Inspired by the latest episode of the Sorta Awesome Podcast, I'm rounding up my ten favorite ways to make autumn more awesome.
- Re-read old favorites. It's the perfect time of year for a cozy winner! I'm thinking that I'm going to have to squeeze in Anne of Ingleside and Farmer Boy soon. Also, Pilgrims naturally bring a couple of books to mind. Try The Witch of Blackbird Pond
or Constance: A Story of Early Plymouth
. I also really enjoyed Geraldine Brooks' Caleb's Crossing (and I talked about it and Constance in my Colonial New England round-up four years ago!)
- Bake stuff! It makes your house smell good, and warms things up if your house is chilly. (That's not really a problem here in AZ... but you know.) If you're looking for something really easy, try starting with my Ugly But Delicious Banana Cookies or Mini Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins.
- Wear scarves. They make pretty much any outfit cuter. 95% of the time I wear my scarves in "the European Loop", but I think I'm going to try a couple of other cute options from this tutorial. I cannot WAIT till the 80 degree temps go away, and I get to start wearing some of my many scarves.
- Volunteer somewhere. I'm helping to make dinner for about 60 women and children at the Gospel Rescue Mission next Saturday. It's such a great thing to be able to do. In the past I've also done "trick or treating for cans", to benefit the local food bank. I'm sure your town or city has lots of volunteer options - find a way to reach out to your community!
- Read seasonal books. I was going to make a new list of kid books - and then I realized that the list I made last year is still pretty great! So here it is: 20+ Thanksgiving and Autumn Books (& Movies!) Kids Will Love.
- Buy a sweater. I just bought this one at Old Navy, and I adore it. It reminds me of a sweater I bought in France in 2003, which I finally wore to death in 2013. I'm so happy to have a similar option back in my possession!
- Put up fall decor. Bonus points if it's homemade, involves a paper plate, or your handprint turned into a turkey. Pinterest is full of super cute, super easy ideas.
- Splurge on some good lotion. Autumn is the time of year that skin starts getting so uncomfortably dry! I'm obsessed with this lemon hand lotion
. It's REALLY lemony, so I usually do one pump of that, and one pump of the Burt's Baby Lotion, and then my hands are super soft and nicely lemony. For my face I love this lotion
. It's lightweight, my skin is noticeably softer when I use it, and I don't break out, which is huge for me.
- Make warm food. I need to make a batch of Aimee's Harvest Corn Chowder again soon. And I rounded up 10 of my favorite 10-minute dinners here.
- Use seasonal scents. I'm a big fan of Partylite candles - I used to have a friend who sold them. They burn cleanly, with no smoke, and no headaches. I love their Harvest Spice and Cinnamon Orange scents. But this year I just decided to try ePantry for the first time, so I ordered a bunch of Mrs. Meyers' cleaning products in fall scents - cranberry and cinnamon clove. I'm excited to get yummy fall scents that way too.
What makes YOUR autumn awesome?
P.S. This post contains a few Amazon affiliate links. If you use the link to buy something, I'll earn a few cents (at no cost to you!). All the products I mention though, I bought with my own hard-earned dollars. Also, if you want to try ePantry, use this code to sign up, and you and I will each get $10 worth of freebies!
