Reasons To Celebrate The Charming Month Of October

October is a great month to celebrate. Here are over 100 ideas and reasons why October is a month worth celebrating! There is so much to love about October! Read this post, and you will want to celebrate October, too!

Happy October, Friends! October is one of my favorite months! The weather is glorious, the leaves are saturated with color, and pumpkins dot the fields here in Lancaster County! It’s also birthday month in our family! Not mine, but so many people I love are born this month, so we celebrate a lot!

If you love October, let me know in the comments below! Actually, from now until the New Year feels like one big holiday!

Let’s look at some favorite things to do in October!

Fall Home Tours

October is a great month to visit fall home tours! Everyone loves a tour! Make sure to check out last year’s home tour, as I am working on my 2025 fall tour and will post it soon. Our home always featured lots of fall organics, real and faux! Come visit our Fall Is In The Air: Home Tour.

I decorate for a fall tour every year. I like to change my decor to give you lots of ideas for your fall home.

On a side note, on October 20th, we will have been living at our Tanglewood house for six years. Come see what it looked like a few days after we moved in! Sometimes, I think we are moving so slowly because we still have several projects to complete. Then I look at the images of our most recent fall tour and think we are progressing along just fine. Decorating and renovating take time.

October Is Pumpkin Month

One of the things that makes October so special is pumpkins! What is it about the humble gourds that makes them wildly popular? I think it might be the shapes and the stems. Or the array of colors pumpkins come in. Whatever it is, that je ne sais quoi, pumpkins are at the top of the October list.

Celebrate Pumpkin Month by making one fun pumpkin DIY! Here are a few easy pumpkin DIYs that will make October decorating look much prettier!

Blue And White Chinoiserie Pumpkins are not only easy to make and beautiful, but they are fun! Even if you are not crafty, you can make a few to use in your fall home.

Here’s another easy pumpkin DIY. Carve out the center of a baby boo pumpkin and drop a votive inside, making the sweetest Fall Pumpkin Candle. I’m planning on using pumpkin candles on our Thanksgiving table this year.

Aren’t these Mini Succulent-Topped Pumpkins adorable? They are so easy. Several years ago, I used them on my Thanksgiving table, and everyone got to take one home as a little gift.

Check out 10+ Best Fall Pumpkin Decorating Ideas. Grab a few real pumpkins to decorate with and enjoy them inside and out this month!

Hunter’s Moon

The full moon in October, known as the Harvest Moon, will illuminate the sky on October 6th. There’s something magical about fall full moons! So, bundle up, head outside, and soak in the beauty of this glowing moon. Fingers crossed for clear skies!

Making Changes In Fall Decor

October is also a great month to make a few changes to your fall decor. I decorate for fall a bit early, reflecting the earlier part of the season. As the middle of fall approaches, I want to incorporate more pumpkins, warmer colors, fabrics, and organic elements like pheasant feathers and brambly wreaths into our home.

The apples and dried hydrangeas have disappeared, and the green has mostly faded. Now it’s time for rich orange and gold tartans and dried brown gourds. I also like to add touches of metal, such as brass and silver, to catch and reflect the candlelight that fills my home this time of year.

Our front porch also gets a makeover in October. I like to hang a wreath with lots of deep fall colors on our front door!

See how easy it is to make this gorgeous, Bright And Brambly Fall Wreath.

October is the ideal time to start thinking about transitioning from the fall decorations in our home to those for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Over the years, I’ve discovered an easy way to transition from one month to the next. I usually put a lot of my fall decor away by the end of October. I pair it with some of my best Thanksgiving decor. This makes taking down Thanksgiving decorations when I’m ready to start decorating for Christmas so much easier!

Make sure you check out The Smart Girl’s Guide To Fall Decorating. I share a step-by-step plan for the easiest way to decorate for any season. You will want to read this post, bookmark it, and pin it! I enjoy a slow roll when adding, editing, and storing seasonal decor. So October is the time to think about the decor for the rest of the year!

Get our free 4-Week Fall Planner HERE.

Holidays And Other Days In October

October is brimming with holidays and official days for this and that! Grab your calendar and mark the days you want to celebrate!

October 1st- World Vegetarian Day, 2- National Day Of Non-Violence, 3- Mean Girl Appreciation Day (the movie), 4- National Cinnamon Roll Day, 5- National Be Nice Day, 6- National Garlic Day, 7- National Frappe Day, 8- National Pierogi Day, 9- International Beer and Pizza Day ?.

10- National Anglel Food Day, 11- Southern Food Heritage Day, 12- National Gumbo Day, 13- National Fossil Day, 14- National Dessert Day, 15- National Cheese Curd Day. 16- National Liquor Day, 17- National Pasta Day, 18- National Cupcake Day, 19- National Friend Day, 20- National Brandied Fruit Day.

21- International Day of Nachos, 22- Eat A Pretzel Day, 23- National Boston Cream Pie Day, 24- National Bologna Day, 25- National Art Day, 26- National Pumpkin Day, 27- American Beer Day, 28- National Chocolate Day, 29- National Cat Day?‍, 30- National Haunted Refrigerator Night, 31-Halloween.

Did you know that more babies are born on October 5th than on any other day of the year? I bet you can figure out why.

Other Reasons To Love October

Here are just a few reasons to love October. Share the reasons you love October in the comments.

Football, candles, beautiful leaves, bonfires and fire pits, mums, apple and pumpkin picking, hayrides, coffee with pumpkin spice creamer, carving jack-o-lanterns, Reese’s peanut butter pumpkins, falling leaves, apple cider, mulled wine, fall festivals, mums, Pumpkin Spice Lattes, corn stalks, wearing cozy scarves, Oktoberfest, walking on crunchy leaves, kids in cute Halloween costumes, dogs and cats dressed up in adorable costumes, eating roasted pumpkin seeds, family birthdays, and so much more. Add to this list in the comments!

October is so special. Do something to celebrate it every day!

Make Your Home Smell Delicious

When you decorate for fall, don’t forget to include the delicious smell of fall as well.

One of the easiest, natural, and most economical ways to add a beautiful fall fragrance to your home is by combining a few of your favorite fall elements in a pot with water and gently letting them simmer together. The steam will fill your home with a familiar and warming scent!

See how to make a Fall Simmering Pot.

Peruse Your Christmas Decorating Stash

Now is the best time to head to where your Christmas decorations are stored with a smartphone, a pen, and paper.

If you have not culled and curated your Christmas decor in a while, now is the time to do it. Tired or broken decor or decor that is not your best is just taking up precious storage space or even mental space. Get rid of it! Let it go!

Once the task of getting rid of old decor is done, you will be left with the decor you can use! October is a great month to create a plan for Christmas decorating!

Now you know exactly what you have to work with.

Begin A Christmas Decorating Plan

Now is the time to consider your Christmas home. Seriously, it’s not too early. There are only 85 days until Christmas morning! Thanksgiving is late this year, which means it’s more important than ever to have a plan for Christmas!

I like to start by perusing blogs, magazines, and Pinterest for Christmas decorating ideas. It’s the smart thing to do! Inspiration and a visual image will help you start forming decorating plans for Christmas. I have a blogging friend who finds images from all over and prints them out in color. She keeps files of these images, so when it is time to make her Christmas decorating plan, she has a big stack of ideas right in front of her! She’s a smart one! I am doing the same this year!

Last year I decorated our home in lots of browns and moodier colors, complemented by natural elements. It was my favorite. You will love our 2023 Christmas Home Tour + 7 Steps For Creating A Festive Christmas Home.

Take a peek at our Cozy Christmas Bedroom Tour. Remember to add a tree to light up your room at night. It’s magical.

Choose A Christmas Color Story In October

You might want to decide on your Christmas color palette in October. If you have never done this before and have lots of Christmas decor, it is a great way to give the decor you have a designer look!

Instead of using all your decor, pick out the best you have in a Christmas color palette you love and set your decor aside. So when you need it, you will know exactly where it is!

Here’s a little sneak peek at the colors I’ve chosen for Christmas 2024.

I loved the colors from last year’s Christmas decor, so I’ll be using many of the same elements throughout our home, but in different ratios. I’m thinking about highlighting my Christmas decor with beautiful plaid.

October is a great month to decide on some basic Christmas decorating!

More Christmas Things to Check Off Your List Starting In October

I know! I hear you when you say that it’s too early to think about Christmas. But we are multi-taskers! We can walk and chew gum at the same time, right? We can enjoy October and plan for Christmas. Believe me, the earlier we plan for the holiday season, the easier it will be!

You can start by…

October is such a celebration. It is nice to have a bit of Christmas planning added in, too!

Back To Fall: Swap Out Summer Bedding For Fall

Now is a great time to deep clean under and around your bed and change up your bedding for light but warmer layers. I’ll be using my brown velvet quilt and shams on our bed this fall with a big chunky throw so I can pull it up when I want to take a quick nap.

October Eats

If you are a seasonal eater, like we are, then you are excited about warming, fall flavors and hearty, filling food. Soup is big in our home any time of year, but it tastes so good as the weather gets cooler and the days get shorter!

Fall Football Food

We are big football fans and spend time rooting for our teams. Sunday lunch/dinner often involves the whole family! We set up a Chili Bar on the kitchen island, made a big pot of chili, and served all kinds of yummy things to go alongside it!

We like to set up a soup bar and let everyone help themselves at halftime.

Fall Soup

Next weekend, we are having our extended family over for soup and dessert. I’m making a new soup and will post the recipe on the blog soon after.

All these soups can be doubled and frozen. I like to freeze soup in four-cup containers because they make a nice meal.

Last month, I raved about my favorite September dessert, Raw Apple Cake.

October’s sweet treat is so easy to make. It’s made doctoring up a box mix! Pumpkin Spice Cake With Maple Glaze is an autumn must-make! The maple glaze makes this pumpkin cake a winner!

And make sure to try Pumpkin Spice Coffee Cake With A Streusel Topping And Vanilla Glaze.

Style A Charcuterie Board

Assembling a charcuterie board is incredibly easy; anyone can do it! You simply arrange a mix of meats, cheeses, fruits, nuts, and crackers, and you’re done. There’s no cooking involved, and it’s totally customizable to whatever you have on hand. People love charcuterie boards because they look delectable and offer a little bite of something for everyone!

A charcuterie is a crowd magnet!

Grab A Plaid Or Tartan Throw

October is the time to start displaying and using all those gorgeous fall-textured throws. My favorite, without a doubt, is tartan and plaid throws.

Sure, drape one over a chair or sofa or across a bed, but also think about using a fall throw in other ways, too!

Here are other ways to put your throws to work…

Spend Time Outdoors

Soaking in the gorgeous colors of fall and cooler weather is a must in October. Even if your weather or scenery does not change much, it’s still important to get outside!

I’m a collector as I walk! Here are my favorite things to look for this time of year…

• acorns
• pinecones
• black walnuts in their husks
• pretty fall leaves
• wildflowers and other flora
• bark
• moss

Just remember, you might bring home a few critters along with your treasure from your walk. Acorns can be full of bugs. And pinecones can be sap-laden.

To remove pinecone sap and bugs, place the pinecones on a foil-lined, rimmed baking sheet in a single layer. Stick the baking tray into a 200° oven for about 20 minutes. Let the pinecones cool, and that’s it! Use them in your decor!

Debugging acorns is not as cut and dry! First, inspect your acorns and toss any that have cracks or tiny 1/8-inch holes in them. They are notorious for being homes to weevil larvae. Remove the tops of the acorns and set them aside. Wash the acorns well and let them dry for 24 hours. Then, place the acorns on a foil-lined baking sheet in a single layer and pop them into a 200 ° oven for 2 hours. Keep the door cracked to let out any steam, and turn them every 30 minutes.

Cool completely and discard any burnt acorns. They are now ready to be used. You can hot glue the acorn tops back onto the acorns if you wish.

My favorite thing to collect is fall leaves. I usually come home from a walk with a bunch in the pocket of my jacket!

Using one or even several pretty leaves, you can make this easy Fall Leaf Candleholder. This is one for the not-crafty bunch! You will feel so accomplished.

Add a few real or faux acorns to the base of the glass hurricane! So pretty!

Back To Christmas: It’s The Most Hallmark Time Of The Year

Did you know that the event I’ve been waiting for all year is happening in 16 days? On Friday, October 17th, The Hallmark Channel starts their Christmas Movies and besides their popular Christmas movies, features 31 new ones! Yay! It’s fun to suspend reality for a short while and immerse yourself in the movie’s scenario! Here’s a preview a Countdown To Christmas. and get a free printable schedule guide Here.

My favorite Christmas Movies are…

Haul Out The Holly, Lacy Chabert’s first foray into comedy. She was adorable! And, Haul Out The Holly: All Lit Up is the sequel! Three Wise Men And A Baby (the synchronized dance is hysterical, and the baby is adorable), A Royal Christmas, A Shoe Addicts Christmas, A Merry Scottish Christmas, A Christmas Detour, Christmas In Rome, and the Christmas in Evergreen Series.

Make sure you add your favorites in the comments.

Halloween And Trick Or Treat

I’m not much of a Halloween fan, but I do enjoy handing out goodies when trick-or-treaters come to our door. Since we moved to our home on a golf course, we don’t get trick-or-treaters. Such a disappointment!

But this year, our son and his family now live close to us, so we will hopefully be able to give them a hand at home while they take the little kids around the neighborhood. I might just dress up as a dinosaur and hand out candy! And yes, we do have an adult-size dinosaur costume. Bobby has scared many a little kid on trick-or-treat night. He loved it!

If you don’t get trick-or-treaters at your home, think about giving a family with kids some help. It will make their time and yours on this spooky night extra fun! And many churches have safe trick-or-treating events. Donate wrapped candy or help out.

I hope you have enjoyed all that October has to offer. Can you think of any other special things to celebrate in October? Please share in the comments.

Happy October!