Fall. Can you feel it? It’s right around the corner.
I can just see moms everywhere beginning to put together their busy fall calendars.
Football. Ballet. Thanksgiving plays.
The onset of fall brings back so many fond memories of activities I did as a child. Why not carve out time to do activities together this year?
Cook Seasonal Treats Together
As a child we had a huge apple tree in our yard. It covered the entire yard and would produce hundreds of apples that would fall onto the ground. My mother would have my sisters and I collect the apples to use in her homemade applesauce. It was one of our favorite things to do.
We would fly out the door and run through the crunchy, brightly colored leaves to get to the apples. I can remember our little fingers inspecting every aspect of the little treasures we had found. After gathering our bushels we would bring the apples in for my mother to use for her baking.
I remember sitting on the barstool as she would stir the homemade applesauce. It always felt as if the wonderful smell of fall was hitting me right in the face. These are the memories your children will take with them as they grow older.
With pumpkins, apples and muscadines in season, what better time than now to create some sweet seasonal treats (and memories) with your children.
Fall Leaf Wreath
Go Leaf Hunting
Take your kids around the neighborhood and pick up pretty colored leaves.
Make a fall wreath by gluing leaves to a Styrofoam ring or make your own ring by tying branches off in a circle. (Use can use real or artificial leaves.)
Visit Area Festivals
Most places have local fairs, pumpkin patches or corn mazes. Check the newspaper or go online to find dates and/or coupons for each event.
- October 6-7 Nillie Bipper Arts-and-Crafts Festival. For more info contact the Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of Commerce at 423-472-6587
- October 21-22 The Cleveland Apple Festival. A great family event to take the kids to. Visit clevelandapplefestival.org.
- October 31st –First Baptist of Cleveland will be hosting their fall festival on October 31st. Check out their website at http://clevelandfbc.com for more information. The Bradley Square mall will be hosting churches sponsoring trunk or treats. See www.shopbradleysquare.com for more details.
Rake That Yard
Disguise the chore of raking leaves as a fun activity for everyone to participate in. For example: Have a contest to see which child can bag the most leaves. Give the winner a special “prize.” The prize could be a trip to the local dollar store, a cup of hot cocoa or maybe the privilege of being the first to jump into the big pile of leaves.
These are just a few ways to make some special memories this fall with the ones you love the most. For even more ideas, follow us on Pinterest.
Written by: Kaylee Findlay, Mix 104.1 Intern
