Well if we aren’t just knee-deep in Autumn I’ll be a pumpkin spice latte. September, perhaps my most eagerly anticipated month of the year has come and gone again in the blink of an eye.
Summer was a brief affair this year. Late in coming and burning brightly for a few weeks then gone just as suddenly as it arrived . No Indian summer this year. Almost as soon as the calendar page turned to September the temperature plummeted. And now evenings draw in by 6 pm instead of 10.
After the summer break the threads of family life have been picked back up with school, After-school clubs and weekend commitments filling the calendar.
But gosh if I’m not just in my element. For this the season of pumpkins, candles, twinkly fairy lights and crunchy leaves. For family walks in russet woods to collect conkers. Fields of sunflowers. Knee high boots and woolly tights. Gingham table cloths, apple and blackberry crumble. Gingerbread and cinnamon sprinkled coffee. Dark mornings and darker afternoons. Chunky cardigans and chenille blankets. TV dramas and new books to read. Halloween and Bonfire night, sparklers clasped in small gloved hands.
I just love it all. That back-to-school feeling that comes around each September, no matter if it’s been years since we left education. Revivies us and makes us hungry for a fresh start, like a brand new notebook, crisp, blank, ready to be filled with hopes and a new season.
I feel I am best self in Autumn. Not the stressd summer mum wonderthing how to keep little ones entertained, and her sanity in tact, during the long, long summer holidays. Or Frantic Christmas Mum, working out how fit in Nativity performances, school fairs and multiple carol concerts around a full time job.
Autumn is all about getting our homes cosy. Evening comes earlier as we head towards mid-winter. Home becomes so much more than four walls and the contents therein. Home is shelter. Home is a safe space where the noise of the outside word can be turned down. where family gather and memories are made.
I love my home best at this time of year. The crackle of logs in our woodburner, pumpkin and cinnamon scented candles. Baskets full of knitted blankets ready to be draped over chilly shoulders, A twinkling of fairy lights casting their warming glow over the hearth, a hearty casserole warming in the stove and a glass of tracle dark red wine.
before the madness that descends in the run-up to Christmas descends, long clam evenings can be devoted to good books, a new box set or those craft projects that we have neither the time no patience for at any other time of year.
So yes this is my absolute favourite time of the year. A cinnamon-scented, fairy lit repose before the chaos of the festive season falls on us once again.
let’s make the most of it.
If you love Autumn as much as I do and want some inspiration for making the most of your home this season check out my ebook 101 Scrumptious ideas for Autumn It’s choc full of Autumn inspiration, Including craft ideas, self-care advice, recipes, and tips for making the best of your home , whatever your budget. If you have kindle Unlimited, it’s ABSOLUTLY FREE!
Enjoyed this post? check out Notes from Home: July
