Autumn Bucket List (2018)

I'm baaaaaack!

Did you miss me?

I think the last time I blogged was when my youngest was still a baby and now she's 3yo

(WHAT?!?!?!!)

So.... Clearly it's been awhile.

I'm still trying to figure out this whole thing.

Like, if I'm going to change "my name"

Remember when AIM was a thing and you had to choose a "screen name"

Also, I may change things up a bit and pick a different layout

I don't know. Decisions. Decisions.

But, for now, since we're coming into fall

I THOUGHT I'D LIST OUR AUTUMN FAMILY BUCKET LIST FOR THIS YEAR

So here it goes:

1. Take family pictures

2. Pick apples

3. Visit a pumpkin patch

4. Pick pumpkins

5. Go to Cornbelly's

6. Make apple pie

7. Decorate carameled apples

8. Make apple cider

9. Decorate for Halloween

10. Do a family costume

11. Take a fall foliage drive

12. Carve pumpkins & roast seeds

13. Trick-or-Treat

14. Make Boo bags & doorbell ditch them

15. Celebrate Anniversary #7

16. Watch Hocus Pocus

17. Rake leaves & jump in pile

18. Bake pumpkin bread & cookies

19. Have Nana visit

20. Attend Pinners Conf.

And to specify:

1. Possible by the lake, I'm looking to have family portraits done. I don't want fall pictures, per say. I want them pretty neutral & to match with the rest of my house.

2. I hear there's a decent apple orchard by our Costco in Lehi (for those of you who are local and in Utah County). A friend told me about it and said it's like a dollar per pound? Yeah, I'm all about it and will report back. 

3. We usually go to this little family pumpkin patch off Lehi Main Street close to Saratoga Springs (Evans Family Farm). We love supporting local!

4. We'll most likely pick pumpkins from said pumpkin patch mentioned above. Again, we're all about local. 

5. Cornbelly's is a family-oriented fall festival at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi and we've taken the girls the last few years & they've loved it. It gets more and more fun as they get older and older, so I look forward to it more and more each year. There's mazes, food, shows, picture opps, giant trampolines for the kids, hay rides, hot cocoa, and more. 

6. I have a really great apple pie recipe and haven't made it since hosting Thanksgiving a few years ago, so I'm excited to get my Betty Crocker on. 

7. The key to decorating a good apple is (first) your apple and (second) your caramel. I get my GREEN apples from Costco (they come in a 12 pack and are generally cheaper than most produce stores). And I get my caramel from Orson Gygi in Salt Lake City.

8. I've never made home-made apple cider before, so I'm excited to try this one. I usually just do the little packets that are pre-made, but this year I plan on going all out from the freshly picked apples from the apple orchard.

9. I don't like to go scary for Halloween. Generally, I take out my fall decor right around the end of August (Labor Day weekend) and keep it up until Thanksgiving night. I usually just have pumpkins everywhere and add some spiders & witch hats for the 31st. I'm more so a cute Halloween decorator, rather than scary.

10. We've been dressing up (as a family) for Halloween, since Jovi was first born. Jovi's our oldest and is 4yo so we've been kinda doing this for awhile. I actually dressed up when I was pregnant w/her and had so much fun, so I knew I wanted to carry on the tradition once she was actually born. We have a great family costume planned and I can't wait to share it w/you all. (Usually I like to try to keep this one a secret. Only a few close friends know).

11. Taking a scenic route is pretty easy to do in Utah, as we are surrounded by mountains. I typically drive Alpine Loop in the fall, but haven't done it w/my kids so I'm excited to show them all the bright, pretty colors. (For those of you who may not be familiar with Utah County, Alpine Loop starts in one canyon {American Fork Canyon} and ends in another canyon {Provo Canyon} hence it's name "Alpine Loop." You can start at whichever canyon you'd like. It's all the same and just as beautiful. Just know it's pretty windy, so if you're one to get car sick, be sure to suck on some mints, keep your window rolled down, and pull over often for pictures and or breaks.

12. Carving pumpkins is something we've actually never done w/our girls. Are we just pathetic parents, or what?!?! No, I guess I was just never really comfortable w/the mess (???) and wanted to wait until my girls were old enough to play with the guts. Also, I can't even remember the last time I roasted pumpkin seeds, but I know they're delicious sooooo HELLO NEW TRADITIONS!

13. Trick-or-Treating is a must and we go every year. It's a big thing in Utah (families start between 4:30 and 5 since it gets so cold and so dark so early in the fall/winter time). We are always sure to make it out to the frontyard in plenty of time for group/individual photos and always try to allow ourselves plenty of daylight so our pictures don't turn out grainy. Look, I even added a photo tip in there for ya.

14. Boo bags are another big thing in Utah and we always enjoy making them. If you've never been "Boo-ed" before, you're missing out. But basically you just get a bag full of Halloween goodies (you can put whatever you want in there, really), and you doorbell ditch them. Normally I know ahead of time which family I want to "Boo" so I put things in the bags according to that family's likes. ie- glow sticks, Halloween coloring books/stickers, suckers, cider, etc. It can be as simple as you'd like (a loaf of bread, plate of cookies), or as detailed as you'd like. It's just super fun to doorbell ditch a goodie bag, keep it a secret, and see who leaves something on your porch. OH! And there's usually a little sign that you put in your window, so others know you've been Boo-ed so you don't end up with something every night. Or I mean, you can just NOT put up the sign and act like you've never had anything left on your porch and just have ALL the neighbors come give you ALL the things. (Not saying I've done that before, but it could happen).

15. Jake and I will be married 7 years the end of October and I just cannot even believe it! Time sure does fly. We are planning a little weekend get-away and if it all works out, we'll be going to Antelope Canyon (which is down by the Lake Powell area). I'm super excited, as I've never been before, but have always wanted to photograph it and hey- kid free trips are always nice. 

16. Hocus Pocus is a must must must for me! I've watched it every year since I was a little girl and I introduced it to our oldest last year so it's kinda fun seeing her get into all the witch stuff.

17. Jumping into a pile of freshly raked leaves is a super dee duper hard thing for this OCD momma to do. I really really try to let my kids make messes, get dirty and just be a kid, but it's really really hard since I'm by myself 80% of the time. Knowing I have to bathe my kids alone every night, gets really old really fast. So this one will be a big thing for me this year, but boy am I excited for it. Mainly because I know my kids will enjoy it, but also.... Pictures. The pictures will be amazing. 

18. I can honestly say I've never made home-made pumpkin bread, but I have made a pumpkin roll. Maybe I'll have to do that instead. Nah, that's usually saved for Thanksgiving. If you have any good pumpkin bread recipes, send them my way please. Same with pumpkin cookies. Can't say I've made them, but I've tried them & they're delicious.

19. My mom is planning a trip up here to visit us for about two weeks, and I could not be more excited. For those of you who don't know, my parents are in Southern California, and we live in Utah, so as you can imagine, we don't really get to see them too often. My mom has been coming up to Utah (during Halloween) for the last 2 years though. This will be the 3rd year and we're so excited. We usually incorporate her costume w/ours and Jovi (our oldest) always has so much fun picking it out. (sorry mom)

20. Pinners Conference is held in Salt Lake City, Utah every year during the fall season and my sisters and I have gone together, the last 2 years, so this will be our third together. Our mom went with us the first year, but wasn't able to attend last year; however, this year she WILL be able to go with us and we are so so excited. In case you're not familiar with Pinners, it's a big craft fair, basically. It's like Pinterest, but in real life. It's amazing, and you get to meet all these amazing bloggers you've been following for years. (If you're anything like me, you find out who's going to be there ahead of time & find their map online so you know where their booth is and you plan a schedule according to theirs so you can meet up w/them for photos or chats. I know it sounds a bit stalker-ish but hey- Ya do whatcha gotta do, amiright).

That's it for this year's fall bucket list.

Maybe next year's will be different. Maybe it'll be the same.

Who knows

But I enjoy making new traditions with my family and seeing what others enjoy as well. 

What's on YOUR fall bucket list?!?!