You have two more days to enter the ENERGYbits giveaway! Go do it now! 🙂
I got back to the gym yesterday for a great workout.
I love wearing long tights during the fall and winter, even at the gym!
To test the leg a little bit I started with 20 minutes on the Arc Trainer at a pretty low resistance.
I did a few lower body weights (that I knew I could do safely) and finished with 50 laps in the pool.
Great workout overall!
We made it to Friday again! I can hardly believe how quickly these weeks are going by! I needed more time this week to get it all done, but thankfully I have checked off at least half of the two page list I have sitting on my desk!
Almost a month ago exactly I did a Five Things Friday post on my top things I looked forward to in October.
Looking back on them I realize just how great of a month I have had. Aside form the whole no running thing I’d say it has been a great October.
Now that a new month is upon us I decided it was time to look forward to this next month!
Five Things I Look Forward to in November
1. Travel, Travel, Travel
I feel like this will be going on for the next 2 months or so.
I stress about traveling a lot, but at the end of the day we are doing this for an amazing reason.
Traveling not only allows us to spend some great quality time together, but it also gives us a chance to see friends and family we normally go many months without seeing.
It is stressful yes, especially for my husband who will be doing 5 pretty rigorous residency interviews in 2 weeks, but there are many positives to it as well.
2. Thanksgiving
Who doesn’t LOVE Thanksgiving?
Though our plans are still very much up in the air as to where or what we will be doing, I am still so excited. Even if it ends up just being a low key “just the two of us” Thanksgiving I look forward to the whole process.
The past two years my in-laws have been able to make the trip up to have Thanksgiving with us, but this year unless we go down to North Carolina (which may or may not happen) we will be having a low key Thanksgiving here.
This picture was from our very first married Thanksgiving two years ago. Wes was carving the turkey.
The past two years have taught me a lot about cooking for Thanksgiving, and even though I have kept it simple I look forward to another year of trying new things!
Who doesn’t love Pumpkin Pie?!
3. On the Home Stretch of Recovery
As to exactly when I will be running again I don’t know for sure yet, BUT I do know that with each month that goes by it is one day closer to being recovered!
For the majority of November I will continue to focus on cross training.
As we travel I will adjust the best I can, but the main point is to keep active and keep my heart rate UP!
4. Beginning of Our LAST Winter
I should have put this at the top, but I am so excited to have to only make it through ONE MORE WINTER.
Erie, PA Is not a kind place to live during the winter. Starting sometime in November and going until April we are pretty much covered in snow!
The snow can be very pretty in December around Christmas time, but then it just gets old!
It is not fun going outside and cleaning off (or digging out) your car before you can go anywhere!
That would be my car during one of our snow storms last winter. It was a joy. The husband and I had to take turns going out and digging it out.
Knowing that this is hopefully our last winter up here definitely helps!
5. The Countdown to Christmas Begins
Hands down my favorite holiday is Christmas. I love every single thing about it!
Don’t laugh at my pitiful Christmas tree from a couple years ago. It was the best I could do with what we had! HA
It is always a very special time of family, food, and special memories for me.
I can’t wait to celebrate again this year!
What are you looking forward to in November?
When I think of November, I immediately think of red cups at Starbucks. So I am looking forward to Red Cup Season! They are just soo cute and festive and one of those little things that can brighten your day.
Aww I hadn’t even thought of that! That is a great one Leah! Love the red cups too! 🙂
I have to confess to being glad marching band season is over – it is a huge time sink for the kids, and many days I felt like ‘Dad’s Shuttle Service’ for two kids in different band sections with slightly different schedules …
Looking forward to Thanksgiving, but a bit disappointed my brother isn’t coming up after all – he has been at our house a bunch since his separation a few years ago, and was going to come but is staying to spend time with his girlfriend and her kids (these complex family situations and custody things exhaust me). But on the up side, he will have his daughter for Christmas (she is ~2 weeks younger than our younger son) and they are coming.
On Christmas morning we participate in a charity gift delivery effort – spend the next two months getting gifts, separating, bagging them up … then line up at 5AM with hundreds of other volunteers and then deliver Christmas to loads of needy families in the area. SO worth it!
Back to November, this Sunday I have my last race of the season – the Red Baron half marathon. Small race (few hundred), supports the local nature conservation center, and is handled by the much bigger Wineglass Marathon people … I loved it last year, looking forward to this one (and no more tapering!)
Wow you are quite the busy dad! Glad maybe you will get a bit of a break!
Good luck on your last race! I know how tapering can be, it’s nice to race but sometimes it is nice when it is over and you feel like you can get back to your “normal” schedule.
I’m sorry your brother won’t make it for Thanksgiving! I want to go see our families but with all this traveling we’ve got going on I just don’t know if we can do it money wise and time wise. I would much rather be there for Christmas so hopefully that can be worked out, I guess we will just wait and see!
I’m most excited to try out my new treadmill. We picked up a Reebox one from Costco. It looks fancy smancy! I hope to try it out today but right now I have a raging headache which I hope passes soon.
Oh how exciting!!! Hope you LOVE it! I can’t wait to one day get back on my treadmill!
November is pretty low key here in Canada however I am looking forward to my first US Black Friday experience. I’m heading down to New York with some girlfriends to shop, eat, shop and eat some more.
That sounds like craziness!! I have been black friday shopping once and that is all I needed!! Hope you have a blast though!
DO NOT EVER move to MN…because winters are horrible here too. 😉
I love your pitiful tree…and any sparse tree for that matter…always reminds me of the “Charlie Brown Christmas tree” and that every tree just needs a little love (like every person) just like the Reason for the Season after all.
Haha okay we will cross MN off our list then! 🙂
Yes, my tree has been sad looking. We usually travel at Christmas time so our tree is only up for a few weeks. It was better than nothing though 🙂
November means another wildfire season is over and I can be home more!
That pumpkin pie looks really good!
Yay for the ARC trainer. Even on low resistance it’s such a great workout. I always leave the gym drenched after a good ARC trainer workout.
I’m so jealous of the snow you get there. As a New Englander that has been transplanted to a place without snow, I actually miss it. You may not believe it but you’ll miss it too, I promise 🙂
I’m super excited for Thanksgiving too. I’ll be spending it with my boyfriend’s family for the first time. I’m excited to see another family”is traditions. I hope you get to spend it with your family too!
My favorite thing about November is Thanksgiving! Turkey Trot, Turkey, loads of pie, and family… what’s not to love!?!
Those are all great things!! Especially the pie! Haha 🙂
I am so jealous of all your snow!! I would be perfectly content to have snow on the ground from November 1st to March 1st!! 🙂
Haha well you are welcome to take it from us! 🙂
I love the pic of you and Wes on Christmas!! It’s my favorite holiday, too. I’m really looking forward to Thanksgiving with my husband’s family (it’s SO fun!), Christmas with my family (obviously not in November but I’m still looking forward!), and finally getting some crisp Fall weather (hopefully!) in Dallas.
The holidays are always a great time to spend with family! 🙂