Snapshot :: That First Leaf

Oh, that first leaf of the season.
The first leaf in the process of changing, not quite finished... really just getting started.
This one was spotted last weekend in Indiana.
The kids were all climbing the tree they were falling from and when one of them picked one up
and twirled it around from the bottom of the stem, I got a quick picture.
It's perfect. The light, the first leaf, the season to come.

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Will Brake For Fall

I am that person driving in front of you that slows down to oooh and ahhhh at all the pretty Fall trees.
No seriously, I am.
Sometimes on my way to work I am slowing down, pulling over, taking pictures because I am convinced I just saw the MOST gorgeous tree ever on Earth...and then I see the next more gorgeous one like, thirty seconds later.
Ha! And then somehow I have turned my quick 5-minute drive to work into a 14-minute drive to work and I almost late. That pretty much sums me up.

{These first two were on my drive to work on Monday...}

Oh, I love the colors- the yellows, oranges, browns and reds.

LOVE the colors, the crisp cooler air, the jean jackets, the boots, the leaves falling from the trees almost like rain when you look out the window. 

I love this in-between time that is Fall and wish that it lasted much, much longer than it does here. 

So, I will stop and take all the pictures whenever I want because I know it will soon be gray, bare, cloudy, cold... and frankly, very depressing. 

Every year I almost forget how much I hate Winter and those dreary days, until we have our chilliest rainy day and then it all comes back to me....and I am ready to run away until April. 

Just two days until Halloween and the craziness of having kids and so much going on(in the span of a week, and in our case, the whole month!)has officially begun.
School plays, Halloween parade at school, treats for school, running around to find all the costume supplies we need, grabbing last-minute pumpkins to carve....
The list goes on.
These days are the bright spot for me though, the part I feel like makes up for everything else.
I remember the excitement of Halloween and the days leading up to it, those are favorite memories of mine as a child and I hope they are for my kids, too.
I love getting to do these things again with them and through them, one of the best parts of being a parent for sure.

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I hope you are enjoying this season where you are...
Happy Thursday!

Soaking In These Early Fall Days

It's Fall...officially and it is even starting to feel like it now.
I do love Summer and I am always a little sad to see it go but then there is Fall.
Every Fall I think maybe it is my MOST favorite time of year... it just might be. Today it is.
Today it most definitely is.
Fall soccer, cool mornings, pumpkins, mums, all the pumpkin spice ridiculousness...I love it all.

This week I am thankful for flowers from the Farmer's Market, a coffee date + afternoon with my sister
and the leaves changing colors on the trees.
We are enjoying the days of still going barefoot but maybe needing a long sleeve shirt and dreaming of apple orchards and pumpkin patches.

Welcome Back, Fall...so glad you are here.

Knockin' Em' Off My Fall List

Hey there + Happy Tuesday.

And Welcome,   f  a  l  l    .  

Today is the first official day of Fall after all, right?

Well, technically I think it became Fall at like 9:00 pm last night, so that makes today the first FULL official day of Fall.

Regardless, it's here and the whole "I Love Fall"  thing hasn't worn off for me yet, not even close...

We've {hopefully} got a ways to go and I couldn't be happier about it.

I mean, the alternative is Winter... and I am still mentally scarred from last Winter and we are just gonna love on Fall and
not let go... because... I just can't deal.

So we got to work on our Fall List this weekend and it was seriously the perfect weekend to do so.
Notice how those of us that have to deal with a lot of crappy weather over the course of a year get so excited about these
perfect-weather days?
We know they are numbered.
#9 - We hit the Apple Orchard on Sunday.
And if the weather wasn't truly awesome,  it would've still been awesome because...
fresh apple donuts, apple cider slushies + lots of fresh apples.
Duh.

Fall List   ///////

1. Make Pumpkin Bars
2. Read a really good scary book or a mystery
3. Visit the Pumpkin Patch
4. Make a pie { Apple? Pumpkin? }
5. Watch ::  You've Got Mail
6. Make  a Fall wreath
7. Take a solo photo drive when the leaves are changing colors
8. Have coffee on the front porch early in the morning as much as possible
9. Visit the Apple Orchard
10. Have fires in the fire pit when we can
11. Find a new pair of super cute(but not super expensive) BOOTS

And then #5... and I have no pictures so you'll just have to trust me on this one, I watched You've Got Mail.

Sigh.

The brownstones, the book store.... all of it.

It doesn't matter how many times I have seen it, afterwards I fantasize about owning my own 

book store/coffee shop for days.

Days.

Next up on my list is a big one for me.

When you leave the apple orchard with a basket full of apples... it's time to finally try and make your very first apple pie.

I am doing it this week you guys.

I am.

And honestly, I am so intimated by it,  but I am doing it anyway.

I'll letcha know how it goes. Wish me luck! 

Happy Tuesday + Hope you have a great week!

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Coffee Just Tastes Better In Indiana

Well this past weekend it did anyway.
Seriously, it did.
A regular old cup of coffee, no fancy froth, with 2% milk(yuck)....  And still one of the best cups of coffee ever.
But anything would've probably tasted pretty good with this morning view though... Right?

This past weekend was our annual family get-away weekend in Indiana.
These perfect little cabins and this beautiful park... we    L  O  V  E   this weekend.
My kids  might love this weekend even more than I do... if that's possible.

We had the best weather this weekend I think we have ever had here so far, and we have been coming for maybe... 11 years or so.

It was sunny and there was no rain but it was cool enough that you had to wear a sweatshirt or jacket and it felt so good.

Cool enough that you could see your breath in the morning and a steaming cup of coffee felt so good in your hands.

I love that kind of weather. 

I am so glad I grabbed my Nikon before Charlotte and I took this short walk before we left on the last morning.
I take a lot of pictures with my phone, a lot, and I think I get some pretty good ones, but nothing really compares to my big camera.
These pictures almost make me be able to feel the crisp Fall air, feel the sun, see that beautiful light coming through the trees.

So yes, our coffee tasted better and our beer tasted better... I think the wine did, too.
This weekend was just what I needed... so, so very good for the soul. 
Until next year, Indiana! 


* Read last year's post about this weekend here.

Making My { Fall } List And Checking It Twice

I have been working on my Fall List for the last couple of days.
One that is actually kind of just for me.
We will have a few other family things to add to a mental list of course, too.

Everyone makes Summer Lists.... jotting down all of those things we want to make sure and do before the Summer
very quickly gets away from us.
Last year I made a Fall list because Fall is way shorter than Summer... which makes it a little trickier to squeeze in all of those
things we have been waiting all year for.

The older I get, the more I think maybe Fall is  my most favorite  time of year.

I do wish it lasted a bit longer though... Some years it feels as though we go straight from 

Summer right into Winter. 

I love Fall for so many reasons. 

The Pumpkin patch, the apple orchard, pumpkin bars, new boots, candy corn... All of it! 

I can't wait for the leaves to slowly start changing... Just not too fast though.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a long, slow Fall. 

///  Here's what's on my list so far  ///


1. Make Pumpkin Bars
2. Read a really good scary book or a mystery
3. Visit the Pumpkin Patch
4. Make a pie { Apple? Pumpkin? }
5. Watch ::  You've Got Mail
6. Make  a Fall wreath
7. Take a solo photo drive when the leaves are changing colors
8. Have coffee on the front porch early in the morning as much as possible
9. Visit the Apple Orchard
10. Have fires in the fire pit when we can
11. Find a new pair of super cute(but not super expensive) BOOTS

{ A few of my favorite pictures from last Fall }

My list is a work in progress...  Do you have a Fall list- written or mental?
If so, what's on it?
And if you have a suggestion for a scary book or a really good mystery,  let me know!

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