Hi friends! Happy official first day of Fall!
It actually feels funny to say that, because things have been looking Fallish around here for quite some time now…
On an evening stroll through our river valley.
Has Fall started showing its colors in your neck of the woods yet? If not, you’re more than welcome to come visit me up in Alberta (just warn me in advance so that I can bake up a batch of chocolate chip cookies and put on a pot of cinnamon spice coffee), because the yellows, oranges, and reds are already out in full force around here…
Not that I’m in any way complaining. Fall is, undoubtedly, my favorite of all the seasons. Gorgeous colors and delicious flavors aside, there’s just something so peaceful about this time of the year, and there’s nothing I find more relaxing than being outside on a warm Fall day taking in all of the sights and smells around me. Bliss.
Unfortunately, Fall also tends to be fleeting – it seems like in the blink of an eye all the trees are bare and it’s already time to start pulling out the Christmas decorations (not that that’s necessarily a bad thing). For that reason, I’ve been putting together a list of things that I’d like to do in the next couple of months to really help me take advantage of my favorite time of the year – a Fall bucket list, if you will…
I’d have to say that the two things on my list that I’m most excited about are: going hiking in the mountains and trying new Fall inspired recipes. I live about a 3 hour drive away from the mountains, and although I’ve seen them plenty of times in the summer and winter, I’ve yet to see them in the Fall. As for trying out new recipes, I’ve gotten really lazy in the kitchen over the summer and basically stopped cooking/baking completely. Now that the weather is cooling down and some of my favorite flavors are coming back into play, I thought it would be a great time to get back in there and see if I can work some magic without burning the house down. Can.not.wait.
Happy Fall! Now get outside and enjoy it!
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What are some of the things on your Fall bucket list?
I love making lists too, even though I never end up marking 100% of the items off them! They’re still very motivational regardless. Your list is great – short, sweet, and doable 🙂 Pumpkin carving is soooo much fun! I’ve only done it once or twice in my life and am definitely planning on doing it this year. Another suggestion – buy an extra organic pumpkin and eat it! I love putting chunks in oatmeal (sorry I know you can’t eat oatmeal but I’m sure you can find a replacement!) and even roasting it.
Glad to see I’m not the last person left in this world who hasn’t seen Nightmare Before Christmas 🙂
You know, I’ve never actually roasted a pumpkin before, so adding that to the list might be a good idea! 😀 And I’m afraid you might be the last person who hasn’t seen it because it’s one of my favorite movies and I watch it every year around this time!
Oh no I guess I’ll be adding ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’ to my bucket list now for sure…no exceptions!
I want to bake a pumpkin this fall!
AHHH FALL <3 What is not to love?! And I had my first kabocha this week YESS! 🙂 Absolutely stunning photography as always Miss Amanda! The colors aren't quite changing here yet in the UK but they soon will be..can't wait to go for a walk through all the colorful leaves and end it with a nice hot coffee! 🙂 I would love to be able to go hiking in the mountains though, you are very lucky.
Your photography is gorgeous! I need some lessons from you 🙂 I’m loving everything about the fall season right now! I can’t wait to go apple picking though and get back into running more now that the weather is a bit cooler!
Those pictures are gorgeous! It doesn’t look that much like fall here yet… I can’t wait until the leaves have all changed colour!
This fall I want to go to a fall fair, bake with pumpkin and apples, go apple picking, try out new kinds of squash, have my first pumpkin spice latte, go on a hike, and make some comfort food recipes. 😀
i only WISH i was coming to visit. 🙂 looks beautiful there. can’t wait to see what fall treats you cook up! my boyfriend and i are huge fans of your muffin creations – maybe a fall inspired one? just a thought. 🙂
I’ve actually been working on a chocolate chip pumpkin bread recipe that I hope to get up soon, but I’ve been playing around with a few different Fall flavored muffin ideas as well, so there’ll definitely be some of those.
Gosh, I wanted to say this a while ago – it is so beautiful where you live! I wanted to visit Canada for some time know and your pictures just heated up my wanderlust 🙂
Also – that’s a nice bucketlist. I would also love to go hiking some day. Just have to finde someone who will go with me, cause this dude sleeping next to me right now (aka my boyfriend) he would call it a nightmare and send me back to sleep if I’d prupose a hiking trip.
Well if you ever decide to visit Canada in my neck of the woods, I certainly wouldn’t turn you down when it comes to hiking 🙂
I wouldn’t say fall is my favorite season, however after reading this post, I’m beginning to think I need to reconsider. 😉 (Chocolate chip cookies and cinnamon spice coffee sound lovely!). Actually, I really do LOVE everything about fall, except the changing temperatures. The gorgeous foliage, delicious baked goods, warm meals and fun holidays are unmatched by any other season. My #1 priority during the next few months is to go apple picking. I haven’t been since I was a young girl (my family used to go every year), so I imagine this experience will invoke a sense of nostalgia. With the picked apples, I want to make a homemade apple pie (grandma’s recipe, of course), and possibly apple butter. I’m also looking forward to celebrating my 27th birthday with a REAL dessert. After years of going dessert-less on my special day, I’m ready to treat myself again. 🙂
I’m not a big fan of the changing temperatures either (especially if I start thinking about winter) but I still can’t help but love Fall. And I love what you have planned! Grandma’s apple pie sounds like a perfect way to use up those apples, and I completely forgot about apple butter! I’d love to give it a shot myself as well.
I’m so jealous of your view! It still looks and feels like summer here–not complaining, because summer’s my favorite season–but I kinda want to see the pretty leaves again.
I really need to go hiking in the mountains this fall! Living in Colorado for most of my life, I kind of take the mountains for granted since they’re always right there, but I don’t think I’ve ever hiked in them in the fall. That needs to change, because I’m sure it’s beautiful!
ahh the fall. i love all your fall photos. and your fall bucket list! unfortunately it’s still in the upper 90’s here in Texas so we haven’t quite reached fall yet, but i’m excited to bake fall inspired sweets and hopefully spend more time outdoors!
Oh daaaang Alberta is so gorgeous!!!! ahhh you know how it is here cali right now–haha! still summerish. Today was a biiiiit cloudy though, and I loved it! and finally saw a few trees with orange leaves. Your post is making me anticipate real Fall even more! I think one thing I would like to do this fall besides eat lots of pumpkin pie ahem, is hopefully visit a place that’s new to me or more “natural”, like Oregon, Colorado, etc. 😀
I’ve driven through Oregon a few times and it was absolutely beautiful. I can only imagine how gorgeous it must get in the Fall, so I definitely say go visit if you get the chance!
Yay for Fall! It is definitely my favorite of all the seasons too! Just like you said, it’s like some sort of quiet falls (haha, pun) in the air…so peaceful. And there is NOTHING like a stroll in the woods on a warm afternoon. I can’t wait until the leaves begin to change so I can get out with my camera, but as of right now, everything around here is still pretty green.
I would LOVE to go apple picking! I really want to find a place around here…and somebody to go with me…hey, feel like taking another vacation? 😉
Definitely! As long as you promise to make breakfast 😉
AWESOME bucket list, I wanna do all those things too! I’m jealous of your fall colors up there too – I used to live in New England and it was like that, and even Pennsylvania had some awesome colors…Colorado definitely does not, sadly lol.
Really?! That’s strange… I would have thought Colorado would have awesome Fall colors…
Hey Amanda,
I remember that you were a psychology major in college. What have you been up to as far as work goes? I’m interested in hearing your future career plans!
Hi Coco,
For now I’m just helping out at our family business (which has nothing to do with my major), and getting some more experience by volunteering in one of the hospitals here. I’ll be going back to school next Fall to start working towards my PhD in counselling psychology, and the program is super competitive so I’m trying to build up my profile as much as I can before I apply.
My family went apple picking today as a way to welcome autumn. It was wonderful! Fall is DEFINITELY the best season. There’s just something so special about it. The weather, the colors, the smells, the flavors…and it all leads up to the holidays. It’s magical, for sure.
Oh wow your pictures are just truly stunning Amanda, they just make me smile 🙂 I think my next major purchase is going to be a legit, awesome camera and this kind of post certainly makes me want on even more! I already went apple picking but I want to go again.. other items include raking leaves and jumping into them, carve a pumpkin, make soup in a sugar pumpkin, bakeee with all things fall… ahh I do love fall! But then it goes to that dumb winter thing 😉
I’m trying not to think about the winter thing because it totally sucks the fun right out of Fall… it’s like watching impending doom on the horizon. For now I’ll enjoy the warmth and pretty colors, and then I’ll worry about dealing with 6 months of snow and ice.
oh God how I love baking in the fall.
It’s only JUST starting to look fallish where I am (as in the past week, only 1 or 2 trees I regularly pass by). You are so right, it all happens so fast, I am sure that soon all the trees will be transforming. Last year I was not a huge fan of the fall, but this year I don’t seem as sad to say goodbye to summer. Your fall bucket list is great, I am really loving the apple picking one!
It’s just starting to look like fall here on Long Island- but your neck of the woods looks beautiful! I too love fall! Great fall bucket list – some of mine include: picking the last sunflowers of the season, definitely apple and pumpkin picking, early morning bike rides in the park! Happy Fall!
I want to carve a pumpkin 🙂
After following your blog and seeing some of the beatuiful photos, you have inpsired me to buy a DSLR! I am still deciding which camera, but something on my bucket list is definitely capturing the stunningness of the fall in Canada.
That’s so awesome! Photography is one of my favorite hobbies to indulge in, and don’t get too intimidated by the DSLR because it just takes some getting used to and figuring out.
Please be sure to post the recipes you try/invent! I tried a lot of your recipes and I think our taste buds are really similar – I enjoyed basically all the recipes I tried (the “blissful banana bread” was my fave!)
I will for sure! I’ve actually already been working on a few, and I’ve got a recipe for chocolate chip pumpkin bread coming up soon.
Amanda these pictures are just stunning! Do you live in a fairytale land?? 😉
Great bucket list items too– I especially love the apple picking one. I’ve ALWAYS wanted to do that, but there aren’t any orchards around here or they’re all burned up from the heat haha
gosh those pictures are amazing. I am dying to go apple picking but without a car I have no idea how I would get even close to an apple orchard. darn city life.