Happy November! We’re two months deep into the ‘ber months. The start of the ‘ber months brings out a lot of creative energy in people. It’s the rope drop to the holiday season of being together and creating, whether it be decorations or food or memories.

September is such a fun month for us. Quite arguably, it’s the best month of the year. Autumn is beginning, the shift into the school year has settled, things are slowing down (for us), and we celebrate two birthdays!

Fall is a lot of fun for creativity because nature gives us so much. Not only great opportunities for photos, but so many things to collect on nature walks. Recently, we purchased the Junior Nature Warrior bundle from Your Wild Books. This was in part to incorporate into our homeschool curriculum, but also to have great family activities to do together.

Here are some of our favorite creative activities to do as a family come autumn.

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Nature Walks

If you follow me on social media, you know nature walks are our thing. We love taking the kids outside to explore a small park near our home. It has two playgrounds connected by a pathway through the woods, complete with a small creek and two bridges. It’s picturesque, it’s quaint, and it’s perfect for children to let their imaginations run wild.

Most recently, my youngest was “making soup” in the creek while “the bigs,” as we refer to them, were busy collecting acorns for crafts later. I think the best part of being outside is being able to observe the kids because they aren’t paying us attention. They’re very much in their zone and content with what they’re doing. Being outside is my favorite “reset” on the mind.

Fall Decorating

I’m still a sucker for the minimalist look, even when decorating for the holidays. While I may have more quantity, I don’t lose the quality.

Last year, I used Canva and printed off a ton of bats, cut them out, and laminated them. It turned out way better than I expected, honestly. Add some mums, some pumpkins, some beautiful weeds or flowers plucked from outside and there you have some fall decorating.

I’m sure, once we have our home, we will add more and more spooky decorations. This year, we bought orange string lights for our kitchen and it gives off the best light at night. Slightly warm, slightly spooky. The possibilities are endless, and you don’t need to spend a fortune.

Nature Crafts

Acorns for school, acorns for masks, acorns for literally any and everything you can think of because, oh boy, do they end up everywhere. Using leaves for leaf rubbing, face masks, magic wands, crowns, sailboats… the kids’ creative minds are endless.

Your Wild Books offers so many wonderful ideas to use outdoor collectibles for. Grab kids, grab a basket, and fill it up! Using staples from the craft cupboard, like ribbon, glue, popsicle sticks, pipe cleaners, and googly eyes, and you will have yourself a fancy acorn deer in no time.

Fall in the Kitchen

This is the first year I’ve bought an apple corer/peeler. It is probably one of my favorite investments. Recently, my daughter came home from school and told me she tried a new apple dessert and she loved it so much she had seconds. Well, turns out it was apple crisp. And turns out we also love apple crisp.

We took a trip to Harvest View and snagged some apples (and other goodies). I was so excited to make some apple crisp and, my favorite, some applesauce. I explained to the kids how easy applesauce is to make, and since it’s one of their favorite things to eat, it was the perfect opportunity to show them how it’s done.

With careful hands, and little creative minds, we worked together to core, peel, cut, and cook apples to perfection.

Birthday Parties

I have always loved spoiling my daughter on her birthday. She has had some of the best and creative parties over the years. Hot air balloons, Trolls, Halloween, Mario Kart, Bluey, and Caticorn themes to name a few. Perhaps it’s because September has the best weather. Perhaps it’s just the perfect time of year to attend a party. Whatever the reason, she’s always had the greatest outcomes.

This year, she wanted a caticorn theme, so to keep things fun and simple, I ordered a set of paper lanterns, a banner, and we made a rainbow cake.

How do you keep creative in the fall?