Much like the first snowfall, our first fall season in Colorado has me giddy. I’m making lots of soup, baking pumpkin treats, and turning the fireplace on almost nightly. Boots, mittens and scarves are actually necessities instead of accessories I don to make me feel like it’s fall, even though I am sweating up a storm in my get-up.
This is the first “real” fall that I can remember. A fall where the leaves actually change colors and fall from the trees. The streets, driveways and lawns are littered with fallen leaves in colors so utterly vibrant. I can’t tell where the driveway ends and the front lawn begins (sidetone: we really need to buy a rake). This morning there were ice and leaves plastered to my windshield. And yet, I was cheerful in spite of the annoyance.
The opportunity to live in a place where the seasons change has given me a renewed thankfulness for God’s creation. Certainly, there was plenty to see and be thankful for in California (the beach, being the most obvious). But the Colorado mountains in the distance, the brightly colored tree-lined roads, and the blanket of white snow that sometimes graces us throughout this fall season has left me in awe of the beauty of this earth we live on.
I know now why people choose to live in places where the snow falls heavily and there’s ice on the road, where the trees are bare and the temperatures cold. It’s because despite its shortcomings, it’s truly beautiful.
Seeing it through my daughter’s eyes gives me new perspective as well. With each leaf that falls, she knows that winter is one step closer. She can’t wait to see snow outside her window every day (little does she know how tired she’ll grow of it), and of course, the passing of fall means Christmas is on the horizon. We’ll be driving down the road and she will yell, “Mom! See those yellow leaves? That means it’s almost fall!” Of course, it is fall already, but her slight confusion doesn’t slow her excitement. And her excitement for the changing seasons is rubbing off on all of us.
To capture our first fall in Colorado, I took the kids out to play in the leaves and get some pictures. Bonus of changing seasons: free entertainment for kids. They are in love with the snow and the fallen leaves. Make a pile of leaves for my daughter to jump in and you’ll be her best friend.
I am cherishing these blistery fall days with our little ones.
Is it cold and colorful where you live?
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Read more posts in the “A Californian in Colorado” series here