November, Plus October, Revisited

If you're new around these parts, each month I check in with the previous month's goals and masochistically give myself some more. What can I say? I like to at least partially feel like a failure at all times. It's humbling. Also, these posts are usually long because I am wordy and very rarely book-filled. You've been warned. 

October was a lot of fun- my mom came down and we went to my school's homecoming game, the pumpkin patch, and Newport to see a friend. I flew to Berkeley for the day to visit an old student and we spent the day walking and taking and going to museums (and I got to hang out in airports, which I weirdly love). Sawyer and I did the whole Halloween thing, decorating his door, cruising the costume and decor aisle at Target seventeen million times (his preference, not mine), decorating pumpkins and then trick-or-treating last night (he was quite the neighborhood hit as Chewbacca). But anyway, here's how I did with my goals:

1. See friends three times a month: Yup! I think I did things with like five or six friends throughout October, so I feel very socially satisfied. 

2. Log 50 treadmill miles: No, but... I still averaged over 13,000 steps a day. I probably got in 30 miles, and many of those have been in the past week because my new pair of Asics arrived. I switched back from Mizunos and it's like running on a cloud. I hate myself for not doing it earlier. Now I want to run every day! I don't have time, but I'm excited to be motivated.

3. Read 1,500 pages: Yes! I think I barely reached this, but like ten pages, but it still counts.

4. Track personal expenditures: No I actually did a good job for three weeks, but this last week I failed. I know I did spend quit a bit in the apparel category, though, since I bought a new dress from Anthro and running shoes. Oops. 

5. Travel: Yup I went on an airplane, granted to the Bay Area where I've been hundreds of times, but still, I got out of Southern California! Yay! We also went to Temecula, the wine country of this half of the state, for the pumpkin patch and Orange County a few times, so I feel like I have made an effort to venture away from home. It's actually made me want to travel even more... at some point today I asked myself "Is taking Sawyer to Banff practical for spring break?" Sigh. We'll see. 

6. 30 minutes of uninterrupted Sawyer time at least five days a week: Yes! I killed it here. I'd say pretty much every day, actually, and often more than thirty minutes. I suck at SO MUCH in my life, but I think I am a decent mom. 

7. Feel less nervous breakdown-ish about papers to grade: Yes! I am on the verge of freaking out about the stacks of essays again, though, so some damage control needs to be done asap. I got a ton of assignments graded and inputted into the gradebook over the past few weeks, so I am proud of that.

8. Ten TED Talks: No This is the second month that it was on my list and I couldn't do it. 

9. Start 2016 Year in Review book: Ha! No!

10. Throw our or donate 100 things: Yes! I think I need to do this every month, though. It feels so good to purge closets.

Now, for November (my favorite month of all!):

1. Watch 10 TED Talks: I am going to effing do this.

2. Not screw up Thanksgiving: We are hosting my husband's family and my brother this year, which we have done in the past. I took a break last year, but we're back in action. I actually don't mind, since I like having people over, but it's not exactly a meal you want to mess up.

3. Track core workouts: Does the expansion currently happening from the Halloween candy eating count for this? 

4. Run a 5k that I'm happy about: I'm doing the We Run This City one at UCLA on the twentieth, so I'm hoping I walk away feeling content with my time. I'm realistic and don't expect miracles, but I have some times in mind...

5. Attempt to potty train my kid (but be okay if it doesn't work out this time around): He's barely 2.5 and the whole home/daycare thing seems like it might be challenging. But we'll see!

6. Christmas shopping started: I want to at least have ideas for everyone on my list ready.