This year it feels like the switch from fall and Halloween to winter and "Christmastime" has happened really abruptly. On Saturday morning, November 1, we went to get groceries and and the Christmas decorations were out - I'm talking trees, wreaths, the works. Daylight savings happened Saturday night, and since then the weather has been c-c-c-cold, winter coat cold. My first Starbucks red cup was obtained yesterday. Is time on fast forward?

November used to be my least favourite month of the year; now it's one of my favourites, with Eli's birthday, some solid crunchy leaf walks, the return of the slow cooker, and the beginnings of Christmas preparation. It's time to start thinking about booking our holiday theatre date and what to wear to the office party. November is not a month to slouch: there's a lot on the calendar.

November 1: eye appointment; Rory's grooming appointment
November 6: dinner out
November 8: play date for Eli
November 9: Eli's family birthday party
November 10: Eli's third birthday! Also a vacation day for me. (So excited for this.)
November 15: Christmas parade in the city
November 16: basketball game
November 17: follow up eye appointment

In addition to all the calendar stuff, plus work, plus gym, plus caring for a fairly small human being and a dog, there are plenty of other things to do this month. NEVER A DULL MOMENT, hooo no.

+ take a Christmas card photo and get them to the printer
+ make dentist appointments for Eli and myself
+ bake cupcakes and a cake for Eli's birthday
+ make a BIG dent in my Christmas shopping. Ideally I'd like to be done this month, but that may be wishful thinking.
+ get a haircut
+ book remaining vacation days for 2014
+ decorate Eli's big boy room. Furniture has been ordered. Goodbye, toddler bed and glider rocker. Get ready for more emo posts on this topic. :*(

What I want to be doing? 

+ watching Home Alone
+ drinking coffee and Baileys
+ baking and eating Nutella brownies (two ingredients, c'mon)

We've gone apple picking as a family every October since Eli was born. This was his third trip to the orchard and once again we had a fantastic time filling our bag with fresh apples, sampling a few on the way, and plotting some of the delicious goodies we'll make from our harvest (this year: apple butter, applesauce, apple crisp, and maybe some muffins? Plus plenty for snacks with almond butter). Apples just taste better when they're straight off the tree.

I've been slack blog-wise lately - it's not that I don't have anything to say, it's more that I'm lacking the time and/or attention span to put a proper post together. I have at least a dozen posts started and abandoned over the past two weeks.

We've been BUSY. On top of the usual working-full-time-with-a-toddler-and-obnoxious-dog routine lots of other stuff has been happening, which I'll delve more into later (not pregnant, still married, not moving away - just to clear up the three obvious conclusions.)

But April whizzed by at breakneck speed, starting with Easter, throw in a few birthdays, including my own, plus some other excitement, and yeah. Here we are.

January - Start using my slow cooker more
We have a slow cooker and we've used it a grand total of three times in four years, which is a shame. Nothing can be easier than throwing a bunch of food into a pot in the morning and enjoying a piping hot meal come dinnertime with zero effort. I'd like to get into the habit of using it at least once a week.

February - Try a new exercise class or a new workout video at home
Whether it's yogilates, spinning, boxing, or even just a new routine I can do in our TV room at home I'd like to try something new fitness-wise in February to keep from getting in a rut. 

March - Do a super duper spring cleaning
This is a boring and sucky one, but I half-assed the spring cleaning last year. This year you'll be able to eat off the shower floors if you want to. I hope.

April - Take a mom and baby class with Eli
I'd like to take a swimming class with Eli to get him used to the water before summer, so hopefully if we go to the beach he won't have a total meltdown. In April he'll be five months old, so old enough to do mom and baby swimming.

May - Run the Bluenose 10K
This would be my first organized 10K run - and this is the third consecutive year I've vowed to do it. Obviously the first two years didn't work out. Third time's a charm?

June - Take a trip to somewhere new
It can be a road trip to a new town an hour away or something that requires more serious traveling, but I'd like to see some new places in 2012 and June is the perfect month for a little getaway.

July - Wear a two-piece to the beach
AKA "get back in pre-baby shape". I have no idea how long this will take. Maybe it'll rain all of July and give me an extra month?

August - Buy groceries at the farmer's markets and from local producers
I always say "we should get our food at the market!" And then I go buy a bucket of cherries from the opposite side of the globe. I'd really like to buy more local, fresh produce this year and summer is the best time to do it.

September - Complete a home renovation project
I'm plotting a few of these for this year and will share the details as they happen. Right now Peter's reading this going "renovations WTF?" Hee hee.

October - Get a makeover
I'll be returning to work (if I haven't already) and I'm sure that after up to a year running around behind a baby I'll be more than ready to freshen up my look. Fall is the best time to revamp a wardrobe with new clothes and makeup anyway, plus I'll try a new hairstyle. And maybe a massage. Not that a massage has to do with a makeover, but if I'll be at the spa anyway to get my hair done... I have to say I'm most excited about this month's resolution.

November - Plan Eli's first birthday party
Little man will be the big 0-1 on November 10 and I'd like to have a birthday party for him, with our families and friends. We haven't had a party at the house for a while and this is a good opportunity. Plus I'd like to do something special to mark Eli's first year complete with fun decorations, snacks and treats.

December - Volunteer
I used to volunteer regularly and it gave me the warm fuzzies (or cool swag depending on the gig). Next holiday season I'd like to volunteer for something of the warm-fuzzies variety.

1. Spring starts on Saturday. AND NOT A MOMENT TOO SOON. Our four seasons in Nova Scotia are winter, almost winter, still winter, and construction. I'm about ready for "still winter" to end and am looking forward to a little construction.

2. Easter. Last year I ate 3/4 of a pound of solid milk chocolate on Easter Sunday. I know this for a fact because I got a one-pound chocolate rabbit in the morning and only his ass and tail were left by supper time. Siiiiiiiick.

3. My run tonight. I just added some new music to my iPod and am pumped!

4. Friday night. I might have sex and babies with it...this week has been brutal. My plans for Friday night involve DVDs, a paintbrush, some canvases, and a new book. Or a pub crawl. I could get deeeerunk or chill at home...it's 50/50 right now!

5. Saturday morning. I love Saturday mornings--by far my favourite time of the week. Saturday morning means good coffee enjoyed at a leisurely normal-person pace (read: not hunched over my desk at work pounding our office's warm waste management facility runoff water into myself), the Halifax farmer's market, a fresh manicure, and window-shopping. Saturday morning often leads to Saturday lunch, aka a bento box at Sushi Nami Royale. I could deal with more Saturday mornings in my life, just sayin'.

6. Kickboxing classes for H2B and I start on April 19. Apparently, the class starts out with about 30 people and usually only 18ish make it to the end. I'm scared, but in a sick way, I'm looking forward to getting my ass kicked.

7. Wedding planning. H2B and I have a date for this weekend to plow through our to-do list and figure out our ceremony (see last post). I'm not excited so much about the task itself, but the nice *ahhhh* moment we'll enjoy once it's crossed off the list.

8. The end of phase one of a very frantic and crazy project at work is coming up next week and I'm really looking forward to life getting back to a somewhat more manageable pace at the office. I love the excitement and energy but it'll be amazing to see this project live! I'm also in the midst of a second very complicated and cumbersome project that is going to be awesome when it comes together...it's just getting there that is kind of sapping me of my will to live at the moment...but it's an award winner for sure and I can't wait for feedback!

9. New bookies...I have a bunch of new books from Christmas (!!) that I haven't had a chance to crack open yet. The Time Traveler's Wife, The Almost Moon, and Five People You Meet In Heaven are three novels I have to read. I still have the books I stole borrowed from our resort in Punta Cana to read, as well as some more referencey types. Yay for reading!

10. I just found out about a stable not far from my house. I'm going to check it out online, give them a call, and fingers crossed I'll find a new place to ride this spring and summer. I miss it so much and I think even once a week would be awesome. Let's see if I can find the free time to get this stuff done...I can't even find time to wash my car and get my effing windshield repaired.