Time to put 2008 to bed

Here is a list of all the people in my life that i'd like to say thankyou too for helping me survive 2008!

Thank you to my collegues at Silk who I work with day in day out. To Zoe for being such a thoroughly lovely person, who's generous and good natured and it's so great that you and Dave will have a new addition to your family in 2009. To Sam, who only joined last march but who has become a body pump/gym buddy, my getting too drunk on the christmas doo buddy, and is the person most likely to cheer me up when i'm on a bit of a downer in the office. To Donna, my immediate boss, who is very supportive and fair as a boss but who is also such fun to work with and who has the dirtiest laugh ever which never fails to set me off. To Tracey who has kept me sane and also been my geordie accent companion (even though she's from stoke and i'm from Bradford) and who never fails to give me a boost when i'm low, I don't know why you think i'm so great but thank you for your belief in me. To Justine, another new addition but a real positive addition, someone who's fit right in and who has a heart of gold. I'd like to thank Bradford Bulls for giving me the opportunity to sing for them twice this year, it was an amazing thing to stand up and sing infront of 14,000 people and it made me realise how much I can do with a bit of self belief. I'd of course like to thank Robert Alderson my amazing singing teacher without whom i'd not be able to achieve what i have with my voice this year. I'm sorry our bigger plans didn't work out this year but in 2009 we're going to get the rest of my technique nailed and i'll really show you that I can do what you say you know I'm capable of. I'd like to thank my mum who's become a real friend over the past year or so as well as being my mum. I've learnt to talk to you more openly and I'm starting to understand our relationship more. I'd like to thank my brother who is also such a great source of support through thick and thin, i'm glad we're still great friends and we must never let that go, even if you get to move over to New Zealand or even up to Newcastle. I would really like to thank Andy's parents for all their help with the building work and all the little thoughtful things they do for us, but also for being so loving and supportive, I already have parents but now I feel like i've got a second mum and dad who are looking out for me and who I love dearly. I'd like to say a massive thankyou to Andy for being Andy. For being my husband and the one who loves me even when i don't love myself and for the one who puts a fire cracker up my arse when I'm dragging my feet on things. I want to say thank you to our new addition to our home, Chili the cat. I've wanted a cat of my own since i left home but Andy always resisted but i wore him down and in January we adopted Chili from the RSPCA and despite Andy not being able to see himself liking cats much, his heart has been melted by you as you are so friendly and curious and playful and funny and you really make our house a home. We can't imagine what we'd do without you. I'd like to thank Lila my best friend for just being Lila. You've had a beautiful daughter this last year and she's so wonderful and it's a delight to see her and to see you enjoying being a mum so much! I'd like to thank Suzanne & Gareth and their lovely boys for being like an extended family to me (which of course you are). I'd like to thank all of my friends and i'd like to thank facebook for enabling me to keep in touch with you all! Finally i'd like to thank Twitter which is a fairly new obsession of mine but which has put me in contact with so many new online friends and really broadened my horizons.

Of course there are many many more of you who impact on my life and I just couldn't write all of you in there as i'm getting cramp in my fingers but I love you all and you know who you are.

I was thinking i'd not had a great year last year but looking back now at all the people i wanted to thank, it wasn't actually a bad year. Every year brings trials and tribulations but I think as long as you have people in your life who can make you smile or laugh when you're down, who can say the right thing when you don't know which way to turn, who pick you up when you fall on the floor (sometimes quite literally) and who you can share the good times and celebrations with, then every year can be a good year.