No. 54: What to Read, Watch, Wear & Listen to in October

Plus the September favorites. It's here, you guys. It's our marathon.

read the august favorites here

I’ll keep this short and sweet because we’ve got a meaty one today. (I regret that sentence already but it’s true so it lives on.) I can’t believe we’re already here. I’ve said this before, but as someone who grew up in Chicago, Maryland and Northern California and spent the first 7 years of her adult life in Virginia…I can’t help but feel a bit jipped here in Texas. Come October, we should be wearing a sweater every day and shouldn’t be caught without a jacket by the time we’re preparing for Halloween. There should be leaves doing their magic tricks and hot cider to keep us warm for peewee football and robes and slippers to cope with the chill of an evening inside.

Instead, it was 92 degrees the other day and the view outside my window is a duck egg blue sky and trees that look somehow even greener than they did in the Spring. Sure, we are done with the oppressive heat and slipping in to the 70s and 80s, but there isn’t a crispness in the air until late November and the leaves don’t change color—they just give up and kamikaze themselves to the ground.

What I’ve learned since moving here six years ago is that sometimes, you really have to play it up to make it feel like Fall for you and your family. Maybe you’re in a busy season where you can’t do the memory marathon you usually do. Maybe you live on the surface of the sun and you can’t rely on scarves, hot cider and Thomas Kinkade painting scenery outside your window to really get in the spirit of the season. Today, I’m sharing the things that set the mood and kick off the three month marathon that is the end of the year.

be sure to visit the blog for a chicago photo diary, an extensive list of my recent clothing purchases the past few months and the fall momiform.

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one.two.three.four.six and an even more natural lash strip here.seven.eight.nine.ten.

My friend who has a husband that went in for a routine surgery that turned into a stroke that turned into months of healing and re-learning to smile, talk and now walk shared the caption of this post. It will stick with me for a long, long time. “Having needs humanizes us. Meeting needs dignifies us.”

Shame shaped me likely more than anything else in my childhood just because of my wiring and I wish I would have had the wisdom in this Family Discipleship Podcast episode to go off of. I’m grateful to nod along with this and to have these truths as I work to raise my own kids.

People often ask me for help with their husband’s wardrobes even more than their own. No one does it better than Sezane for the cozy months and their newest men’s collection doesn’t disappoint.

No. 48: The Fall Recipe Roundup is Back

No. 50: You Will be a Brave Mom

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What to Read:

I’m not a ‘spooky season’ kind of gal. Halloween is least favorite holiday, even after President’s Day. You already know this. I do, however, love a mystery-thriller. I’m a complex woman, what can I say? Historical Fiction feels right, too.

The Housemaid
Flicker in the Dark
The Overnight Guest
The Maid
Bread and Wine
A Fall of Marigolds
The Nightingale (I’m bummed the movie keeps being pushed, but thrilled at the casting choices. If you haven’t read it, be sure to read it now to fall in love with the story well before the movie release.)

What to Watch:

(first things first—do your own research on all of these because there’s a wide variety of disclaimers to spread out over some)

When Harry Met Sally
Little Women
Pride & Prejudice
Little Giants
You’ve Got Mail
Stepmom
Dead Poets Society
Good Will Hunting
Stand By Me
Casper
Harry Potter

I personally lean away from new shows in the last three months of the year and hold tightly to comfort watches to play in the background of laundry and late night work. Fraiser, Everybody Loves Raymond, Mad About You and Gilmore Girls are perfect for October. Parenthood deserves more than half my attention—something I don’t have to offer right now—but it’s also a Fall favorite.

What to Wear:

I’ve shared what I think you should wear as a general capsule wardrobe for this Fall here and four customized capsule wardrobes here, but this post shares what I’ve purchased recently and will be wearing all month..and all Fall..and all year.

What to Listen to:

The only things your ears need this month:

1. This Meg Ryan Fall playlist by Jess Graves compiles all my favorite movie soundtracks setting the perfect October mood. Honestly, Dreams being the first song of the playlist tells you everything you need to know.

2. This Maverick City Music Album—especially More than Able

3. The Staves always feel right this time of year

4. The Fantastic Mr. Fox Soundtrack is lovely for family days. It’s cheery and bright and warm and all the things you want for baking together, crafting or driving somewhere they’re looking forward to. I mean, this song really does the trick. (Can also drive you truly insane if you’re not in the mood so be warned)

5. I always find myself super motivated, full of ideas and finally equipped with the energy to execute them in October. I haven’t quite figured out why, but it feels like summer hangover has ended, the back to school fog has lifted and the holiday bustle doesn’t begin for another month. A thirty day sweet spot. I take all this vigor and creative energy to The Diary of a CEO Podcast and find it wildly inspiring.

Thank you for your feedback on last week’s merch request!! Again, if you’re interested in purchasing merch from custom good as gold sweatshirts to the mugs in my old shop, you can send an email to jill@goldandgraphite so I can get a semi accurate headcount. I’ll be back next week with an extensive guide to travel with kids so prep your eyeballs and amazon carts. For the comments, how was your September? And how’s your energy as we round third base?

I’ll see you next week—same time, same place.
Have a beautiful weekend, friends.