Go Play Outside! Our Favorite Places to Celebrate Autumn in the Puget Sound.

 

The Arboretum, October 11, 2009

Autumn is truly my favorite time of year!  I love that the weather has cooled from summer temperatures but has not reached the icy temperatures of winter.  I love the colors of Autumn - Washington State is absolutely gorgeous this time of year, and families need to get out as much as possible to enjoy it!  I love the activities of the season as well - farm and pumpkin patch visits, Halloween parties and dressing the kids up in their costumes of choice (always interesting to see what they want to "be" each year), annual photo shoots for holiday cards, the annual Thanksgiving feast, and the early Christmas shopping, letters to Santa, etc.  On a personal note, we celebrate many birthdays in October and November (for my niece, sister-in-law, daughter and even myself!), love using the fireplace again, do a lot of baking and make a lot of soups and chili, and love long Autumn drives.

Here is a list of some of our favorite places to celebrate Autumn, sorted by activity.  I hope you get out and enjoy them too!

1. Take a long walk and let the kids jump into a big pile of leaves.  Best places to do this:  The Arboretum (Seattle), the University of Washington Campus (Seattle), Discovery Park (Seattle), Bothell Landing, St. Edward's Park in Kenmore, and the Kubota Garden in Renton
2. Visit a farm - pick pumpkins, drink fresh apple cider, roll around in the hay, and wind your way through a corn maze.  Best places to do this:  Snohomish County takes the prize on this one!  We've got most of the best ones up here - Stocker Farm (Snohomish), Craven Farm (Snohomish), Biringer Farm (Everett), Carleton Farm (Everett), and Foster's Farm (Arlington).  Of course, Remlinger Farms in Carnation is magnificent as well.
3. Take a drive.  Best places to do this:  Chuckanut Drive (this drive is so fantastic, there's an entire website about it), Mt. Baker Highway, Highway 2 from Monroe to Leavenworth (of course, you'll have to spend some time in Leavenworth when you get there).
4. Learn to make the perfect soup or chili, apple pie, turkey, etc. without spending a fortune.  Williams Sonoma Technique Classes (Free, but sign up required);  PCC Natural Markets (various locations), Whole Foods Market (Salud Cooking Classes in Bellevue, Redmond and Seattle) and Sur La Table in Kirkland (most expensive of the bunch).

I hope this short list gets you started.  I plan to add more soon, but I'm off to enjoy some of it for myself!