California is the home of the Indian Summer. September and October are usually our warmest months. While everyone else is bracing themselves for cooler climes, we’re wearing our tank tops and flip flops.
I’m not about to complain about the weather here, because it’s pretty fucking great. I will say though that by the end of October I am ready for some cooler weather. It’s just hard to register that Thanksgiving is in four weeks when it’s 80 degrees.
About a week ago the weather finally turned. I woke up one morning and had to put my yoga pants on under my robe. The next day I needed slippers in the kitchen. The following night I woke up cold, even with all the blankets on me. I started wearing sweatshirts in the evenings, dressing my son in fleece footy pajamas, and making my daughter wear long sleeves under her princess nightgowns.
I know it never really gets cold here, but I’m loving the nip in the air, the need to pull my sweater around me, that blast of heat from the car vents in the morning. I like that it’s getting colder because that means winter is coming, and with it the holidays.
Thanksgiving is in a few weeks and then we’ll be thrust into the Christmas season. Heck, as far as the stores are concerned the Christmas season is already here! I really love November and December, not so much for the special days themselves, but for the anticipation. And I think this year, for the first time, I can accept the anticipation as its own event, one that doesn’t have to be voided if the days do not live up to my expectation. It’s strange to think that one can take more joy in the anticipation of something than the thing itself, but if that is what works for me, then I’m all for it.
And so I wash my long sleeved shirts, air out the winter jackets, put the fleece blanket on the bed, retrieve my slippers from under the armoire, and get ready for the cold weather and the holidays.
Winter is coming.
What do you like best about this season?
Yes. It was like a switch got flipped in California right after daylight savings changed. We put the flannel sheets back on and I’m wearing sweatshirts around the house.
Right now I’m loving the rain but we’re a little rusty on dealing with it bc it’s been so long.
Late fall is when both my kids were born so this time of year is busy with the holidays and birthdays.
A switch really did flip, it’s crazy how fast it got cold. I was so ready though, I’ve been stoked.
I love it! October was a rough month with the heat. It was particularly hot this year. I’ve been much happier since the weather dropped.
I think of winter as that cold dark long few months AFTER the holidays. I read this article yesterday ( http://www.fastcompany.com/3052970/how-to-be-a-success-at-everything/the-norwegian-secret-to-enjoying-a-long-winter ) and it really challenged me to shift my mindset about winter. Its so easy to jump onto the “Ugh, winter sucks” bandwagon here, so it would take a conscious effort to enjoy that time for what it is, rather than complain & be miserable for 3 months. I have a post about winter coming up this week, too! (the holidays are a whole separate issue…I agree that just enjoying the anticipation should be the goal. in any case, the anticipation gives you a whole month of happiness vs. a few hours on the actual day—which usually goes straight to hell in our house).
I like that article. I’m going to try a borrow a little Norwegian spirit this year.
After I wrote my post I was thinking of January, February and March and how I’m never thinking of them when I’m excited for winter to come. Those month are hard, not just because the novelty of the colder weather has worn off, but because the holidays are over and there isn’t a whole lot to look forward to. There aren’t a lot of days off, the kids are squirrely at school and at home, it’s still standard time (I really don’t like standard time). So yeah, I may be into winter right now, but we’ll see home I’m feeling at the beginning of February. 😉
I too am appreciating this change in the weather – especially the rain! I wish I felt like you do about the holidays, though. I have a complicated relationship with winter that is very difficult to justify while living in California because, you know, my kids have seen actual snow one time in their lives. But there is darkness and I feel especially vulnerable during this time. I vow to work on this relationship this year.
The short days are hard for me, but a part of me appreciates the need/want to be home because it’s cold and dark. It’s like I need that permission to stop moving and rest, because when it’s nice out I feel like I need to take advantage of it. And there is something extra special about home, when it’s protecting you from the wind and the cold.
To me this is bulb planting season and I love the promise of spring held in a shriveled up odd looking bulb. I see fall as the renewal of the promise made of springtimes to come.
Joy!
Winter is an important time for things to rest before they renew, even people!
I love, love this season. I love the crisp air, all the traditions of apple-picking, pumpkin-patching, leaf changing, and planning trips to see family. It’s a lovely time of year. It’s been unseasonably warm here (yesterday it reached nearly 60!) so it’s been really lovely, but I am dreading the months-long frost around chicagoland.
This is a hard question to answer for me, because I don’t love winter. I have really had a hard time the past few years in the fall because I know winter’s on the way and I dread it. I’m so cold all the time, I lose circulation in my hands and feet, and it’s dark. And cold. (Did I mention the cold?)
That said, I do love seeing all the Christmas lights on houses, and I love the smell of pine and woodsmoke, and I love the crisp air after the first snow. And the sunrises in the winter are usually gorgeous; all pastels and pink and lavender and just really pretty.
Also, I love the article Ana posted. I’m going to try to change my relationship with winter, too. Though it would be SO much easier if I had a sauna in my house – the Finnish deal better with winters because they can warm up at night before bed. It would dealing with the cold temps a hell of a lot easier, that’s for sure. 🙂