5 ways to enjoy the change of season

down in the southern part of the world, we are turning ever closer to winter. we’ll have days of sunshine, then a storm will blow through that leaves everything sodden – giving us a taste of things to come.

daylight savings ends in a week and summer will shortly feel like a memory. i love all of the seasons, but summer is probably my favourite, so i want to enjoy it a little more before it’s gone for another year. here’s five ways i plan to enjoy the change of season.

notice the changes

every day there’s a subtle shift from one season to the next. the way the sun moves in the sky. the hour that dawn arrives through your windows. the change in how your body feels when moving from warm to cool or the other way around. find a way of documenting them that feels good for you.

plan a weekend away

(or a day, or an hour, if a weekend isn’t possible)

i’ve got a mega packing list for a weekend away over easter. we’re meeting friends halfway between here and there and setting up camp at the blue lake holiday park in rotorua. it’ll be tent city – even with just four of us we’ll have the place feeling cosy. our new(er) car has more space in it, so there’ll be blankets and bunting, fairy lights and other fanciful items crammed in with the tents and camping supplies. it’s likely to be our last summer-type activity before we hunker down for the winter.

we often meet these friends somewhere for a weekend together. sometimes at their place, sometimes at ours and sometimes (like easter) in a place that’s new for us all.

day trips to places nearby that have always been on your list are a great place to start. or a gallery that you’ve not visited for a while. even an hour out of your regular routine and exploring some place new is a great way to celebrate being alive and honouring the seasons changing.

soak up the sunshine

find a sunny spot – in the house / the garden / a park / by a river / at the beach.

take a book / blanket / podcast / thermos / camera (or all of these).

or go for a walk / bike / run / kayak.

revel in it for as long as you can.

bonus points for not thinking about anything else you have to do and simply enjoying every moment of your experience.

prepare for the dark nights ahead

get all the winter blankets and duvets out from storage and give them a wash, or hang them on the line in the sunshine. do the same with winter coats, hats and scarves. mend or replace anything that needs it. replace broken fairy lights and buy some scented candles. make firelighters from tiny pinecones, wax and essential oils (like these beauties that my friend Emma makes). clean out the fireplace and stock the wood piles, ready for cosy nights by firelight. make a list of all the movies you want to see and keep a list of soup recipes handy for nights when you need warming up from the inside. make a list of creative projects that are good to do in winter when it’s stormy outside. keep your wet weather gear close by for moments when being out in the storm is what you’re longing for.

clean

not just for spring, cleaning is for all of the year. the fridge, that drawer in the house that things get thrown into, the cupboard that junk gets piled into when you don’t know where else to put it. despite my best efforts, there’s always somewhere like this in our little house that needs my attention. and it feels so good (well, to me it does anyway) to have it done.

tell me, do you have any ways you like to prepare for / celebrate a season change?