Happy October!!! It is officially one of my most favorite times of the year. The trees, the fashion, the coziness of it all just makes me happy! Even though I love fall, we don’t get that much of a fall here in the south. It lasts only a couple of weeks if we are lucky. It feels like it goes from straight humidity to winter with a little crisp weather sprinkled in. This week was the first week of October, and it was in the 90’s outside. As much as I want to go out and wear my comfy cozy sweaters and and scarves, I just can’t do that right now unless I wanted a heat stroke. Although the actual weather itself isn’t ideal, I always love the fall feelings I get from it. It just feels like a time to start anew and sit back and relax and get cozy. It may not feel like fall on the outside, but when you’re living in the south, you make it feel like fall on the inside. So today I’ve compiled a list of my fall essentials that really get me in the fall mood even though it isn’t the crisp weather we want outside. With these items and activities, I know it’s the fall season!
Harry Potter
Oh, Harry Potter. This is probably the number one thing almost every Potterhead thinks of when they think of the fall. Growing up, I never watched any of the movies, but around Halloween it was always on TV this time of year. It’s funny thinking back when I was younger how I wondered how anyone could remember all the movies in order because there were so many of them, but now that I’ve read them and watched them all, I completely understand and am completely obsessed with everything HP related. If you’ve read my reading list, then you’ll see that Harry Potter was listed on there and I think it’s the perfect time to read books four and five during the season!
Fall Mugs
Nothing says cozy like being snuggled underneath a blanket having a great cup of coffee. In my family, there is an obsession with coffee mugs and coffee itself, so getting a nice fall mug is a must! TJ Maxx has a great selection of coffee mugs that are only $3.99 a mug, which is a total steal when the mug itself holds a lot of coffee and it isn’t like those wimpy little mugs you see at restaurants (I’m a coffee snob if you couldn’t tell haha).
Orange Everything
Are you really in the fall season if you don’t see or wear anything orange or decorate in orange? Orange is my must wear clothing color for fall, and I didn’t realize how many orange pieces I had until I went looking in my closet! Orange shirts, pants, scarves, sweaters, that’s all I want and need
Baseball
When I think of the month of October, the first thing that comes to mind is that it is October Baseball. The playoffs are finally here!!! I grew up in a baseball loving family, and I can watch baseball for hours without getting bored. We are the type of family that if we go to a MLB game, we’re gonna be there two hours before the game starts in order to go to batting practice. There’s nothing that I love more in the fall than sitting around watching the excitement of the playoffs
Running
Although it is hot and humid out, I do love running when the weather starts cooling down, even if it’s only a little bit. I’m the type of person that cannot run in the summer months because it just feels miserable out with the humidity. When you run in hot weather, you start off hot and just keep getting hotter. But, when you run in cooler weather, you start off cold and you eventually warm up throughout the run. Running is one of my favorite fitness activities to do because it just brings you clarity. If I need a break from life, all I want to do is go for a run to get a clearer mind and head space, and it’s fun to do that when the leaves and trees are starting to change.
Sugar Cookies
One of my favorite traditions growing up has been decorating sugar cookies during holiday seasons. I’m that person that likes to spend hours at the table decorating cookies with perfect placement of sprinkles and trying to think of different patterns. I may take it a little too seriously at times, but every time my family and I do it, it makes me happy and nostalgic of all the times we’ve done it growing up. What is fall without decorating sugar cookies???
Candles
Scents that come from perfumes, lotions and candles have always been a tricky thing for me because anything too strong, it will start giving me a headache. The same thing goes for my Mom, so growing up we never really lit candles around the house, we just had the smell of my Mom’s delicious baking! It wasn’t until college that I actually would buy candles here and there, and I would be really picky about what I would get. So for the fall time, I found this Pumpkin Nutmeg scent that was perfect. It has this wooden wick in the center, so when you’re sitting around the candle working, it feels like you’re sitting by the fire. You can definitely smell it, but it isn’t too overpowering and strong of a scent that gives me a headache!
Football
For most people, especially here in Alabama, football isn’t a past time, it is a religion. Like I said before, I come from a baseball loving family, so growing up we never really watched that much football and we didn’t have a favorable answer when asked, “Alabama or Auburn?” Can I say neither?? Hail State all the way, but football was never our first sport to watch. It probably wasn’t until my senior year of high school that I really got into watching football because State had a really great season that year with Dak Prescott. But over the past couple of years, I’ve gotten bored with it. Seeing the exact same teams have the top rankings and go to the playoffs just isn’t fun anymore. And you know exactly what team I’m talking about that always seems to go.
So, instead of watching college football, I’ve been obsessed with the NFL. I would consider myself a Seahawks and Cowboys fan, but more so a Cowboys fan, especially this season. I don’t think I’ve ever been this much invested in the Cowboys, and I was so sad when they lost to the Saints this past Sunday. If you couldn’t tell, then I think I should inform you that I’m a sports fanatic, so I’m sorry for this overload and rant about football! But yea, fall and football are one of people’s favorite combos, but for me this year watching the Cowboys is one of my top favorite fall activities.
Cardigans and Flannels
This is the time of year when you wake up and see that it is 70 degrees outside and you think you can finally wear that sweater or cardigan you’ve been waiting to pull out. It’s crisp and chilly out and it feels wonderful! Then, the afternoon hits. It is hot as crap and you need to take all your layers off as fast as possible because it is so miserable and humid. Cardigans and flannels are a must for me during this time because they help with the chilliness in the morning, but as soon as the day starts warming up, I can easily shed the light layer off and not feel like I’m having a heat stroke. As much as I wish I could wear them all day long, it just isn’t that feasible.
All Things Pumpkin Flavored
Pumpkin spice donuts. Pumpkin Bread. Pumpkin spice lattes. Pumpkin spice scones. Ugh. I’m salivating just thinking about all the fall treats that are out there!!! I recently went to Krispy Kreme and got their pumpkin spice cake donut as well as their regular pumpkin spice for the first time, and it was amazing! I wish I could eat them every single day, but it’d be going straight to my thighs hahaha. One of my fall memories when I was by myself at college was successfully making this chocolate chip pumpkin bread recipe that was amazing!!! It makes the house smell so good and you just want to eat the entire loaf right then and there.
And this finally concludes my fall favorite fall essentials from clothes to activities! If you are still reading this, thank you for making it this far! In the next couple of weeks, I’ll be sharing my favorite clothing pieces as well as what I’m watching and listening to this fall season, so stayed tuned for that! I hope you have a great one! <3