Fall is here, and it’s time to share a few of my favorite things!
This month I’m sharing our new favorite cookies, my go-to escapist podcast, a 15 minute exercise option I’m in love with, and a book to help you welcome the seasons with your five senses. Plus my new vacuum buddy, and the card game we played all September!
A Giant Halloween Coloring Page!
Need an activity for an at-home afternoon? This giant Halloween coloring page is perfect. My girls’ eyes LIT UP when they saw it, and between the four of us, we colored the whole thing in one afternoon. Plus, it came with bonus small-sized coloring pages, which we also enjoyed!
I’ve seen these giant engineer print coloring pages floating around the internet for a few years, but this was the first time we tried one! You can get these big 24″x36″ pages printed at FedEx Office or Staples. Just search “Engineer Print” or “Black and White Blueprint.” We got ours printed at FedEx Office for about $4!
A Newer, Smarter Roomba
We’ve had a Roomba for years, and I love it so much that I put googly eyes on it and talked to it like a pet. (Y’all this thing VACUUMED for me–it deserves the attention!)
This summer I upgraded to a new model, the Roomba i7 7150 and I am so in love. *heart eyes for days*
It’s so much better than its predecessor–it vacuums in straight lines, is much easier to clean out, and if it runs out of battery while its working, it docks, charges, and then completes its job!
It also connects to an app! There I can see a map of my house, and choose whether I want it to clean the whole downstairs just a few individual rooms. I have it set up to automatically clean the kitchen floor every evening, and it is GOLD.
A Killer Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
At the beginning of quarantine, Pixar released the recipe for the Disneyland exclusive “Jack Jack’s Cookie Num Nums” chocolate chip cookie. As huge fans of both Disneyland and chocolate chip cookies, we knew we had to give them a try.
Y’ALL, THEY ARE AMAZING!
They’ve have unseated the recipe we’ve used for years to become the official Walton chocolate chip cookie. We bake them pretty much every week.
Pro tip: They’re next level with the browned butter, but even if you skip that step and just use room temp butter they are still SO GOOD.
Get the recipe here:
Disneyland for Designers Podcast
Like most of you, we had summer plans that were canceled by COVID-19. One of ours was a planned trip to Disneyland to celebrate my husband finishing his military service (yay!).
We were bummed to miss it, and can’t wait for Disneyland to open it’s doors again.
While I wait, I’ve been visiting vicariously through artist and superfan Mark Brickey’s Disneyland for Designers podcast, which looks at the park from a design perspective. It’s perfect if you want to nerd out on Disney parks while you can’t actually be there.
My current fav episode is “20 Things That Make a Perfect Disney Land” with Disney VIP Tourguide Philander Butler.
UNO Flip
With kids ranging from 4-12 it can be hard to find a family game that everyone can play, but UNO Flip fits the bill! My husband got it for his birthday last month, and it’s already been pulled out a ton of times. We all love this twist on the original UNO.
Pro tip: Make ridiculous space sound-effects when you “flip.” Our kids think it’s hilarious.
See our other current favorite family games here, or
MommaStrong (15 Minute Workouts!)
I’ve been slowly making time and mental space for exercise in the last few months, focusing on what makes my body feels good (not how many calories I can burn).
I eased in with Yoga with Adrienne in summer (she showed up in my last favorite things post!), and when I finally felt ready for something a little harder, I happily stumbled across MommaStrong.
I can’t recommend it enough!
MommaStrong is a fitness program that focuses on functional exercise for a healthy body, and, my favorite part–being real, imperfect, self-compassionate humans.
The workouts are only 15 minutes long (really, actually 15 minutes from start to finish–no sneaky warmup or cool downs you didn’t know about), and they are SO GOOD.
The instructor, Courtney, records a new workout EVERY SINGLE DAY, so you get never get bored or a repeat.
And best of all, she meets you where you are and encourages you to listen to your body. No shaming about going slow or taking breaks, lots of alternative and low-impact options, and so much real mom life happening on screen as her kids come interrupt her or a puppy sits down on her Yoga mat.
It’s currently $5 a month (going up to $12 in January!) and worth much, much more. Sign up here!
‘Welcome Home’ by Myquillyn Smith
I’ve been a fan of The Nesting Place for years now, and couldn’t wait to get my hands on Myquillyn’s latest book, Welcome Home.
It’s all about decorating for the seasons the “cozy minimalist” way. Myquillyn teaches us how to have “more style and less stuff,” creating a warm, welcoming home without buying out Hobby Lobby. She also shares encouraging thoughts and ideas to help us learn how to host with joy instead of overwhelm.
It’s hilarious, relatable, and chock full of great ideas and pretty-but-achievable(!) inspiration pictures. Perfect sofa-snuggle, cool weather reading. Get it here!
Are you joining the fun?
Hop over to Instagram and let me know if you’re getting in to any of our Fall favorites, too!
xo,
Jamie
