It’s fall, y’all, the quintessential kickoff to my favorite seasons (I’m a fall/winter girl 100%) and the slide through the best holidays. Because the arrival of fall brings Halloween and Thanksgiving, then a quick slide into the winter equinox, and the main event: Christmas. But before I get too ahead of myself, let’s focus on fall. Because with the fall equinox comes the time to trade in my Birkenstock sandals for my Birkenstock clogs (tell me you’re a Vermonter without telling me you’re a Vermonter), and make a fall bucket list.
This here is my fall plan. And by plan I mean a loosely held set of ideas for things I would like to try, traditions to partake in, and cozy upgrades for our home to ring in the season. By no means do I consider a seasonal bucket list a “must-do” list. Because no one needs another set of things to squeeze into those few, precious free moments. It’s more of a “huh, we have an unexpected free weekend. What are some seasonal things we could do?” mindset.
Normally, I jam my bucket list with 25-30 things that are very family-centric (the fall 2025 family bucket list for reference). Don’t get me wrong, I love my family and want to spend as much time with them as humanly possible. I’m very aware that the number of fall seasons with my kids is short. But there are also a few things I want to do this season that are just for me.
Whether you’re a bucket list aficionado or just starting, be sure to explore my list of 150+ fall bucket list ideas and print out a fall bucket list printable. Print that sheet out, fill it up, and tack it on the fridge for fall-season reference. Here we go.
The Fall Bucket-List Traditions
There are a few must-do family activities each fall. One of those musts is a wagon walk to the pumpkin patch at the local farm at the end of our road, and sadly, they no longer offer a farm stand. So one less fall must-do this year. But here are our tried and true favorites.
Go Apple Picking
Is it even fall if we don’t go apple picking? At this point, I feel like our family has tried all the local apple orchards and has now found our favorite. This weekend is shaping up to be the perfect apple picking weekend.
Attend The Tunbridge World’s Fair
As I write this, one daughter is currently on a field trip to the Tunbridge World’s Fair with her class. It’s a must-visit event for Vermonters (and those from afar). It’s a pretty amazing agricultural fair that’s been around forever. Someday, on my big life bucket list, I want to enter vegetables for judging and will not quit until a few blue ribbons have been secured. Hashtag gardener goals.
Carve Pumpkins
We’ve officially entered the pumpkin carving era where the kids have ideas and opinions for their own wild and weird creations. It’s a pretty fun pumpkin carving era for sure. I cannot wait to see what they come up with this year.
Make Grandma’s Applesauce
I LIVE for homemade applesauce, and I only make it in the fall. It’s highly unusual for there NOT to be freshly made applesauce in the refrigerator on any given day in September or October. I usually kick it off after our apple picking outing and then keep it going while the giant bags of apples are cheap.
Bake Date-Filled Molasses Cookies
This may be the most nostalgic recipe in my fall baking rotation. My grandmother used to bake me bags full of date-filled molasses cookies every fall to take with me to college. My friends and I devoured them, and for me, they tasted like home. Now, I bake them every fall in honor of my grandmother.
Purchase My Annual Case Of Pumpkinhead Beer
I will die on this hill. Shipyard’s Pumpkinhead beer makes THE BEST beer bread in the world. Plus, I do enjoy a cinnamon/sugar salted rim with an ice-cold Pumpkinhead while watching Sunday afternoon football.
Decorate Our Home For Fall
While I always do this, I tend to do the same things year after year, and it’s pretty basic. I’m itching to mix it up a little this year. Although life has me in low-power mode, so maybe this isn’t the year. I’m not sure what decorating the house for fall looks like yet, but I have a few ideas to explore. It could just be a pair of fresh fall pillows for the couch since ours are in super sad shape right now.
Cozy Fall Home
Upgrade The Couch For Fall
Spoiler alert, we bought a new couch via Marketplace, and it is white. I have so many thoughts about this, mostly whether or not my family is allowed to use said couch in an effort to keep it white. I’m already failing miserably. But a new, white couch means that I can justify new pillows and throw blankets. It’s kind of fun to have a different-colored couch to work with for holiday decor, and I’m excited to try some things.
Have An Over-the-Top Fall Movie Night
Every Friday night, our family has movie night. Most nights, it includes a snack board and popcorn for dinner, and breaking the rule that meals must be consumed at the table. The kids love it. But I’ve dreamt of having a very over-the-top movie night once a season. I’m not sure what that looks like. Maybe it’s movie-themed food or hanging spooky lights for a spooky movie, but the goal is being just a little bit extra and leaning into that Pinterest mom side of me.
Pot Porch Mums
I love fall mums. If they didn’t cost money, I would probably fill my patio and back porch with them. Like FILL fill the porch. But alas, mums cost money. After apple picking this weekend, I’ll try taking the girls to the local garden store to pick some up. I usually get the same pinks and purples, but I’m feeling like a little something different this year.
Upgrade Our Sheets
One of the beautiful things about the Joanna Gaines Magnolia line for Target is that it made linen sheets affordable and accessible. For the last 10+ years, I’ve bought the same set of white linen sheets for all our beds over and over and over again. Sadly, they are no longer available. Ugly tears have been shed over this wild turn of consumer product events. I’ve done some research and found a UK-based brand, Piglet in Bed, that sells linen sheets in all kinds of colors and patterns. I just tossed the last backup fitted sheet, so I think it’s time to explore a bedding upgrade. But which color(s)?!
Chalk Paint Something
It’s been far too long since I’ve chalk-painted anything, and I’ve got the itch. For some reason, chalk painting furniture feels like a fall activity. Maybe it’s because I’ve tackled most of these projects in the fall. But there’s just something about the season that screams, PAINT ALL THE THINGS, to me. I think our nightstands may be first on the chopping painting block.
Fall Adventures
Pumpkin Chuckin’ Festival
Every year we try to go to the pumpkin chuckin’ festival in Stowe, Vermont, and every year one of our daughter’s best friends has a birthday party on that day. But this year? It’s a green light. Tickets have been secured, and the date has made it to the calendar.
Go On A Pumpkin Acquisition Tour
I have this idea for the site to create a guide to all the different types of pumpkins to decorate with. Unfortunately, this year I experimented with a hands-off, grow pumpkins more in the wild method of pumpkin growing with underwhelming yields. Ever the optimist (if you know me, you’re snort-laughing right now because an optimist I am not), this allows us to go on a pumpkin adventure. I want to seek out all the pumpkin patches near us, from large to obscure, and see if we can acquire the pumpkins I need to create the guide.
Drive The Notch
This is a be a tourist in your own state activity. There’s a road in Vermont, the Smugglers’ Notch Scenic Drive, that is iconic during fall foliage time. I’ve never been on the road, although I hear all about it because tractor-trailers famously get stuck in the notch and have to be backed out by State Police. It tends to be crowded in the fall, which is why I haven’t done it, but maybe this is the year I succumb to the fall tourism attractions here in VT.
Killington Gondola Ride
Speaking of being a tourist in your own backyard, this one is being a tourist where I work. I’ve been up the Killington gondola oh so many hundreds, if not thousands, of times, both for pleasure and for work as a ski instructor. I have yet to ride the gondola in the fall for leaf peeping. Maybe this is the year now that the kids are no longer scared of it. Plus, it’s free for us (hashtag work perks).
Fall Food And Drink
One Final Maple Creamee
Maple creamees (otherwise known as soft serve in the rest of the world) are such a Vermont thing in the summer. We never seem to get enough or get sick of it. Every fall, we tend to seek out one last over-the-top maple creamee. One in a waffle cone with maple sugar sprinkles or candy on top. It’s maple overload, and you feel kind of sick after, but it’s worth it! Then you’ve had your fix until sugaring season rolls around again in the spring.
Learn To Make Soft Pretzels With Beer Cheese
The local pub in town has started offering these giant soft pretzels served with beer cheese. It’s so large that it feeds both kids and me for dinner. No need to order any other food. And it’s ten dollars, which makes for a really cheap dinner out. Anyway, it got me thinking that I should learn how to make one of these, since it’s currently a fall special. It can’t be that hard, right?! Famous last words.
Bake Pumpkin Muffins On Repeat
And by bake pumpkin muffins on repeat, I mean bake them so often that the kids get wildly sick of them, and every morning they find me baking them, they lament, “ugh, there goes Mom baking those pumpkin muffins yet again.” I don’t have a go-to pumpkin muffin recipe, and I must find one. The motivation behind the task revealed!
Dinner Outside At A Snack Bar
I love a good snack bar. You know, the kind of place where all the food is fried and beige, except for the basic burgers they offer, and their name often includes “snack shack” at the end. I somehow managed to escape summer without indulging in a single snack shack, so it’s time to rectify it this fall before they all close for the winter. Bonus if the spot has amazing fall views.
My Personal Five Fall Bucket List Items
I vow to prioritize these and protect them with my life. No parent-teacher conference or PTO volunteer request will stand between me and my Calvins these fall-themed things on my list.
Knit Hats
Fun story. Last year, Rowan’s teacher was a farmer and taught the kids all about wool processing from shearing sheep to spinning and knitting sweaters. The kids LOVED it. However, now my child looks at her sweater tags and refuses to wear anything with polyester. I’ve declared I’ll learn to knit with local yarns, but I still haven’t learned. I recently bought a learn-to-knit book that walks you through simple projects, the first being a beanie. I have even secured yarn. Now to find some needles with the cord (see…I told you I know nothing about knitting) and knit some fall hats for the family.
Master Iced Pumpkin Chai Lattes
I have developed an unhealthy obsession with the iced pumpkin chai lattes at Starbucks, and my wallet isn’t enjoying the weekly (more like twice-weekly) indulgence. Since buying Colby an espresso machine for Christmas, I’ve been experimenting with drinks that are a little bit extra. This one is next on my list.
Read The Practical Magic Books In Sequential Order
I’ve read all of the Practical Magic books by Alice Hoffman over the years except for the latest one. I thought it would be fun to read them in sequential order, one right after the other, finishing with the newest. For the record, here’s the chronological story order (which is different than the book release date order).
Crochet A Cozy Fall Throw Blanket
I LOVE to crochet, especially blankets, and I haven’t tackled a crochet project since my youngest was a baby. She’s five now. It’s about time I chose a pattern and some yarn and made a blanket. Back in my pre-children days, I loved watching fall baseball, especially the playoffs while crocheting. It was a weirdly glorious combo that I’m ready to bring back into my life.
Buy Myself Better Boots
If this isn’t a quintessential mom problem, I don’t know what is. But my children have better boots than me. I have two pairs of boots, a 16-year-old pair of LL Bean slipons, which are my ride-or-dies when I’m just running to the store or to school pickup. But then I have an old pair of Bogs that are ripped, stained, and leaking. I love them, but it’s time. I hate shopping and usually pick the first thing I come across on sale or clearance, but I need a really good pair of tall boots for fall and winter. I’m leaning toward the Kamik Tundra Boots but still doing research. If you have faves, please tell me!
Bonus: Solo Maine Trip
And one extra bucket list idea just for me because it’s something I really want to do, but probably won’t be able to. I am jonesing for a solo Maine trip. My family used to have a timeshare in rural Maine that we spent the last week of September at every year. They’ve long since sold it, but during some of the final years I used the condo solo for a few days to a week. It was glorious. I golfed, swam, soaked in the hot tub, watched cozy movies, and read a ridiculous amount of books. All solo. The introvert in me has been craving a solo adventure. In my rich life, if I ever get there someday, I want twice-yearly solo escapes. Maybe one late spring or early summer and another in the fall. Ahhhh, to dream.
Pssst…Now that I’ve shared all the things on my family’s fall bucket list, what are a few things on yours? Any special adventures or treats you make every fall?! Do tell!
