Life Lately: October 2024

What a month! I am so proud to have finished another year of Blogtober here at Learning to Bloom. It takes so much planning and preparation; seeing it all come together and sharing it all with you brings the biggest smile to my face. If you haven’t guessed already, October is one of my favorite months of the year! The beautiful Fall colors and the festive atmosphere is so joyful and I can’t help but be a little sad that it’s coming to an end. Like always happens in October, we got up to a lot and I’m excited to share with you all of the fun!

Jake’s Birthday

We always kick things off in October by celebrating my husband’s birthday! It was very low-key this year just like he likes it. I made stuffed pasta and we had some cake and spent some time together.

Health stuff with Mom

Health things can be scary, especially with aging parents but at the beginning of the month, my mom finally had the procedure to replace one of her heart valves. She came through it like a champ and it feels like a relief to know that this health issue has been taken care of. I am so happy I was able to be there for her and that we were able to take her home the same day as the procedure!

Portland friends

Some of our friends came up to stay for the weekend. We got to catch up and went to breakfast with them both days they were here. It was good to see them and catch up!

Nature walks with Jake

Jake and I went on some epic Fall walks in the area this month. Two of them were around Issaquah. The first was the Tradition Lake Trail Loop and it was such a nice walk through the woods! The second was the May Valley Short Loop which was moderately harder but just as beautiful. And then we tried to go and walk on the Cedar River trail this last weekend but got stuck in a downpour. We did get to see some Salmon coming up the Cedar River and got some more information from some volunteers from the Seattle Aquarium about the Salmon so it was worth getting drenched!

Pizza night

We decided to try out a pizza place called Cascadia Pizza Co. in Maple Valley with some friends. The pizza was delicious and we taught our friends how to play Skip Bo while we ate! It was a nice evening!

Party with friends

We got together at another friend’s house celebrating our friend Rose who was leaving her job at Boeing for an exciting new opportunity. Rose makes wine so we had a wine tasting of several of the wines she has made this year. It was such a nice time catching up and meeting new people!

Cider and Ale Trail in Downtown Kent

Jake and I ventured down to Kent to participate in the Cider and Ale Trail event put on by the Kent Downtown Partnership. For the event, you got a map and tokens and took a little tour of Downtown and got various samples of cider, beer, and cocktails from local businesses. We enjoyed seeing what businesses were around down there and we happy that we took the time to explore more of where we live and what local businesses have to offer.

Enjoying my decorations and watching all my favorite nostalgic movies

I love the cozy season and for me, it starts when I start putting up my Halloween decorations. I got a jump start with my decorating in September but kept adding more to our front yard decor as the month has gone on! I love turning all my cozy lights on and cuddling up on the couch watching some of my favorite Spooky Season movies! This truly is my favorite time of the year!

Dinner with out of town friends

We got to meet up with some friends who were in town from New York. We caught up over a delicious dinner at a Mexican restaurant. It was fun because the last time we saw them, we had dinner with them when we were in New York back in 2019!

Our 2024 pumpkin carving party

This last weekend we hosted our annual pumpkin carving party with our friends and their kids. We watched football and had a grand old time carving up our pumpkins. I made chili in the slow cooker and our friends brought cornbread, sweet pumpkin dip, and a pumpkin pie! Poor Jake wasn’t feeling well so he stayed in bed upstairs but everyone else seemed to have a great time. I also send everyone home with some festive homemade sugar cookies I made on Saturday! Can’t wait to do it again next year!

Blogtober 2024

Today marks 3 years that I have successfully finished Blogtober! It is always such a joy being able to share my love of the season with anyone who is interested. I have so much fun coming up with the DIY projects and sharing my fun festive outfits. It makes it easy to soak up everything this season has to offer. I hope you enjoyed it and I can’t wait to do it all again next year!

In the Garden…

Last year we had our first frost in October. This year has been really mild and I still have a tomato plant, pepper plants, and a bunch of cosmos and Mexican sunflowers still blooming out in the garden. I have started clean up and will hopefully be getting a YouTube video up tomorrow sharing that process. We’ve had beautiful Fall weather this month and the changing leaves are so incredibly beautiful. We also had the odd foggy morning which always feels so perfect for October!

I harvested my pumpkins, the last of my peppers, the last of my large tomatoes, and the last of my beans. We’ve got radish, carrots, kale, broccoli, and cabbage growing out there now for Fall!