By Elizabeth Dubos
The temperatures are getting cooler, the leaves are turning different colors, and stores are beginning to stock the Halloween candy. Autumn officially began on Tuesday, September 22, 2020. Over the years we’ve all accumulated seasonal traditions that we’ve grown accustomed to, whether it’s listening to music at live events, attending fall festivals, dressing up for a costume contest, traveling to visit beloved family members, or shopping at the farmer’s market. COVID-19 put a damper on our spring and summer activities, but that doesn’t mean it has to hinder our autumn activities. Here are some activities that will improve your autumn spirits!
Indoor or outdoor fall or Halloween decorations: It’s time to break out the pumpkin, apple, or cinnamon scented candles, ceramic pumpkins, leaf wreaths, and spooky Halloween décor! Decorating will help take your mind off of COVID-19. Decorate your bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, living room; anywhere that makes you happy! If you’re still feeling down in the dumps, treat yourself to some new décor. Most likely you can do curbside pickup at your local craft stores or shop online, and have it delivered directly to your home. If you’re on a tight budget, try designing or crafting your own autumn décor; Pinterest has numerous DIY projects.
Pinterest autumn recipes: Pinterest also has thousands of delicious recipes to choose from. You can choose to create autumn themed snacks, meals, or desserts. Plus, Pinterest offers a variety of dietary options like vegan, low carb, gluten-free, sugar-free, or diary-free. I would highly recommend checking out your local craft store websites because they could feature autumn or Halloween themed baking dishes to improve the appearance of your kitchen creations. Cooking or baking seasonal recipes will improve your mood because your house will smell like pumpkins or apples.
Autumn retail therapy: Autumn fashion features beanies, hoodies, leather jackets, cozy sweaters, boots/booties, and Halloween prints. COVID-19 has been tough, so you deserve to treat yourself to a new outfit. You can wear your new outfits to Zoom meetings or while cooking an autumn themed recipe. No matter the season you should feel happy in what you’re wearing. Don’t let anyone ever judge you for your fashion choices.
Fall foliage: Pack a picnic basket and drive out to nature. Spend the afternoon eating lunch and admire the beautiful and vibrant colors of the leaves. They can be exquisite shades of red, yellow, orange, brown, and purple. Don’t fret if it’s far away. You can go on YouTube and search ‘fall foliage’ to access numerous videos featuring the beautiful leaves. Or you could try changing the background photo on your computer, laptop, or mobile devices to your favorite seasonal picture. Try searching autumn HD background photos on google to help you choose.
Hike: When you’re hiking you get the chance to breathe in the crisp air, see the vibrant colors of the fall foliage, and you might witness bird migrations. COVID-19 limited our exercise routine and the majority of us gave up on our fitness goals. Hiking is an excellent activity to achieve your fitness goals because it reduces your body fat and improves your mental wellbeing.
Spooky movies or TV shows: Halloween is around the corner, so why not have a Halloween movie or TV show marathon? You could dedicate the entire month of October to watching spooky themed movies or TV shows. There’s numerous Halloween TV shows and movies for all ages so you can enjoy them with your partners or family members. Freeform features the 31 nights of Halloween, and several streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max offer Halloween movies and TV shows.
Autumn themed books: From September 22 to December 21 you could read autumn or Halloween inspired books. This could include thrillers, horror, mysteries, paranormal, or true crime novels. If you’re stumped on what to read, head on over to Goodreads to explore their genre recommendations or Halloween book lists. If you have a Goodreads account, you could create seasonal inspired shelves to organize your books.
Autumn journaling: Journaling is an excellent way to record our daily lives and express ourselves creatively. You could use autumn themed colors, leaf stencils, pumpkin stamps, and washi tape to decorate the pages of your journal. Try to record your favorite seasonal recipes, list the number of places you’ve hiked, and include pictures of the fall foliage. When autumn is over you might reflect on this journal and try to create new traditions for next year.
Edited by Liz Eike