A wrap up of 2016

2016 has been, for me as for most it would seem, a year of huge ups and downs. In a wider world context it has felt like nothing but bad news. My faith in humanity has taken hit after hit and although I’ve also been presented with loads of evidence that humans can still be great, it’s done little to counteract my feeling that goodness is on the losing team! On top of that I have had to face some huge difficulties personally and watch people I know and love face them too. Basically a lot of this year has been a total ball ache!

But in the manner of that  tried and tested, problem free, psychological trick of old, I've decided to supress all the bad stuff and celebrate some of the great and happy things of my year!

One of the greatest things about this year has been my health and fitness. I started the year with doing 30 consecutive days of yoga. I genuinely didn’t know if I would make it to 30 days in a row but I did.  I had done quite a bit of yoga over the years but setting time aside for it every day in January really made me fall in love with it.  When I got to the end of the 30 days I decided to keep going. I’m currently on day 372 days of consecutive  yoga and have no intention of breaking this pattern any time soon. Rain or shine, happy or sad, sober and on occasion drunk, I make time to be on that mat every single day.

Breathtaking Austria where I went to celebrate my joint 30th
one of my faves Andrew- we did the Sound of Music tour.
I was worried I would cry with the beauty of it all but luckily
I didn't shed a tear. Did I Andrew? DID I?

Also on the fitness front for the first time in my life I got properly into running. I’ve dabbled on and off for years but this year I got really serious about it and continued to do 5k three times a week well into my second trimester. Since then I have taken up vigorous swimming which is much better for me in terms of taking the pressure of my hips but I do miss the excitement of my runs. Hmmmmm… When I  say this stuff I often wonder what what Grace from 5 years ago would think. I’m pretty sure she’d think I was a wanker!

In March, I turned 30 and I bloody loved it! Not just because of the amazing time I had celebrating but because I felt excited and ready to enter a new decade. I think it was the ancient Persians who didn’t declare a person adult until age 30. I couldn’t agree more. Its nice to celebrate feeling a little bit more like a grown up- not entirely grown up of course never entirely grown up- but just that little bit more sure of myself and grounded.

The cast captivated by the magnificent desert just outside
 Blackpool.
Or was it Dubai. I forget now. We saw a lot of places! 

From March until August my two great loves came together; theatre and travel. I got to tour the world playing some amazing theatres and taking in some great destinations- from Hong Kong to Ipswich- Hong Kong was a bit drab and mundane but the majesty and culture of Ipswich was something to behold. The icing on the cake was  I got to do all this with a really lovely bunch of people. It was truly an experience I’ll never forget.

Nigel Farage...wait no...
 that's sonny

 In June my world was lit up when my best and oldest friend had her gorgeous boy Sonny. Spending time with the two of them this year, no matter what else has been going on, never failed to make me feel hopeful for the future of mankind. How could such a gorgeous boy not grow up to make the world a better place? Mind you maybe they said that about Nigel Farage when he was a chunky little 6 month old!  

5 days after he was born and 3 days after the Brexit vote, we found out I was pregnant- a week of ups and downs to say the least!  I’m going to do a full blog post on my experience with pregnancy but for now all I will say is that it has been the greatest privilege of 2016 to begin to know the person I am bound to love above all others for the rest of my life. It is scary and wonderful and most surprisingly, very peaceful. Not to say that pregnancy doesn’t have its stresses because my god it does but the actual thought of my son seems to cut through all the frightening unknowns and leave me with the sense that somehow everything will be ok. More than ok. It might just be wonderful.

Since August I have been doing a lot of teaching drama and singing for the first time in a few years. It’s something I’ve prided myself in not having to do for a while but actually I really love it- as resting work goes I couldn’t think of a nicer job.

Moments before the fun was cruelly curtailed! 

Towards the end of the year I did a few fun things with my band The Lacy Janes, including a hilarious photo shoot in which we got severely told off for climbing a tree- apparently some people think three grown women dressed in Tudor garb, wielding instruments whilst dangling from the branches of a careful curated tree is something to be prohibited!

Christmas with the bump 

December was, as always a wonderful whirlwind, as stressful as it was delightful but I got to see lots of friends and family and ate like a king on many, many occasions. I did not however drink. Its fine though, next year I intend to be solidly drunk from the 1^st of December til at least the 10^th of January! Anybody who fancies volunteering to look after my son during this time, while I slosh about making cocktails in the kitchen, would be much appreciated.

I want to wrap this up now by saying a very sincere thank you to a few people for being wonderful in 2016.

Firstly, to Liz for being a shining example of motherhood. You have dealt with everything so well and you make it look easy even though I know it isn’t. You’ve talked me through my scariest moments always made me feel better.  Your happy, loving, little boy is a credit to the relaxed and hope filled way you raise him. He is lucky to have you and

I am lucky to have you both.

I also want to thank my brother Joe for his unbridled enthusiasm about his nephew. One of my favourite moments of the year was simply noticing you had his scan as your phone background. I can’t wait for you two to meet each other. I know that even if I’m a shitty mother at least my son will have an amazing uncle!

My Mum and Dad help me in more ways than they should have to and never for a second make me feel guilty, bad or undeserving. They have, in many ways, really tough lives but they always create an atmosphere of ease, contentment and joy, which astonishes me and many others I’m sure. Their generosity with the little they have, their kindness, enthusiasm and endless love have helped me every single day of my life, but now more than ever.

Finally I want to thank my husband. After all these years I didn’t think it would be possible to be closer but since my pregnancy we really have been. It has been amazing to see his love for our son grow day by day- to watch him become a father, getting more and more excited every day to take on his new role and to meet his little boy. He has also helped me to value this magical time- the last few months as a family of just us two, and helped me to be patient and appreciative of all we have and all we are going to have. He keeps me grounded and strong.  I couldn’t ask for abetter partner through all of this and I really hope our son grows up to be very much like him.

I’ve had an awful lot of good luck come my way this year. Here’s to 2017!

Happy New Year!!!!!!