Planning a December Trip to Canada (from USA) -- When do I need to apply for my passport??

Question

Okay so basically, I'm from the USA (Georgia) and I'm planning on visiting Edmonton this December. My question is, when do I need to apply for a passport so that I'll have it by December 10th? I know what the proper time limitations are (the 4-6 weeks), but I was wondering if it gets backed up at Christmas time like it does at other times during the year and makes the wait longer. Also, if anybody has tips for booking flights in advance (or warnings for getting through airports and the likes), those would be appreciated too =D.

Thanks for any help you can give =).

Answer 1

Last I heard, and this was from the post office, its running about 6 months.  I think you can pay an extra $100 to speed it up a little, like 90 days or something...  But you should have applied a few months ago.

Answer 2

Actually, it's about a month.  

This quote from the State Department website:

At this time, we are processing routine applications in less than four weeks from the time of application.  We are processing requests for expedited service in two weeks door-to-door.  

Get it now; you're correct that it gets dense around the holidays.  Here's application info:

http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/fir...