For those of you who follow me on Instagram, you’ll know that I’m a lover of lists. Without some sort of intentions laid out on paper, life feels hectic and nothing actually get done in our household! I like to feel like I’m living my life, raising a family and keeping my home with some form of intent. Living seasonally feels very deliberate, and seems to stop that feeling of months just slipping away unnoticed. So here we have it, The September Edit.
While I understand the love for summer, the longer days, the simplicity of paddling pool days and washing drying on the line in minutes… my heart belongs to Autumn. Those cosy evenings, drizzly days, chunky knits and carb-heavy stews. September is the beginning of the season where I feel comfortable. I make my home feel like a nest. I wake up to warm sheets and crisp air, leaves dancing in swirls around me and some pretty wonderful baking smells.
On the last Sunday of every month, I curl up with my notebook and plan some favourites for the month ahead.
What we’ll be eating…
Recipes to try, places to eat and bakes that will be gracing our table. Let me know if you would like me to post the recipes –
Wholesome Savoury Dishes
Pumpkin risotto
Root vegetable slow-cooker casserole
Squash & lentil stew
Roast pumpkin & red pepper soup
Sausage, brussel sprout & potato hash with poached eggs
Stuffed roasted butternut squash
Sweet Treats
Sweet roasted maple pears
Apple cider donuts
Pumpkin cream cheese muffins (my eldest two’s favourites – Autumn is not Autumn without these!)
Flapjacks
Rice pudding
Apple pie (served with liberal amounts of custard)
What we’ll be doing…
Arts & crafts, projects and things that need doing –
Children’s Activities
Long walks involving puddle splashing and blackberry picking from the hedgerows (ready for the crumble!)
Build a hedgehog house
Planting bulbs (daffodils and tulips)
Making lanterns for a family walk (when the evenings get darker)
Apple picking and stamping
Make toffee apples (melted chocolate for me… bliss)
Create leaf gnomes
Build a fairy garden in one of the cleared-out pots (usually takes a full chilly Saturday, and can add a pumpkin patch next month!)
My Projects
Knit scarves for all the kids (I’m no great knitter, but I’m determined to improve)
Dried apple garlands for the bedrooms
What will be entertaining us…
Time set aside to relax, enjoy some slow living and just enjoy being cosy.
Books On My Reading List
Adding a little atmosphere to early September evenings… magic, darkness, charm and whimsy.
In The Company Of Witches by Auralee Wallace
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (I also bought my daughters this beautiful copy – one is sixteen and the other just two, but it’s waiting for her when she’s ready)
The Girl In White by Lindsay Currie
The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston
A Far Wilder Magic by Allison Saft
Children’s Books
I have a post on my favourite children’s books for autumn, but I’ve also got The Adventures Of Geraldine Woolkins by Karin Kaufman as a seasonal chapter book to read aloud to my boys (who are four and twelve) after chilly walks when we’re home with blankets and hot chocolates.
Films
Practical Magic
Dead Poet’s Society
Step Mom
Dan In Real Life
The Runaway Bride
Father Of The Bride
Knives Out
Hocus Pocus 2 (anybody else’s inner child doing a happy dance about this?!)
Television
Fleabag
Gilmore Girls
And Then There Were None
Virgin River
Wednesday (The new Netflix series about Wednesday Addams)
Only Murders In The Building
Family Movie Nights
*Warm milk with a pinch of cinnamon essential*
Fantastic Mr Fox
Matilda
Casper
The Parent Trap
Then there’s the treats…
Usually reserved for Friday evenings or particularly bad moods –
Log burner s’mores
Projector movie night in the garden
Sparklers (it’s worth sticking them in the end of carrots for younger ones)
First day of school chocolate chip banana bread
The big tasks…
Wardrobe change over: Warm weather clothes into the loft, cold weather clothes into draws
Get back to weekly blog posts – because I really enjoy this space. Let me know if there’s anything specific you’d like to see!
What we’re listening to…
Audiobooks
We’re listening to Harry Potter as a family in the car. Watching Killian fall in love with the wizarding world is quite special, just as I did.
Podcasts
My Favourite Murder
Comfy Cosy Witch
What I’m wearing…
Being the first one up on crisp mornings is made so much better by rolling into this cosy robe – I get a new one every autumn and it serves me well!
Hardwood floors are far from welcoming at 6am – these moccasin slippers and I are best of friends!
While I’m all for chunky knits and baggy jumpers (these have been my favourites recently – I have it in every colour) sometimes I still like a feminine shape to my silhouette when I venture out into the cold – I’ve found this coat keeps me warm and dry while making me feel chic at the same time. It’s probably my favourite piece in my wardrobe!
What I’m focusing on each day…
Getting on my yoga mat every day – even if I can only squeeze in 5 minutes.
Putting all of our outfits out the evening before.
Put on a record on the record player every morning to start the day slowly (would autumn even be autumn without Taylor Swift’s Folklore?)
Getting out for picnics with the children and our favourite picnic blanket (I’ve never found another that comes close to comparing to the quality) as the breeze gets chillier – playing games, foraging and enjoying the golden evenings.
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