Every Friday I’ll indulge my order-crazed brain in a list of randomness. Welcome to my Friday Fives.

After reading The Power of Habit, I really started to examine my day-to-day routine and what I noticed was pretty startling. Working from home has made me function almost completely on auto-pilot—my days all looking distinctly similar, which can be comforting in a way. But Mr. Duhigg urges readers to shake it up, see what happens when you start digging yourself out of the ruts of familiarity by understanding your triggers and your rewards. As his book shows, that’s when extraordinary transformation can occur. It’s worth a shot. And since today is the first of November, what better day to start a 30-day challenge? Here are my goals for the coming month:

5. Create a schedule and stick to it

This might sound counterintuitive when trying to shake up habits, but creating a daily schedule will allow me to be very purposeful and intent with my time rather than functioning on auto-pilot without thought. I’m hoping it will make me more productive with interests outside of work and house upkeep.

4. Comfort Zone Barriers

Working from home sounds wonderful, until you realize you can go days without seeing anyone else, talking to anyone else or even leaving your home. Not good…or fun. I need to get out more, spend more time with friends, take more photos, volunteer somewhere, apply for jobs that would allow me time to still work from home….I haven’t quite defined where this will go, but these suggestions are a start.

3. Set the Alarm

I am definitely a morning person, but the combination of a night-thriving husband and a job that doesn’t need a specific start time has me sleeping in later and later and later. And staying up later and later and later. It doesn’t quite work for me. I’ll reserve the weekends for sleeping in, but otherwise want a regular wake-up time for the week that will get me going. Again, setting a new habit to break the old.

2. Goodbye, Bad Habit

My goal for this month is to break at least one big bad habit I have looming in my life. And there are several to choose from. Should it be my love affair with diet coke? My obsession with peanut butter? (32-year-olds really don’t need to eat a peanut butter and honey sandwich every day, right?) My procrastination to go to the gym on a regular basis? I haven’t decided which to choose yet, but will keep you posted.

1. Positive Thoughts

I’ve been down lately and once you’re there, it can be pretty easy to stay there. But November is the month of Thanks and I have a lot to be thankful for. Joe and I decided to share one thing we’re thankful for in our lives, starting today for the entire month. I hope it encourages us to be positive, to look on the bright side, to fill our heads and our hearts will all the good around us. The first on my list? Bella, of course.

Side note: Is anyone else left with an entire bowl of candy from Halloween? Where are the trick-or-treaters?? We had maybe 15 kids, total, and our neighborhood is FULL of them. I had made our favorite vegetarian chili in the crock-pot for our night in and the first group of kids that came by asked why my house smelled amazing. I told them it was my dinner and they asked if they could have some. I’m pretty sure that’s the first time sweet potatoes have trumped chocolate, ever.