September 1! My first five thoughts….

September 1! 

My first five thoughts…

1.       End of summer 

2.       Back to school clothing & supply shopping

3.       Apple cider donuts & pumpkin picking

4.       Leaves turning to the vibrant fall colors

5.       Cooler temps

Growing up on the east end of Long Island, NY, this signaled with start of the end of summer and the beginning of a new school year. Tourist season would slow, weekenders would begin to close homes for the winter and the Wednesday after Labor Day would be the first day of school. (Living in Arizona for more then 20 years, I still haven’t gotten used to or understood school starting any earlier.) As a kid, the town used to slow back down to a local place, and you knew everyone you ran into on the streets.

Back to school shopping for supplies and clothing was always something to look forward to. I still remember going to Grants department store in Bridgehampton in 2nd grade and picking out my Charlie Brown metal lunchbox with the thermos included! After babysitting all summer, I can still remember going to Jefferies Department store in Southampton with my mother after the summer between 6th and 7th grades to buy new jeans for the new school year, the coveted Jordache and Sassoon designer jeans with my hard earned babysitting money.

Later in life, living in upstate NY, just outside of Albany, I used to enjoy taking my son to the local apple orchards and pumpkin patches. We used to pick our pumpkin, enjoy fresh local apple cider and warm donuts. The start of fall always signaled sweater weather. That time of year when we woke up to a chill in the air, and by the afternoon you were in short sleeve shirts enjoying the sun again. 

This morning, as I scrolled through Facebook, it was ironic reading about the cooler temperatures back home, as I listened to the news report of heat advisories this weekend for Phoenix. (Yes we are still over 100 degrees here in the valley of the sun!) My husband and I are going to enjoy a long weekend creek side in Sedona camping. 

What ever you are up to this weekend, enjoy a safe long weekend making new memories while fondly remember the old ones.