I was tagged earlier today by Wolfie with a meme in which I had to come up with three things that I loved most about myself. My first choice was my memory, and this got me thinking about my most memorable moments. So, I’ve decided to make this the focus for my Thursday Thirteen.

  1. Most Silent – When I first started university I was extremely nervous. Everything was so new and different! So, after my first night in the halls of residence, I completely lost my voice for a whole week. If that’s not psychosomatic, then I don’t know what is!
  2. Most Relieved – When my daughter was about 18 months, she developed a bad cold, so I bought one of those Karvol devices that you plug into an electric socket, and the heat releases menthol and eucalyptus vapours to help kiddies breathe better. I used to plug it in after she was sleeping and then remove it when I went to bed, as I didn’t want her to get hold of it. One evening after I had plugged it in and come downstairs, I heard the most awful scream from her bedroom. I rushed upstairs to find her with the vapouriser in her lap and drool all down her front. I was completely convinced that she had drunk some of the contents, so phoned the hospital immediately, only to be told they were really busy and they would phone me back. They then called back around an hour later to tell me the Karvol was very toxic and to bring her in immediately. The relief set in once we got her round there and they discovered that she hadn’t ingested any. She didn’t try that again!
  3. Most Claustrophobic – On our first trip as a family to Australia, our youngest son was only 9 months, and so we borrowed one of those baby carriers which you have to carry on your back. We stayed at a small place called Metung in Victoria for a few days, and made a couple of excursions out to 90 mile beach, Wilson’s Prom etc. On one of our trips, we visited the Fairy Cave at Buchan. The leaflet said it was appropriate for children, but it wasn’t suitable for kids as young as our’s were! It was so dark and close, and on top of that we had our baby in this back carrier. We had to manoeuvre him around stalactites and stalagmites and through extremely narrow tunnels whilst trying to hold on to our 2 and 3 year olds. Boy, was I glad to see daylight again!
  4. Most Early – My earliest memory is climbing out of my cot and climbing onto my white melamine chest of drawers, and knocking over a small vase of snowdrops, spilling the water. I’m sure an analyst would have a field day with that!
  5. Most Life-Threatening – While walking my daughter home from Brownies two autumns ago, my youngest son tripped and fell as we were crossing the road. The older two continued to the other side, and I stopped to get him back on his feet again. No sooner did I have him standing than he tripped again! This time there was a car coming. It was already dark and we had dark clothing on (in retrospect, not a good plan!), so I panicked and pushed him across the road as he was falling. He landed on the pavement beside his brother and sister. I landed flat on my back in the middle of oncoming traffic. Thank goodness, the man driving the approaching car was traveling at a safe speed and had his headlights on, or I may not be typing this now.
  6. Most Scared – When I was 14 weeks pregnant with my last baby, I developed appendicitis. I remember feeling utterly terrified, as I was administered my general anaesthetic that a) I wouldn’t wake up again, and b) that when I did wake up I would have lost my baby. As it was, of course, all was well and I made a slow but steady recovery. All I have is a scar to show for it, and the baby just turned 6 years old, and is none the worse for the experience.
  7. Most Cold – Boxing Day, 1995, I had been out to a party at somebody’s house, which was situated on the other side of Edinburgh. Because it was Boxing Day, there were very few taxis to be found, so a group of us decided that we would just have to walk home. It was soooo cold. Every 15 minutes the whole group would stop and have a big group hug until we warmed up a little, and then we would continue on again. Eventually we managed to hail a taxi, who radioed for a second taxi to get us all home. We were seriously frozen by this time, and I think the cabbie was quite concerned for those he couldn’t fit into his taxi. The following morning, I saw on the news that the temperature had been -26 C the previous evening, and that some poor man had died from hypothermia on his way home. I’m just so thankful that we stuck together as a group, and kept ourselves as warm as we could. I don’t think it’s ever been that cold here since…
  8. Most Late – The latest I have ever been was on my wedding day. I was being chauffeur driven to the venue, and we got there about 5 minutes early. So, the driver said, “Let’s go round the block once, so you’re not there too soon.” Stupidly I agreed, and as is often the case in Edinburgh, we got stuck in a traffic jam caused by road works. Our simple trip around the block took half an hour. I was 25 minutes late. I’m sure my poor husband was convinced that I wasn’t going to turn up!
  9. Most Surprised – When I was 13 weeks pregnant with my middle child, I had a threatened miscarriage. It happened on a Friday evening, and so when I was taken in to hospital, I was told there was nothing they could do, and I would just have to come back on Monday for a scan. Things didn’t improve over the weekend, so when I turned up on the Monday, I was really expecting the worse. As I lay there, and the doctor moved the instrument over my tummy, a tiny little flutter appeared on the monitor. My little surprise baby.
  10. Most Weird – When I was 14, I went to a psychic who told me, amongst other things, that by the turn of the century, I would be married with two children, who would be so beautiful that people would stop me in the street to comment on them. I left thinking that this was quite possibly the biggest waste of money (I had not yet discovered time shares at this point!), as I calculated that I would only just have turned 21 by the turn of the century, and I certainly had no prospects for marriage on the horizon! However, in November 1999, as I pushed my double pram down the street, with my two small beautiful children in it, an elderly lady stopped to exclaim over the children, and I had one of those moments where time felt like it was folding back on itself. It was the turn of the century, I was married, I had two children who were so beautiful I was stopped in the street. I tried to go back to visit the psychic and to tell him how right he had been, but the shop was gone.
  11. Most Embarrassing – When I lived on the north coast of Scotland, I used to get regular visits from the local minister. I think he was hoping that at some point I would start attending his services, but he never brought it up, and was always pleasant company. One time he came round to visit though, I had put my two toddlers to bed for their nap, and I checked on them just after I had popped the kettle on. I knew something was up as I walked up the stairs because the smell was awful. When I opened the door I discovered the most disgusting sight I have ever had the displeasure to experience. They had managed to take their nappies off, and they had covered their toys, their books, their sheets, and themselves in poo. Needless to say, the minister made a quick exit, as I carried two smelly babies under each arm making a bee line for the bath. Not my finest moment!
  12. Most Lonely – A few years ago, I went on a research trip to the University of Maine. It was during the summer, so the uni was very quiet, and I was staying in a motel all by myself, while my family was back in Scotland. Some days, I would find myself back in the motel at 5pm after a day’s research at the library, and the only people I would have spoken to were the lady at reception and the librarian, and that was only to say “Hello” and “Can I have box 1031?”. I got a whole lot of work done, but I really missed the company of others, and, in particular, the company of my family.
  13. Most Brazen – The evening I met the man who was to become my husband, I was on a trip to Loch Ness. After the local pub closed that evening, all the customers headed back to someone’s house in the village for a party. I met my husband on the way to that party. We started talking, and basically continued talking for the whole night. When we both left the party, we started walking down the hill, heading back to the backpackers, and I held his hand. At this point he turned his head towards me to say something, but I thought he was going to kiss me, so before he could get a word out, I kissed him. 9 months later we were married; sometimes it pays to be a bit brazen!

Well, those are 13 of my most memorable moments. I would love to hear some of yours :-)