Thoughts for Thursday: October Bucket List

October is, without a doubt, my favorite month of the year.  The weather and leaves are changing, sweaters and boots get dusted off and ready for weather, soups and chili just seem like the answer to "What should we do for dinner?" more often than not, and it's finally cool enough to leave the windows open at night and add that extra blanket to keep you snug and warm.  

And we can't forget the fun stuff-- football Saturdays and Sundays, pumpkins and mums everywhere, HALLOWEEN, all of my favorite spooky movies (I cannot wait to say hello to the Sanderson Sisters for the 22nd year in a row-- can you even believe that Hocus Pocus is 22 years old?!?)... ah, yes.  October, it's been a long year waiting for you but I welcome you with open arms.

I'm sure you've seen various forms of fall bucket lists floating around different blogs, but since a lot of the items on those lists don't really apply to me (we don't have Littles of our own yet, so count us out for anything related to hayride/pumpkin patch/arts & crafts), and while I want to soak in as much of the fall as possible, I know that this month and next are going to be BUSY for us.  So, I made my own little custom bucket list that I know works for us and won't be a pain in the bum to feel obligated to complete!  Some are related to the season, others are just things I'd like to focus on this month-- can't wait to start checking away!

Books to Read

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.  This would be a reread for me, as I've read this countless times before, but not in several years.  I came across this fantastic list of children's books from Good Housekeeping that lists 50 books that adults should read (or reread) and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was one of them.  It's perfection-- I can't wait to tuck under a blanket and read a Saturday away!

Halloween Movies to Watch

No explanation needed!

Sandy, Nicole, two crazy aunts living in a Victorian house in New England, a love story with Aidan Quinn, and Stevie Nicks on the soundtrack-- perfection.

Call me crazy, but it's not Halloween unless I watch it!  It puts the fear of God in me (literally) every year, but it's just too well done, classic and downright terrifying to not pay homage to.

Halloween/Fall Activities 

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Have friends over for supper, games and drinks around a fire! 

Go apple picking.

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Make our yearly trek to Salem for a beer and wine festival (one of my favorite traditions, obviously).

Halloween Fun for the House!

spiders, punkins and bats-- halloween perfection!

a few chevron pumpkins never hurt anyone

I'm really loving these bats for the side of our house!

New Fall Recipes and Cocktails!

the apple ginger smash

beer mac and cheese (brian would be super pleased about this one)

apple cider moscow mule

butternut squash ricotta stuffed shells (what diet?)

bourbon maple apple cider

apple cider doughnuts

and we can't forget pumpkin bones for my sweet Molly girl!

I think it's safe to say that I've got a busy little month of October planned out for us... LOVE IT!  I'll document as I check things off, and to keep me accountable :)

And as if you won't see this all across your Instagram today...