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I fell down the stairs of a bus and had to go to Accidents and Emergency.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
My midwife, Allison. And Scott’s Bopit. And my CHI.

12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
Once again, Scott gets the prize. Each year, he becomes a better man and husband. This new year will be exciting as I watch my husband become a father.

13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
Again, it’s inappropriate to say. This is definitely a question that I’ll probably never answer out loud on my blog.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Besides the overwhelming majority of our income going straight back into bills, I’ve probably gone a little overboard with buying baby stuff.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Besides getting pregnant (which really is the answer to just about everything), I was very excited about Devon and Sarah’s babies and very excited to be in Devon’s wedding.

16. What song/album will always remind you of 2006?
I’m afraid I can’t think of any.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
happier or sadder? a lot happier.
thinner or fatter? much fatter!
richer or poorer? a bit richer.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
I wish I’d been to more football games and done more travelling.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
I wish I’d spent less money on things I don’t need.

20. How did you spend Christmas?
I made chocolate gravy and biscuits for breakfast, opened presents with Scott, then slept until 6pm when we went to Scott’s folks for dinner and presents.

21. Who did you spend the most time on the phone with?
Definitely my mom.

22. Did you fall in love in 2006?
Very much. With a little foetus called…

23. How many one night stands in this last year?
Thankfully, zero.

24. What was your favourite TV programme(s)?
That 70’s Show

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
Other than a few teachers at the school who this year made themselves rather unlikeable, no.

26. What was the best book(s) you read?
Apparently (according to this last year), I read The Chrysalids by John Wyndham at the beginning of the year, so that. The Face of God by Michael Horton was also a great book.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
That song ‘Parklife’ by Blur. Just discovered it a few nights ago. I know, it's a million years old. But I was in America...

28. What did you want and get?
Pregnant.

29. What did you want and not get?
Organised.

30. What were your favourite films of this year?
March of the Penguins and Snakes on a Plane

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 24 and met up with some people at the pub for dinner.

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
If Jonathan and Sarah hadn’t moved away.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2006?
Maternity.

34. What kept you sane?
Knowing that soon we’ll have our baby in our arms.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Chris Burke (Rangers)

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
I haven’t paid much attention to politics this year, but I’m finding the presidential nominations in the US interesting – the Mormon guy, in particular, or rather, the ‘religious right’s’ response to the Mormon guy.

37. Who did you miss?
My mom and dad. It’s hard not having my mom here going through this with me.

38. Who was the best new person (people) you met?
Lynda at work, and while I didn’t exactly meet them this year, the people at my church that I’ve gotten to know this year are really, really great.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2006.
Put your family first and yourself last. (Of course, I actually believe we should put God first, then family second and yourself last, but I’m not trying to spiritualise this. I just learned how great marriage can be when you begin to make your spouse the priority over yourself.)

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year?
‘It's got nothing to do with vorsprung durch technic, you know, and it's not about you joggers who go round and round and round.’ (Blur, ‘Parklife’) Okay, so that sums up nothing but I’ve had those lyrics in my head for the past few days, and it’s all I can think of.