lately léna

Hello and welcome to September!

However, this year’s fall To Do list is going to be a bit different. The last time I wrote one of these lists, I was still living in Colorado. For almost eight years, my life was based in Fort Collins and revolved around the charming traditions and annual events of the city (Tour de Fat, New West Fest, going to the Pumpkin Patch, to name a few). Now that we live in Uppsala, Sweden, it’s time to make some new traditions and what better way to come up with ideas than to make a fall To Do list? Keep reading for the full list!

1. Bake an apple pie. The apple tree in the photo above is in our backyard and, as you can see, is overflowing with these tart, sweet little red apples that are just begging to baked in a pie crust with brown sugar and cinnamon 🙂

2. Start knitting again! I have the needles, so I just need to get my act together and buy some wool…

3. Continue running. I started running off and on again this summer, and I’ve been so looking forward to the cooler temps (although I will miss the option to jump in the lake after every run).

4. Plan and book our trip to Morrocco later this year for both C’s and my birthdays (I’m turning 30!)

5. Have a scary movie night (I really want to see Hereditary!) complete with candy and popcorn.

6. Make our home smell like the season with some new scented candles

7. Go mushroom-hunting in the forest

8. Meditate daily with an extra focus on gratitude. I started meditating this summer, every day for 5 minutes, and would love to keep this habit up throughout the fall and winter. With its short days, long nights, and freezing temperatures, winter in Sweden can be tough, and I want to try to pre-empt any SAD symptoms with lots of time outside, frequent exercise, a healthy diet, and a daily gratitude practice.

I think that’s probably good for now. What do you think? What’s on your fall To Do list? I’d love to hear what’s making you excited about this season 🙂

xxLena