September has always felt like a turning point for me. The pace of life shifts ever so slightly, the air carries that first crisp edge, and the smallest things suddenly feel a little more special. I think that’s what I love most about this month, it’s not about grand changes, but about noticing the mini joys that quietly mark the season.
Around this time, I start pulling out the cozy socks and sweaters, switching over my closet from summer to fall. There’s something refreshing about packing away sundresses and sandals and rediscovering old favorites. It’s like shopping my own wardrobe for a new season.
Every September also brings our family’s tradition of visiting the Scarecrow Festival at Peddler’s Village. We’ve gone for years, and it never gets old. Walking among the creative displays, feeling the buzz of fall in the air, creating our own scarecrow with a personal goal of making a smaller one each year, and spending time together as a family. A must is stopping in one of my favorite newish shops Extra Virgin/Sticky Situations and stocking up on my favorite oils and honey. The top of my list is Extra Virgin’s Guacamole Avocado oil and this year I also have my eye on their Basil Fennel olive oil. On the Sticky Situations side I stock up on their Elderberry honey and usually can’t resist some of their other blends, with Keylime honey being last years favorite find. It’s this tradition that makes the season feel anchored.
Another big marker of the month is closing the pool. For me, that’s the moment summer truly ends. There’s always a hint of sadness as we roll back the cover, but truthfully by the end of the summer I’m done with the daily maintenance since I’m the one taking care of the pool. By mid-August we are barely swimming and so the joy becomes a chore and so it’s time to close it up! But it also sparks something in me: once the pool is closed, it’s time to get down to business. It’s as if I shift into a new gear, moving from the relaxed pace of summer to the focus and energy of fall.
And tucked inside all of these little rituals is one of the joys that excites me most — creating. As I continue to grow BraySam Lane, designing puzzles and new seasonal pieces, I feel that same “back-to-school” energy I used to have as a kid. Fresh notebooks, sharpened pencils, a blank page waiting to be filled. Only now, instead of homework, it’s designs, ideas, and art that I get to share with others.
That’s the beauty of September for me, the way the season invites us to embrace the small things: a warm drink, a cooler night, a family tradition, a creative spark. These mini joys might seem ordinary, but together they weave the kind of season that feels extraordinary.
And now off I go to toy around with a new design idea I thought of last night.
Happy September!
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