I have a secret. I might actually like fall. But shhhhh!!!!! You cannot tell summer I said that. If summer knows I like fall, it may never come back.
Ugh fine. I like fall. There. I said it at a normal volume. Blah.
What I do not like, however, is winter. I think this is why I have a hard time with fall. It’s beautiful and there are so many fun things to do in the fall — apple picking, apple cider, pumpkin pie, flag football, fires in the firepit, crockpot soups and stews.
BUT, and this is a big one, it’s the gateway to all things cold and frozen. I am not okay with that. Fall is normally the time to turn the heating on to keep everyone warm as it’s just so cold outside. However, that does mean that it’s a great excuse to light the firepit and enjoy some time in the fresh air. Of course, it is cold, but the firepit normally warms us up fine! We got our firepit installed professionally, but one of my friends actually made his by himself. It should probably be mentioned that he does do welding in his spare time, so he is pretty experienced with creating things like that. However, it’s still impressive. He managed to save a lot of money by creating his own fireplace by using a stick welder. If anyone else wants to try and make their own firepit, they could consider reading this stick welding guide to make sure they are using the correct equipment. Hopefully, more people should be able to create their own firepit for those cold Fall evenings!
Fall is nice because you can play outside and it’s chilly but not overly cold so that you have to bundle up and not be able to move your own arms.
So what do I like about fall? What do you like about fall? Let’s start a list:
12 Things That Make Fall Awesome
1. Apple Picking at Patterson Fruit Farm and the subsequent warm apple fritters that follow.
If you’re from Cleveland, you know what’s up. Patterson Fruit Farm has donuts, apples, pumpkins, apple fritters, apple cider — even kettle corn on the weekends! It’s such a fun place. Not from Cleveland? Come visit me in October (maybe for the Northern Ohio Half or Full Marathon?) and I’ll take you there!
2. The sound of crunchy leaves.
But they have to be dry crunchy leaves. There’s nothing worse than wet leaves. They’re slippery and goopy. But dry, crunchy leaves are the best. Trail running tip: be wary of what’s below that blanket of crunchers. Roots and rocks have been known to jump out and attack!
3. High school football games.
Okay, okay. I don’t actually go to these, but they were super fun when I was in high school! And now that I live super close to my alma mater, I can hear the band practicing during the week and it gets me kinda amped up for games. I may take my kids this year.
4. Flag football. Again, don’t actually play, but I’m hoping to this fall.
Who am I kidding? I’m never playing flag football. But in theory it sounds awesome.
5. Chili cook-offs.
Hands down one of the best parts of football season/fall. I don’t like football but I do like all the food. Plus my husband loves football so it’s the best of both worlds.
6. Crock-pot soups and stews.
Yes, yes, yes! There are so many times during the summer I just want to put something in the crockpot to cook all day, but then I realize how ridiculous that is because it’s perfect grilling weather and it’s usually too hot for a thick, hearty crockpot meal. Bring it on, slow cooker!!
7. Hoodies.
I LOVE WEARING HOODIES! So much so that I wear them year round. Don’t judge. I love me a good hoodie.
8. Having the windows open on a cool, fall day.
There are only a couple of weeks of the whole year that you get a nice warm/cool breeze with the smell of fallen leaves through the house. Be careful not to miss it — it comes and goes in the blink of an eye!
9. Pumpkin picking!
Pumpkin picking is super fun. I tend to get carried away, though, so my husband has to reel me back in. We usually end up with at least three large pumpkins, plus a couple of pie pumpkins. Do I ever use them for pie? Nah, but they sure do look cute!
10. Halloween.
True or false: my favorite holiday is Halloween. If you answered true, that’d be correct. It’s so much fun to dress up and have parties and take kids trick or treating. Above all, I love the idea of designing my own costumes for the bizarre Halloween parties- the excitement of mismatching colors, wearing weird stuff. There is more scope for experimenting. I mean, if you want, you can add pumpkin or witch applique designs on your costumes and pair it with equivalently weird footwear (maybe something from that resembles the footwear of a witch or a wizard). Although if I’m being honest, which I am, Thanksgiving may beat out Halloween. It’s at least a tie.
11. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
You have to be Jewish or know a Jew to appreciate this one. But almost every Jewish holiday revolves around food. And Jewish food is good. Especially matzah ball soup and noodle kugel. There are a lot of Jewish holidays in the fall. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are the two that most people recognize.
12. Hiking in the woods.
Or running. Or just standing, really. I love being in the woods. If I could live in solitude in the woods, I totally would. But since I can’t, I’m happy to share my love of the outdoors with my family so spending time with them there is the perfect fall activity for me.
I do love fall. It’s such a gorgeous time of year. I will always prefer summer and warm weather, but fall has a special place in my heart.
xo
Let’s talk!
What’s your favorite season?
What’s one of your favorite fall activities?
