20 Little Things I Love About Fall

I am joining The Inspired Room’s link party this month and right now it’s all about fall nesting. I love all things fall – here’s 20 little things I love, in no particular order. Check back this month and I will also show you what else I am working on this month. It includes organizing, redecorating, and learning how to decorate for the season (which is somewhat new for me, with the exception of Christmas).

1. I love the annual trip to the Flower Mound Pumpkin Patch to enjoy hayrides, bounce houses, and lots of photo ops. This is a must do in fall t to capture the obligatory pumpkin shots….sometimes with costumes, sometimes without. Sometimes with tears, sometimes without. But never to purchase the pumpkins there because Holy Moly Expensive – especially when compared to the rolled back Walmart pumpkin prices of $2.88.
2. Fall Baseball. I love the cooler weather that fall brings and Jeff and I literally argue over who gets to take Davis to baseball practice because of how relaxing it is (sans little kids) to sit outside in the evening and watch the sunset (and batting practice, of  course).
3. I love that the temperature is finally tolerable enough for a hike around the park to look for creatures. Jeff took the boys out this weekend while I was out of town and found 40+ craw-daddies. The boys were so excited, they filmed themselves doing a "news report" about it.
4. Pumpkin Scented Candles
5. The first pot of chili of the season. This also always causes a little bit of argument in our house, because my idea of the first pot of chili is when the first “cold front” hits, regardless of how cold it actually is. In Texas, a “cold front” could be 89 degrees.
6. Fall football. So far, we have only made it to college football games to see the Aggies play – but since tickets are ridiculously expensive this year, watching the Lewisville Fighting Farmers (a local high school team) will have to do on a go forward basis.
   
7. Starbucks pumpkin spice latte are out. However, truth be told - Jeff makes fun of me because I always ask for the “seasonal” latte, regardless of what season it is.
8. Seeing the State Fair of Texas (from afar)! We have a strict rule on our house - one fair visit every five years and we aren't due to go again until 2015, but it is still fun to hear about all the crazy fried food concoctions every year.
9. The elementary school vocabulary parade. So far, I have yet to convince the kids to recycle a prior year costume so we have been "Partly Cloudy", a "cube", a "laptop", and a "pattern". Hopefully, one day it will be cool to recycle some of these vocabulary costumes. Isn't that one of the benefits of having older siblings.  
   
   
   
10. Fall is Birthday Season in our family. There are lots of cousins, and with that comes lots of birthdays. Three out of four of my boys were born in a 25 day window. Double birthdays….costume birthdays….forgotten birthdays…it all comes with the territory.
    
    
    
11. The Plano Balloon Festival. I already mentioned this is one of my favorite traditions of all time. This year didn't disappoint.
12. Bike rides around the park
13. Annual Pumpkin Carving Party
14. Prestonwood’s fall festival
15. Trick or Treating with cousins. Last year we joined Matt and Melissa and had so much fun that I think we declared ita tradition.
    
    
16. Canton Trade Days Hint, hint…Mom…Tiffany…anyone? Technically these run all year long, but Fall is the best time to go.
17. Picking out Halloween costumes… especially costumes for the two boys I still have a say in the choices. Have you seen the little lobster baby costume in the big silver pot in the Pottery Barn catalogue? With the Dad dress up as a chef? So Cute! Nathan needs it!
18. Thanksgiving Dinner! Thanksgiving leftovers. Thanksgiving leftover-leftovers. I bet I just gained 5 pounds typing that sentence.
19. Black Friday Shopping. Its mandatory to go shopping on the day after Thanksgiving regardless of whether my Christmas list is firmed up.  Mimi and I will start around 7am (although we always plan to start earlier) and GrandDad drives us around and drops us off at the doors. So spoiled.
20. Family Photo Shoot for Christmas cards -  and the joy that whole experience brings. And by joy, I am referring to the final, printed pictures....not the actual process. Anyone that has tried to coordinate family pictures and family outfits and force their kids to stand still, smile, open their eyes, not smile like that, and not look posed knows what I am talking about.