December Goals

1. Run the Turkey Trot (4 miles) on Thanksgiving in 45 minutes or less. This will be a bit harder, due to the presence of hills. Well – I ran it. And I ran it in 45.5 minutes. So – close enough, I say! (And if my iPod hadn’t died just as I turned around to start back uphill & I hadn’t had to stop to shift my sock, I probably would’ve been just fine…but excuses, excuses…at least I did it!)
2. Make one new recipe from Tastespotting each week for four weeks. I made one new recipe a week – but to be honest, most of them were from A Year of Crockpotting, instead. My crockpot & I have become very good friends this month.
3. Make my rain barrels. FAIL! They are still unmade. I have hope that with the architect’s new-found leisure time, they will be done soon. Oddly enough, I haven’t missed too much rain – our climate is weird lately.
4. Finish all holiday gift obtaining and stick with budget. This is nearly done. The architect & I had a feeling that his job was on the line – with the construction & building markets crashing, architecture firms are laying off people left & right. I have almost everything done for my gift obtaining this year, and those that have not been obtained are only because freshness is key (love sending baked goods). (Also – if you want a taste of what my closest compatriots are being forced to put up with are being blessed with this year, don’t forget to enter the holiday gift basket contest! You have until Thursday at midnight!)
5. Participate in & finish NaNoWriMo – something I haven’t accomplished since 2005. Hmmm… This is tricky. Technically I did not finish. However, I did get a few things writing-related accomplished that needed to be done. Things I cannot currently talk about. Also, I did finish NaNoBloMo, which isn’t quite the same thing, but at least it was writing related, right?

So – with that out of the way – and honestly, I feel that considering everything that happened during the last month, I did pretty well – it’s time for the December goals.

1. Finish the goddamn rain barrels. Seriously. They need to be done. Even if I have to pick up the power tools & do them myself. (gardening)
2. Get in 27 workouts (which means I can double-up if I miss a day due to illness or stress). (fitness)
3. Make delicious, healthy, creative meals with my December grocery budget of $200. (money/food)
4. Learn to make something new that will reduce household costs (such as laundry detergent, or something similar – any ideas?) (household)
5. Read 5 new books. (personal)

Happy December, people!  Can you believe that 2008 is almost over? I’ve had such a great year! A great new job that I love. Meeting some awesome Portland blogger/runners. I’ve learned so much about myself and am so happy to be here!