1. What did you do in 2016 that you’d never done before? Rowed and raced pregnant. Raced out of state. Raced a pair.

2. Did you keep your New Year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I didn’t pick a word for last year, a fact that has haunted me a bit.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Yes, for widely varying levels of closeness.

4. Did anyone close to you die? Yes, and I’ll miss her more than she could ever know.

5. What places did you visit? Eugene, OR, for the Covered Bridge Regatta.

6. What would you like to have in 2017 that you lacked in 2016? A sub-2 2K and a larger car.

7. What dates from 2016 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Mother’s Day, when I peed on a stick and found out I came back from Covered Bridge with more than a medal.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? I raced through my first trimester, trained through my second, and coxed into my third. And then I outgrew all the boats.

9. What was your biggest failure? Too. Much. Takeout.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? I was sick for all of October and some of November.

11. What was the best thing you bought? Preschool.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? My 3.5yo weathered a tough year of many changes and too much stress as well as can be expected. He skidded into the new year absolutely delighted to become a big brother.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Trump supporters. The level of hatred and willful ignorance in our public discourse is appalling, and too many of them are reveling in it. <–Well, this remains true. Exponentially, painfully, mind-bogglingly true.

14. Where did most of your money go? House repair and ongoing renovation, plus rowing and preschool.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? A whole new baby!

16. What song will always remind you of 2015? Havana Brown’s “Warrior” (remixed), Katy Tiz’s “Whistle (While You Work It),” and the entire Broadway cast recording of “Hamilton.”

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:

a) happier or sadder? Sadder. This year’s losses and stresses were big and back-loaded.

b) thinner or fatter? Pregnant, but fitter and carrying more easily than the last time I used this answer.

c) richer or poorer? Ennhhh, about the same. I rearranged some things to get more organized and better allocate funds, but it’s a long-term process. <–same as last year.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Family outside time. More hiking! More beaching! It’s a travesty that we live where we do and are mostly indoor cats. <–same as last year. Ugh. Badly done, me.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Still driving. Also worrying.

20. How did you spend Christmas in 2016? Worrying, mostly. Also gestating.

21. Did you fall in love in 2016? Yes, with small boats.

22. What was your favorite TV program? Survivor really had a killer season.

23. What did you do for your birthday in 2016? Spent some time with dear friends and got a lackluster massage. People are so afraid of pregnancy!

24. What was the best book you read? Did I read in 2016? Oh! Exercising Through Your Pregnancy.

25. What did you want and get? Another healthy pregnancy.

26. What did you want and not get? A couple of work project results. Out of my control, but frustrating, nonetheless.

27. What was your favorite film of this year? Uhhhhh. I’ve seen nothing this year.

28. Did you make some new friends this year? Yes! Our preschool community is awesome.

29. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Still more sleep. More outside time.

30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2016? Spandex and maternity stash.

31. What kept you sane? Rowing, more so than even before. Maintaining that routine kept me healthy and fit through my pregnancy, which made everything about it easier. Also, my teammates and coaches’ support meant the world to me.

32. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? POTUS and FLOTUS. Good lord, will I miss their shining example of dignity, class, and humor.

33. What political issue stirred you the most? The whole damn election, with a highlight on the deep and ugly misogyny and sexism that prevented the most qualified candidate ever from taking office.

And I can’t claim I don’t know how Donald Trump got elected, but I will never accept the dangerous ignorance and disregard for others that got us here.

34. Whom did you miss? Mom. Preparing for another child has a way of bringing that out.

I’ve also found that each year makes me a little more wistful for the way in which I grew up, which makes me miss my cousins. Facebook helps us stay in touch, but also makes me wish we were all living within driving distance of each other. I wish my kids could grow up playing with theirs.

35. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2016. When it comes to certain challenges that I’ve been avoiding, others are more sure of me than I am of myself. It’s time to address a few pockets of inertia.