A bounty of apples.
There are so many things I love about each and every season – the first buds of spring; summer’s long evenings; sparkling blankets of fresh snowfall on a winter morning – but fall is my favorite. I love everything about fall. I love the flavors – apple cider (hot and cold) and pie; pumpkin spice everything; cinnamon sugar donuts; candy corn at Halloween; turkey and cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving – and the colors of the leaves as they turn. I love how the sky is always bluest in fall, over a patchwork of red and orange and yellow. I love that it’s the start of hockey season. (It’s also the start of my annual football widowhood, but that’s less burdensome now that I have a Peanut to play with while Daddy watches his games.) I love dusting off my knitting needles – they may sit unused during summer’s heat, but the first cool evenings bring back a desire to knit… and to bake, craft, create things. I love fall clothes – jeans and sweaters and scarves, but no coat, not yet. I love Halloween and Thanksgiving and the beginnings of anticipating Christmas.
In honor of my favorite season, here’s my to-do list for fall.
- Hike Zoar Valley.
- Visit Frank Lloyd Wright’s Greycliff – I wanted to get here over the summer, but I’m sure the house and grounds will look spectacular in autumn colors, too.
- Re-read Anne of the Island, my favorite of the Anne books and a perfect read for back-to-school season.
- Bake fall treats – apple coconut family cake, pumpkin bread, cinnamon scones, and cranberry-studded oatmeal cookies all sound good right now.
- Visit Tifft Nature Preserve for our seasonal hike – this one will bring us full circle!
- Knit a pair of warm socks.
- Make a dent in some of the unpacking; living in a sea of boxes gets wearing.
- Go to Maine for my brother’s wedding – the event I’m most looking forward to all season!
- Make apple butter. I’ve always wanted to try.
- Find Peanut an adorable Halloween costume to wear to school.
- Spend some time in Fairacre with my favorite teachers – Miss Read, Miss Clare, and Mrs. Annett. And Amy, of course!
- Discover a new local hike.
- Take Peanut to visit Cornell, Mommy and Daddy’s (and her future) alma mater. LET’S GO RED!
- Drink hot apple cider as much as I can. And make roasted pumpkin seeds. My two favorite seasonal treats.
- Run for fun – a few 5Ks and, of course, the turkey trot with my sisters-in-law.
- Pick out a pattern and start working on Peanut’s Weasley Christmas sweater.
- Read some Dickens.
What’s on your fall agenda?
covered in flour 
These are absolutely lovely Fall activities!
Can I suggest one? Visit Mayer Brothers Cider Mill, we always went there once in the Fall on elementary school field trips & just thinking about the fresh donuts & cider makes my mouth water!
What is it about Autumn that is so inspiring? I want to stay outside all day but at the same time curl up with a book and a pie baking in the oven…too hard to choose.
A cider mill sounds like a great idea! My inlaws always take their apple haul to make cider at a mill near their house but I’d like to check out a different one – something that caters to young children. I’m going to check out your suggestion – thanks!
I love fall – it’s by far my favorite season. I think it’s the crisp air that makes it so inspiring. That and the colors – the best colors all year.
They make their own cider?? That’s amazing!
Yeah, they’re pretty cool! They don’t make it with their own hands, but they pick the apples and then deliver the load to a cider mill for pressing, then pick up the cider. I’m not sure if they do it every year, but I’ve known them to get their apple haul made into cider. Me, I’d rather buy my cider and use my picked apples in baked goods, or just eat them out of hand, but that’s the beauty of fall – there’s something for everyone!
That’s still awesome, it never occurred to me to try that. Have you been apple picking at Becker Farms? That was a good time when I was a kid & they have goats you can feed, a country store with jams, syrups and all that yummy stuff. I will probably go there next month to get apples! You should post your apple recipes.
I haven’t been to Becker Farms, but it sounds amazing, thanks for the tip! I don’t remember the name of the orchard we picked at last year, but I know I would have remembered all those fun extras. I will post some apple recipes if I come up with anything good. (The “apple coconut family cake” I mentioned is on the blog already, in my archives. I think it’s originally a Dorie Greenspan recipe, but the blog post would give the appropriate credit.)
It’s been hard to get into the fall groove because things keep going wrong around here, most recently that Peanut’s finger and my car broke on the same day. We’re hoping that Peanut will be healed enough to enjoy apple picking by next weekend. If she is, I’ll definitely look for Becker Farms. She would LOVE to feed the goats!
That poor little munchkin:/
I know, I feel so bad for her. She doesn’t understand what happened, just knows it hurts, and it breaks my mommy heart. And I feel almost as bad for the teacher who did it, because I know she feels HORRIBLE and Peanut seems to be planning to milk this for all it’s worth. She has been ratting the teacher out to me all weekend. It got to a point where I said, “I know that __ did it, honey, no one likes a tattle-tale.” And she’s only two! I think we’re in trouble when she hits elementary school. 😉
The finger breaking part is just awful but the tattle tale part is amusing I hate to say! Poor little thing though. I hope she’s healed for trick-or-treating=)
By the way I saw a green heron this morning, no kidding! at Reinstein Woods around sunrise. I guess you were right they will be everywhere now.
Wow, that’s incredible that you saw another one! Heh, I didn’t really think they would start showing up everywhere although it does sometimes seem like when it rains, it pours, right?
Peanut has her splint off (yay!) but she will still have her fingers taped for trick-or-treating but she’s a little young to go door to door still, and the tape hasn’t slowed her down so far, so I think she’ll be okay for the festivities at school. I had hoped to take her to a Halloween party with her Stroller Strides buddies but I think I’ve now got a work commitment – such is life. But we’ll find a fun way for her to celebrate! Now I just need to find her a costume…
The green heron was ridiculous, I took photos but I’m not sure I can post it in this comment, haven’t figured that out.
I’m glad to hear Peanut is healing. Halloween costumes…can peanut be a peanut??
They are such cool birds! I’m not sure how you can post in a comment – will you post a pic on your blog?
A peanut would be a cute costume for Peanut! I don’t know if it would work because I imagine a peanut costume being pretty padded, and she will be wearing it at school so I think the padding might impede her sitting on the adorably tiny but slippery chairs they have, LOL! My BFF actually bought her a gorgeous pink and gold embroidered outfit (complete with mini head scarf!) in Afghanistan (BFF was an aid worker there for a year), so if I’m able to locate it in time Peanut will be an Arabian princess. (I know where it was in our old house, but have no idea where our packers put it when we were moving.) If not I’ll probably cough up WAY too much money for a Pottery Barn Kids costume (the tulle pumpkin and tulle witch are both cute outfits, albeit way overpriced for something Peanut will wear two or three times at most), but time is getting short and I have to find something!
Clearly she’s already won best costume…nobody else will have a beautiful authentic Arabian outfit-that is so cool, lucky girl! But pumpkins and cats are always good too!
I will post the green heron soon, I’m due for a nature picture post.
Yay, I’ll keep an eye out for it! I’m sure you have better pictures than my quick iPhone snap.
Found the outfit! It was folded up in Peanut’s closet, so I blame Nana. Nana’s usually at fault when something is neatly placed in its proper location. We’re not used to that sort of thing in this house. So we will have a little Afghan princess this Halloween after all! And just when I was ready to throw in the towel and buy her a costume. Whew!
Love love love this list. I think I need to drink some cider and spend some time in Fairacre too!
Or drink some cider WHILE spending time in Fairacre! 🙂
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