I can't believe I just wrote "November" in the title of this post. November!

On Tuesday we had the perfect night of trick-or-treating with the boys in a nearby neighborhood. Houses were decked with lights and spooky scenes, mobs of kids and families were out, and the candy was plentiful. It was a "these are the days" kind of night.

And the next morning on November 1 we started playing Christmas music! Bing Crosby, naturally. We are enjoying cool mornings and evenings and lots of bike rides to the park. I'm so happy the hot weather is over!

Even as I have eager anticipation for the holidays I've felt a bit depleted and too busy lately. 

But what to take off my to-do list? Dinner must be made, lunches packed, laundry washed, the boys dropped off at preschool, our house kept in reasonable order (a constant task with two active boys!). And of course, Chris is also helping with all of these tasks but even with the two of us there's just a lot to be done! The other, less necessary things I don't want to take off my to-do list: working out, recording and producing podcasts, finding a little time to write a blog post or two, reading. 

As we near the holidays I'm guessing that life and work will get really full but then slow down. I'm very much looking forward to that!

October wins: 

+ Ordered Christmas presents. There's still more to do but I got a bulk of our Christmas shopping done with a few online orders two weeks ago.

+ Enjoyed a visit with my parents.

+ Donated blood.

+ Bought some colder weather clothes for the boys. They will still need a few more things but they have enough to start the season. Just in time for overnight lows to get into the 50s - yes!

+ Learned about gin cocktails.

+ Solo-parented for a weekend while Chris was away, had fun with the boys (although also some stressful times!), and kept the house clean.

+ Stuck to my personal allowance spending budget. 

+ Trick-or-treated with Catboy, Gekko, and Owlette.

Big things happening in November:

+ Thanksgiving! We will be staying in town and celebrating with family. I always take off the Wednesday before to enjoy a quiet house while I cook and I'm really looking forward to that.

In November I choose to:

+ Go to bed earlier. I really need to be going to sleep by 9 in order to feel rested when my alarm goes off at 4:26 a.m. (Orange Theory mornings) and 5 a.m. (other weekday mornings). I have later nights when I record a podcast or have book club so I really need to get full nights of sleep on the other nights.

+ Try the Headspace app. I love the idea and science behind meditation and the Headspace app sounds like an easy way to start the practice.

+ Finish Christmas shopping.

+ Order our Christmas cards (after I finish designing them).

Happy November, friends!