Football season (Go Gamecocks!). Pumpkin spice everything. Scented candles burning. Cooler weather and changing leaves. Scarves and cozy sweaters. I don’t know about you, but I’m so eager for fall and the change of seasons!
It’s hard to believe that tomorrow is the first of September (which, you know, is basically the beginning of fall). The summer has been a bit of a bummer all around for us, from missing our summer vacation to losing our baby to miscarriage, so I’m really itching and aching for the change of a new season.
Autumn has always been my favorite season. It’s a welcome reprieve from the heat and humidity of summer, a season that begs for coziness, it’s bursting with colors and smells and flavors that I love, and it’s also the time of two of my absolute favorite holidays, Halloween and Thanksgiving!
Perhaps my favorite reason for loving fall so much is because it’s when my husband and I met and started dating (ten years ago this October!). It always reminds me of the start of our relationship, the thrill and excitement of meeting someone new and special, realizing it could be the start of something big. Plus, now we have the added excitement of celebrating our son’s birthday in the fall, too!
Today, I’m sharing a roundup of some of the things I’ve been loving lately. If you have any new favorite things, I’d love to hear about them in the comments below!
1. Iced Mochas
I tried an iced mocha for the first time earlier this summer at our favorite bakery and became rather obsessed with them. I quickly realized that it was a rather expensive habit, so I did some experimenting at home and figured out a good recipe for making my own! I’ve been enjoying them as a nice nap time treat at least a couple afternoons a week—it’s a little luxury in the middle of the day!
2. The Trolls Soundtrack
Sometimes, especially during these hot summer months, my kiddo and I both need a change of pace to break up the long stretch of afternoon between waking up from nap time and daddy coming home. I’ve been checking out lots of different toddler-themed playlists on Amazon music, but the Trolls soundtrack has been a clear winner! The first chords of “Hair Up” get both my toddler and me dancing!
3. Our Public Library
Our weekly baby and toddler and story time was on hiatus for the month of August, but since it’s a favorite weekly outing for us, we’ve been going at least one morning a week to scope out some new reads, play in the children’s area, and get out of the house! I love that it’s something different for both of us, and it’s close enough to home that we can easily scoot out when needed!
4. Overnight Oats
My husband and I were in a bit of a breakfast rut this summer, so on a whim I checked out the Budget Bytes website and found her recipe for blueberry almond overnight oats. I love that it’s a quick, inexpensive, ready-made breakfast for both of us that’s both flavorful and filling! Plus, they’re easy to prep (with a few tweaks, like using regular milk instead of almond or almond-flavored), and the ingredients are things we usually keep around the house.
I discovered that I’m not a fan of the texture of the cold oats, so I just put mine in the microwave for about a minute and voilà! Breakfast perfection.
5. Flavored Sparkling Water
I have been a big fan of La Croix water for several years now, but even on sale it’s still so expensive. Enter my new obsession: Publix Greenwise flavored sparking water, which seems to be a new product they’ve added this summer! We’ve only tried the lemon and lime flavors so far (lemon is my favorite!), but they’re both very refreshing when I want a carbonated beverage and don’t want a soda!
