Greener Pastures

The amazing view in Lake County during a recent road trip

The first week of one of the most gorgeous Midwestern months is already behind us, and I’m left scrambling to accomplish some of my favorite fall activities before the weather turns and we (with great resistance) plunge into the depths of winter. A few of the things that I’m looking forward to this October…

• Packing my new Phillip Lim x Target luggage and heading to a cabin on Lake Okauchee to boat, fish and play board games with my family
• Digging out my multi-colored crocks and Cream of Chicken and Wild Rice Soup recipe and filling my condo with the fragrance of fall
• Carving these ghoulish mini pumpkins
• Eating gooey, toppings-covered caramel apples
• Kicking around colorful leaves while trying out a new hiking trail with my hiking pal, Flossy
• Making s’mores over a campfire
• Paying a visit to Madison for one of their last Farmers’ Markets of the year
• Hitting up a haunted corn maze in the middle of nowhere
• Lighting tons of candles and watching a scary movie
• Finding ways to incorporate my scarf collection into my wardrobe as the weather cools down

Fall Forward

And just like that, one of the last official weekends of summer is upon us. Not only am I desperately looking forward to a long holiday weekend, but I also can’t wait to embrace some of my favorite late summer/early autumn activities in the coming month. Among my goals for September:

• Incorporate a few favorite fall trends into my look, including camouflage, dark green nails and deep berry lips
• Tidy up one room each night so that I don’t have to do anything cleaning-related during the weekend
• Use a long forgotten Chicago ArchitectureFoundation gift card that I recently found in a drawer to rediscover a part of the City
• Set aside time to enjoy a few local chocolate and beer pairings
• Continue to use regular HGTV watching as an impetus to save for a future home, complete with personalized improvements
• Visit the new Trader Joes in my neighborhood frequently to sample all of their specialty goods that I’ve been without for so long
• Whip up a batch of homemade granola to scent the house and put one of my Weck canisters to work
• Organize all of my favorite blogs on Feedly
• Go for runs under falling leaves in the parks along Lake Michigan
• Attend a fall festival up in Lake Country with my sister

I hope that you have a restful holiday weekend too, and I’ll look forward to seeing you around here in the new month!