Ok, technically it’s a few more days until autumn officially starts, but the temps have been dropping and neighbors are setting up their Halloween decorations, so I’m ready for my 2023 Fall Bucket List.
- Visit Universal Studios. The kids and I have passes and we are slightly obsessed, so of course we need to see Hogwarts decked for the holidays. We went on Friday, October 13 and had an amazing time BUT HOGWARTS WAS NOT DECORATED FOR HALLOWEEN. NO EXTRA PUMPKINS, NO COBWEBS, NADA. There were some Halloween decorations up for their Horror Nights, but the Halloween vibes were very low-key. Oh well, we still adore the park and can’t wait to return.
- Underwood Family Farms Harvest Festival. I’ve been taking the kids for several years and it’s one of our favorite traditions. We pick pumpkins, wander the corn maze, make crafts, and of course, watch the pig race. Another important tradition? Leaving Nathan at home. There’s almost no shade, and the man is part-vampire, plus he grew up in rural Nebraska. His dad’s a farmer. This event just drains him, so he stays home and does whatever, and we cavort with pumpkins. We went Sunday, October 1 and had a grand festive time. We started with face painting, ended with making scarecrows, and did just about everything else in between.
- Trick-or-treating. Pippa already has her Mockingjay costume, and we are working on getting Julian a “black Spiderman” costume. How many more years will both kids want to harass neighbors for candy?
- Visit the houses on Algeria in Sierra Madre BEFORE Halloween. The city of Sierra Madre takes Halloween very seriously, and this particular street takes it to a new level. We went there on Halloween 2021 and the kids were overwhelmed by the crowds. I still have a little PTSD. This year, we are going after school and wandering the street to admire the decorations before the big day.
- Carve pumpkins.
- Let the kids “blow up” the pumpkins with baking soda and vinegar after Halloween.
- Take the kids to see The Nightmare Before Christmas at the El Capitan theater. (This is a reach. It’s only there for a short time and we have soccer, but maybe I can make it happen.)
- Carved at Descanso.
- Bake with pumpkin.
- Decorate the house for Halloween. Done! We have a couple extra decorations I ordered from Amazon that are yet to go up because it’s been over 90 every day and I just can’t. But the house is festive and the kids had a blast helping me set everything up. They are Jedi Masters at covering our hedge with fake cobwebs.
- Attend our elementary school’s carnival.
- Go to Nebraska for Thanksgiving. (Flights have been reserved. Very excited to make this happen and create more memories with our kids.)
- Bake a pie from scratch.
- Take photos of fall foliage.
- Pick apples from our tree and make apple muffins and applesauce.
- Rake leaves. I made my first assault against the leaves on 10/15, but our trees are still full of leaves. There are many more raking sessions in my future.
- Go on a family hike.
- Give the kids an amigurumi ghost. (These are 99% finished. Just need to attach the bows and then give them on October 1. Pippa spotted me working on these and knows something is up, but I really want to wait for October 1.) I did this and the kids LOVE their ghosts. They sleep with them and over two weeks later, they are still thanking me for them. Talk about ultimate crafting satisfaction.
That’s plenty for now! I’m sure my Pinterest obsession will give me more ideas as Halloween and Thanksgiving approach.