Leaf Peeping

I admit it. Even though I live in the midst of New England autumn, I am a leaf peeper who still travels around to see the foliage. If I could, I would follow autumn from where it first starts in the northern states to wear it probably ends in the Carolinas somewhere just so I could make it last as long as possible. The leaves seem to really only last around a month and a half. They start to fall and blow off around this time. Peak for the foliage does not last long. It can end in just a matter of a few days. At least there's the whole lead up to it, though. I always track it every year to try to determine the best times to visit different areas because I'm a nerd like that.













One of the many perks of being a librarian is that I get a lot of the holidays off such as Columbus Day. Another librarian friend of mine also had it off, so we decided to have a mini fall adventure to go exploring and see the leaves.













We went to a few different places in the same area and just kind of followed the scenic back road routes. It was fun to see new places and just spend a day hanging out and relaxing. There was this one place that had a cottage that I thought looked like it could be Belle's from Beauty and the Beast.













The leaves were really pretty. It wasn't peak yet, but it was close to it at this point for where we were. A lot of the leaves were changed and there were lots of different colors. I always like when you get to see all the colors and not just yellow. I prefer the deep red and orange leaves.













Now that Halloween and October is over, I feel pretty blah and anti-social. I do so much in October that in November, I tend to be a bit more of a hermit and want to relax for a while. This past weekend I didn't do much except for shopping and start watching Master of None on Netflix with Chris. I'm also pretty sure I've caught a cold, so I've been loading up on Zicam and tea the last couple of days. It's been surprisingly warm for November. We are still getting 60-degree weather some days. It's really strange, but I'm not complaining.











It seems that the Christmas season starts on November 1st now. Once Halloween is over, they start playing the Christmas music in the stores and you see e-mails and commercials about the holiday season. It's pretty crazy. It's good to be prepared and on top of things, but it's a little too much. For me, the "holiday season" doesn't really start until Thanksgiving/the day after. That's when I start listening to Christmas music in my car. I'm excited for Thanksgiving because it's the holiday with the best food. Turkey and mashed potatoes and stuffing and pie is the best.

Dress: Dear Creatures//Sweater: H&M//Tights & Boots: Target//Scarf: Gift//Lipstick: NARS

While we are talking about Christmas, I have no idea what to get anyone. I find that the men in my life are the hardest to shop for. My dad never really wants anything and Chris has a lot of the stuff he wants or needs already. It's hard to keep coming up with ideas! I like to come up with something special and different every year. I don't really like to repeat gifts, unless it's something like clothes. Do any of you find gift-giving hard?