When Fall in Phoenix hits, quite literally nothing has changed in the weather. It is hot, muggy and while the rest of the country is experiencing the crisp mornings of autumn, we are still enduring the endless summer. It is for this reason that I have decided to create my own fall rhythms and transitions despite what it feels like outside.
When September arrives, out come the fall branches and stems, the fall wreaths and candles and some fun autumnal activities for the kids. I do this in large part because my husband was raised in a somewhat of a rural part of Illinois where he experienced corn fields, hay rides and all the glorious wonders of leaves changing and what he calls ‘something different in the air’. While I am Phoenix born and bred, fall for me is simply ‘less hot summer’. So I try to fill his nostalgic void by creating Autumn inside our home.
The kids experience this when we break out the fall flavored homemade play dough. I love doing this because it’s easy, cheap and I feel less stressed when my three-year-old insists on eating it. The recipe is so simple: 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, 2 tsp of cream of tartar, 1 tablespoon of oil and 1 cup of water. You heat this in a pot on the stove for a few minutes on low and as you stir, you’ll notice it start to clump together. Take it off the heat, let it cool, and ta-da!
When we do this in the Fall, I’ll add red, yellow and even green food coloring to make fall themed play dough. I like to throw in some fall scents using essential oils like cinnamon, nutmeg, pine and cedarwood. You can also use food grade extracts like vanilla, pumpkin pie, maple or real cinnamon. Add your colors and flavors before heating for the best consistency.
Once the play dough is made, the kids enjoy playing with it with some fall ‘sensory’ type items we have: miniature pumpkins, farm animals, acorns, fall leaves, pine cones, etc. Most of these items can either be collected or purchased at crafts stores and Amazon.
As part of our homeschool routine, we do a weekly “Poetry Tea Time.” This is one of my kids’ favorite times of the week as we break out all the delicious treats, real tea cups and read poetry together. I have collected a variety of different seasonal poetry books, so when September hits, out comes the fall poetry. They contain beautiful descriptions of leaves changing, animal migrations and seasonal changes, like the days shortening, the mornings becoming cooler, and so on. My kids look forward to pumpkin bread slices, maple and molasses cookies and incorporating apple cider in their teacups.
We have grown to look forward to the end of summer when the inside of our home begins to reflect the seasons changing. The smell of cinnamon, pumpkin spice and apples as the treats bake in the oven. The colors of fall popping up in the branches and stems that have been swapped and the play dough that has been made. And the small flicker of hope that emerges in each one of us as we anticipate our favorite time of year together.