Woohoo, it's FRIDAY!

Wow, what a week! I am so glad it's finally Friday. The hubby and I are piled up on the couch catching up on our DVR...fire in the fireplace. Oh, I do miss a wood burning fireplace tonight. This is our first house with a gas fireplace. It's nice to not have to lug wood in from outside...all covered in nastiness like mud...spiders...that sort of thing. But, there is absolutely no replacement for the smell of wood burning...the crackles and pops. But, I'm grateful that we have a fireplace at all.

We're now just a few weeks away from Thanksgiving. There is a finally a groovy chill in the air...the signs that we are indeed in the midst of fall. The south can be confusing like that. The calendar may say October or November, but the temperatures are reminiscent of a balmy summer evening. To be quite frank, I can't stand the summer. I suppose I would like it more if I lived somewhere that had a fine balance... Actual distinction between the seasons. However, we start to warm up significantly in late March and into April and continue to stay warm until November and December. We only get a couple of months of solid cold weather...and hardly even a month of solid crisp weather. Today has been absolutely lovely. Overcast and mid 50's for a high. The gray skies a stark contrast to the gorgeous reds and golds of the trees. We are peaking over the next couple of weeks with our fall foliage. I plan on getting out with my camera tomorrow to get some good pictures before all of the leaves are gone.

I have been reading other blogs to draw some inspiration for this one. One of the things that I've been reading a lot of is the "12 Things by 2012" challenge. Basically, it's like end of the year resolutions to accomplish by 2012. I especially love this idea because I'm a "crunch time" type of person. I know...this is a nice way of saying I procrastinate. But, I really do much better at things when I'm looking at a rapidly approaching deadline. So, I thought I'd jump on this bandwagon.

12 Things by 2012

1) Quit Smoking ( Okay, this one is kind of cheating as I've already started the process, but hey...we gotta start somewhere.)
2) Make this blog awesome.
3) Make more of an effort in my appearance. (While I'm a big advocate of inner beauty, I think that you feel good when you feel you look good as well)
4) Have my car, purse, and house clean at the same time. (This is a feat in itself. I don't think I've EVER been able to have the trifecta)
5) Start creating more. I have so much creative energy that gets suppressed by day to day life. It wants OUT!
6) Work on my photography
7) Get all my laundry caught up and KEEP it caught up!
8) Cook more (I love to cook, but I don't ever seem to have the time...I need to make the time and stick to it)
9) Pay more compliments
10) Get my closet reorganized. I need it to function as more than a closet.
11) Do more nice things for my husband
12) Enjoy the holidays without stressing out...

Hopefully these stick! Now, I think I'm going to head to bed so I can get a head start tomorrow on the list. There is a lot to do and less than two months to go! What will your 12 by 2012 be?