I've been hearing a lot of lamenting lately about how the summer is over. Labor Day has come and gone, school has started, no more fun in the sun, etc, etc. It's amazing how much people (myself included) have their lives run by the picture at the top of their calender. First of all, summer does not come to an "official" end until the very end of the month of September (how many of you knew that?). September 22nd is when autumn actually starts. Second of all, so long as the weather holds out, you can really do any fun in the sun activities you want for as long as you want. One year it stayed so warm so far into fall that I was still laying out in shorts and a tshirt until the week before Thanksgiving! Third of all, if you do summer things NOW, you can usually do them for MUCH CHEAPER! In some cases (the beach, membership lakes), you can enjoy them FOR FREE.
Now some of you may be rooting for the end of summer with your sweaters on and your harvesting enthusiam. I'm also right with you guys as well. As much as I love summer, every season has its great moments (okay, except for winters after Christmas when it doesn't snow, and it's just blah). My favorite parts of the seasons are often that blend of two of them as one drifts into another. When my husband and I go on vacation every year in the beginning of October, we always seem to fully enjoy the perks of both summer and autumn. Often in the beginning of the week, we're wearing shorts and tshirts and hanging out on the beach, and then toward the end of the week we're heading out for some apple and pumpkin picking in jeans and sweaters.
In order to take full advantage of these crossover moments in seasons, I encourage you to look at the year as having eight seasons instead of four - winter, wring, spring, spummer, summer, sautumn, autumn, and auinter (and they should probably have much MUCH better names, but you get the idea).
So now is the time to begin your appreciation for sautumn (yes - still a terrible name for it). Enjoy a swim during the day and a bonfire in the evening. Pair your worn in shorts with a cozy sweater. Have a bbq and serve apple pie for dessert. Relish the empty stretch of sand and the line-free bathrooms at the beach. Seasons are more about the days and what you do with them then pages on the calender. These are your days and your life, and you will be the one to decide how you want to live them.
I love that sautum! Too funny.
ReplyDeleteGiven that it's still in the one hundreds here, I don't think we will see fall in this neck of the woods for a while!
i saw so many pools being closed down the day after labor day and it was 95 out. i thought that was just crazy bc you're right - so many people end summer right on labor day. just nuts. i'm still going on my summer vacation in october bc it's still going to be warm, less people, and way cheaper. summer's not over for me (:
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to find an affordable beachy getaway for the beginning of Oct... any suggestions?? :) I've looked into OBX but not sure where else to look into. Just me, the hubby and our 2 very little kids.
ReplyDeleteI have heard great things about staying in the OBX in October - rentals go for so much cheaper!!
DeleteMy husband and I discovered that in October bed and breakfasts along the shore were so much cheaper than even the hotels were (and a lot of them have weekly or weekend "out of season" packages). Make sure (with two little kids) that bathrooms are in each rooms - some B&Bs have shared floor bathrooms. Also, to save money on food, make sure breakfast is included in the price and go some place that has a wet bar and fridge in the room, so you can pack up your own lunches for the beach everyday or do dinner in the room. (My husband and I actually bring a steamer and steam crab legs for a couple of our meals right in the room). The B&B we go to also provides beach chairs and towels and bike rentals. This will be our 5th trip to this particular B&B - once you find a good one, you'll want to go back every year :) Good luck!!
Specifically here is a link to the place that we go:
Deletewww.chateauinn.com
Check out their packages for autumn!
It's located in Spring Lake in NJ - a residential town right on the ocean about 10 minutes north of Seaside and 10 minutes south of Point Pleasant. The bed and breakfast is a 5 minute walk from the beach and right on the edge of Spring Lake Park. The town feels very New England and there is A LOT to do in the area!
Tom and I laughed when we saw a picture of ourselves in long sleeved shirts and noted how strange it looked. This first year in FL is going to be very interesting weatherwise.. We have really no idea what to expect. I'm already thrown off by all the Fall talk online and have to remind myself what time of year it is. We do intend of making use of this fireplace though, even if we have to keep the AC on! Especially for Christmas morning.. but for the afternoon we may just head to the beach..just because we can! Love your concept of the in-between seasons!
ReplyDeleteYeah I'm glad of the electric fireplace, so we can just have the feeling of a fire with no heat now and add the heat later when it gets cold.
DeleteI was just at the shore yesterday, and I'm really an "out of season" beach goer. I love the abandoned beaches and boardwalks and wearing a sweatshirt instead of a bathing suit.
Soon you'll become true warm weather people and put on your winter coats and complain when it's 50 degrees out..haha