Autumn -- What's That?

This picture wasn't taken in June ... or July ... or August. No, this picture was taken last year on our first Halloween here in the hottest city on the planet Phoenix. While the calendar tells us we're days into "fall," apparently our little cul-de-sac of the world didn't get the message.

We're STILL hitting 100, sometimes 101 or 102. Our lows are "dipping" to a cool 76 or 77. By 10 or 11 in the morning, it's a good 90, 92.

The good news is that it's all on the downhill from here. Just like kids in early December counting the days until Christmas, we're eagerly holding out another few weeks for the beginning of the seven months of nice weather. Where we can actually go outside comfortably for more than 15 minutes at any time of the day, not just mornings and evenings.

But the bad news, for me anyway, is that there's no such thing as fall in Phoenix. Of all the "things" I miss about Northern California (excluding people), fall tops the list.

I long for the cool, crisp autumn mornings. The gorgeous hues of crimson and gold spanning the tree-studded suburban streets. Sitting out at evening soccer practices with the leaves of those trees whistling in the wind.The kids playing in the crunchy, fallen leaves. Putting on the sweatshirts as soon as the sun goes down. The trips to any one of dozens of area pumpkin patches.

And of course, the seasonal trip up Highway 50 to Apple Hill, or as Brett tongue-in-cheek called it, Apple Hell, referring to how crazily congested the popular fall tourist area had become over the years.

On Halloween last year, the twins ran through the sprinklers. I wore a short-sleeved shirt taking them trick-or-treating. On Thanksgiving, Allie wore a short-sleeved dress with no socks or tights.
Nick even wore short and a t-shirt to get the Christmas tree the first weekend in December last year.

So, now as we're about to welcome October, I'll reminisce about the nippy fall days of the past when I loved to make tummy-warming chili and bake a cinnamon-infused apple crisp on October Sunday afternoons as the voices of NFL commentators volleyed in the background (OK -- that part hasn't changed in Phoenix).

And as I reflect on autumns past, I'll light my Yankee Candle Spiced Pumpkin candle and watch the kids run through the sprinklers.