It’s Fall Y’all

And, in Texas that means we’ve finally hit the 80s.

I do so love the fall for two reasons:

1) It’s my happy decorating place. I tend to decorate with jewel tones and fall-ish colors year ’round so stepping into fall is like finding my favorite wool cardigan. It’s familiar and cozy and inviting. Easter is always a stretch for me, what with all those pastels and light colors. I love color and lots of it.

2) FOOTBALL, as in the American kind. Every weekend brings sweet victory (or in the case of this weekend, agony over the loss) after college matchups. But, glutton for punishment because we just keep going back for more.

Since I’m not this guy, I’ll stick to fall decorating.

A sweet friend, Bonnie, invited several of us to share the fall love. Truth be told, her request actually got my rear in fall decorating gear. Otherwise, it probably wouldn’t have happened. The kids were all too happy to help. As any good southern gal should do, welcome to our house. Let me show you around.

I can’t say I’m a huge fan of true Halloween decorations, nor do I have time to switch out all that ‘ween stuff with Thanksgiving, so I just go with a fall theme and call it done. Some people go hog-wild crazy with pumpkins, but in the south, you just have to wait until that Indian summer makes her last appearance before taking the plunge. I usually skip them and adorn the door with one of my favorite wreaths. It wasn’t too hard to make, either. We call it a “taste of candy corn.” (h/t to Whipperberry for her original inspiration)

I know not everyone loves, or uses, a dining room, but I adore the heck out of mine. Maybe it’s because we’re always happy to be the party house, because that room gets a fair share of love. It’s been filled with rainbows, transformed into Hogwarts’ Great Hall, loaded down with food for various holidays and we’ve shared some serious Sacrament joy there, too. For the fall, here’s how it looks. By the way, I think Thanksgiving gets the shaft, so I go ahead and display those decorations. My house. My rules.

You might recognize those cedar fence boxes and green Mason jars from this shindig. Several years ago, on a whim, I had the kids whip up the “thanks” craft while I cooked Thanksgiving dinner. We loved the result so much, it’s become a staple decoration at our house. It’s amazing what sticks from the backyard, some construction paper and crayons will turn into. And, it’s all anchored with some leftover split peas, which I can guarantee, I would never cook! But, you could use pinto beans, rice or whatever else you have sitting in your pantry gathering dust. Below, I scored the red flowers on 50% clearance at Michael’s, and the “f-a-l-l” candles and woven pumpkin at Target a few seasons ago.

We also have a sweet little shelf, that hangs just above our shoe bins. I added a few fall touches to her. The fall printable was a free one I found on Pinterest last year and the pumpkins were a clearance item from Michael’s. Usually, that shelf has the same potted plant, minus the pumpkins, and a family photo in lieu of the printable. I’m going for easy here, folks. It’s called “newborn fog.” I can still claim that with a five-month-old, right? RIGHT?!

And that’s fall at Casa Whitaker. I’m laying low and preparing myself for Advent and, dare I say, Christmas? Too early? Too early.

There are lots of other ladies sharing some fall love, so if you’re needing inspiration, I say click on over for a few minutes. Fall, it’s like the greatest time of year, isn’t it?

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