As it always happens, the summer slowly starts to fade away and you can already feel the freshness of the fall in the morning. As much as I enjoyed working through most of the summer in the office, and fighting with insects (flies and bees during the day, mosquitos during the night), I am ready to embrace the next season!

Below are some things that I will be doing to get excited about the fall:

1. It is time to really focus on cooking. Switching up my meals to adjust to seasonal ingredients makes me really live (and eat) through the seasons and feel just a little bit in touch with nature. To me, it means rethinking my meals and deserts to include the following: mushrooms, eggplants, carrots, apples, jams, potatoes. I will be making stuffed eggplants (recipe coming up!), really getting the soups going (on this week’s menu – clam chowder, mushroom soup, taco/chilli soup and chicken soup) and trying different kinds of apple pies.
2. I really like walking in the woods and around lakes during this time. Finally the insects are going away, which means the cold worth it! Plus, the colours of the fall are perfect for the pictures!
3. Investing and using lots of candles. Candles with seasonal scents are going to be on at all times during the dinner! Bringing in a Harry Potter vibes, one candle at the time
4. Investing in new shoes. I had to replace almost every type of shoe for fall but luckily, really liked the fall collection at Aldo so I already own several kinds of fall boots (aka Matrix style), classy heels for the office, and, of course, sneakers with a platform. Can’t wait to break them in!
5. Rethinking my manicure. I think I am the last person who invested into UVI lamp and about 100 colours of nail polish, so now going to pick some seasonal colours (orange, reds, purple, grey and maybe dark blue).
6. I like to enter a new season with a new playlist. I was hoping for something semi-depressing and beautiful to get into fall mood, but instead I stumbled upon reggaeton radio and let me tell you, those Latin beats make me dance all the time! I ended up going to Shazam for almost every song!
7. Fall is the perfect time to learn more and read more. This way I feel connected to those who are still in school/university/higher education minus all the scares of exams and assignments. I am working on pulling together a reading list for fall. Also, a separate list of the audio books. I particularly like History Chicks – they cover a lot of historically important characters in the way people talk about their friends. The latest ones I listened to were Chanel and Zelda Fitzgerald.
8. I am also looking to spend more time organizing my thoughts and reflecting. I have about 5 journals of different kinds waiting to be used (5 year journal, financial journal, productivity journal, regular ‘goals’ journal, and a journal just for writing).
9. Connecting with others – there are several birthdays within my family and friends occurring in the fall. Finally, there is Thanksgiving – lots of opportunities/excuses to meet with people I love. Meeting in fall, having red wine over candlelight dinner with the fireplace burning in the background and diving into hearty meals is one of the best ways to enjoy fall!
10. New series of Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power are on! Available on amazon prime. As a Lord of the Rings fan, I never expected to see something of a decent quality since it is a continuation for the movies that were made almost 20 years ago, and yet, they are really good. Looking forward to the next episode!
11. Halloween vibes – scary movies, witchcraft (or just dressing like a witch with my boots, dark manicure and cardigans and using taro cards), and all the pumpkin decor! Bonus: all the candy sets that are already being sold in stores.