Happy almost October! OK. So Christmas time and the holiday season is by far my favorite time of the year, but almost just as much, I also adore autumn. Fall is such a wonderful time of year to me because it signifies change and that the holiday is season is right around the corner. I have always loved it, and every year I like to do several things to bring the fall season to life. I am sharing with you all today 12 things I love to do each fall and in particularly all throughout the month of October.
Drink my First PSL of the Season
For any of you Starbucks lovers out there, you know what PSL day is. Everyday year Starbucks brings back it’s ever famous Pumpkin Spice Latte at the beginning of fall, and it has become the first day that marks the beginning of fall for me. I know basic… And even though this year the PSL came out on August 28 (definitely not fall yet), Starbucks fans everywhere were literally celebrating and I will admit I may have been one of those PSL crazed fans!
Shop for Fall Candles
Usually the first thing I do is go out and stock up on fall scented candles. I love to get a bunch simply because I usually have one lit every day if not two! Filling my home with fall scents like Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin, Sweater Weather, and Leaves makes it feel like fall has begun. I love to get my fall candles at Bath & Body Works, and I actually love to get my holiday scented candles here too.
Switch Out My Summer Wardrobe for Fall
I probably do this too early for where we live (Nevada), but I really can’t help myself! I love fall/winter clothes over summer clothes any day, so give me all the oversized sweaters, tall boots, scarves, and plaids and I am a happy girl! Since it tends to be warmer here until late October or even November some years, I like to slowly incorporate fall pieces into my everyday looks by mixing them with summer pieces. For example I will pair denim shorts with a light-weight sweater and hat, or a tank top with dark jeans and boots like I am wearing above!
Decorate for Fall
Decorating for fall is one of my favorite things to do to celebrate the new season. If you all saw my garage you might laugh at the amount of boxes of decorations I have stacked up in there for fall and halloween. I promise you, Christmas decor is even worse! Regardless of how many ceramic pumpkins I have, each year I always find myself walking up and down the fall decor and halloween aisles at stores and purchasing more! Oops! Add in the fall scented candles and my homes IS fall, folks! Some of my favorite places for fall decor are Home Goods, Target, Micheals, and Hobby Lobby!
Apple Picking
There really is only one place for apple picking where we live (in my opinion) Gilgrease Orchard, and it is a must do every fall. They have more than just apples, and even have a pumpkin patch too. One year I decided I wanted to pick a bunch of pears and go home and make pear jam. I spent an entire day in the kitchen carefully following this recipe, and ended up doing everything right (and I was so proud!). However I than forgot to properly seal the jars and they all ended up going bad… Ugh, heart breaking!
Bake Something
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I really only get the urge to bake something in the fall. Something about the smell of baking bread, or muffins, or really anything, just says fall to me! I usually try to make something with fall flavors, which ultimately comes down to pumpkin something. This Pumpkin Gingerbread and Iced Pumpkin Cookies recipes are two of my favorites.
Visit a Pumpkin Patch
I am so excited to bring my daughter, Aria along to the pumpkin patch this year! The pumpkin patches around here are more like small amusement parks with tons of pumpkins stacked around on hay bales with other attractions around like rides, caramel apples and hot cocoa, corn mazes, and even petting zoos! I plan to take Aria to Halloween Town near our home as soon as it opens! I also make it a tradition to take a family photo at the pumpkin patch so we will absolutely be doing that as well.
Cook Acorn Squash
I love butternut squash too, but acorn squash in particular is my favorite fall vegetable! Have you ever had it? Usually at least a few times each year I will make acorn squash to go with dinner. I simply cut it in half, scrape out the seeds, season it with salt, pepper, clove, cinnamon, and drizzle it with real maple syrup, and then bake it in the oven at 400° for about 30-40 mins. YUM.
Campfire and S’Mores
When I was little growing up in Minnesota, my dad made a campfire all the time. I loved when we would rake the yard in the fall and burn the leaves. THAT SMELL. That is the smell of fall! It sounds crazy but I almost wish we had a yard full of fallen leaves to rake up and burn just so I can smell it! Anyhoo, since that is not possible I like to have a campfire in the fall to sit around, listen to the wood crackle, and roast marshmallows for S’mores!
Play in Leaves and Take a Fall Foliage Walk
Seeing the bright red, orange, and yellow fall leaves on trees is the best part of fall! There are a few areas near our home that get some fall foliage, but the further north you go the more of it you will see. We like to do at least one outing and go walking through some beautiful fall foliage and just take in the beauty. This year we are actually driving north towards Lake Tahoe area for a weekend away in the fall scenery!
Stock up on Candy
You can’t have fall without Halloween, and you can’t have Halloween without…You guessed it! C.A.N.D.Y. Granted I always make sure to have plenty of candy for Trick-or-treaters, I also like to fill pumpkin shaped dishes around the house with our favorite candy as well. We love snickers, Kit Kat, Twix, and Heath bars!
Watch Fall and Halloween Movies
Hocus Pocus! Pretty much the movie of October, and if you get FreeForm you could pretty much watch it everyday this month! So, I really love to watch a certain list of movies every fall and every holiday season too. I actually look forward to evenings after dinner, curled up on the couch with a big mug of hot cocoa and a good seasonal movie! I listed all my top favorite fall movies here if your interested!
Carving Pumpkins
Usually Halloween day is when we carve our pumpkins. They look the best and not starting to rot, and it has just become a tradition for our family. We each carve one pumpkin and really get into it. We can be kind of competitive actually, but it is so much fun! You can get free pumpkin carving stencils online, and that is what we usually do. Simply google “free pumpkin carving stencils” and voila! Have fun!