It is that time of the year again! 7am and it is still dark and I hate it. I am the early morning kind of person and dark cold mornings just are not my cuppa. There is nothing more you want to do than bury into that thick warm blanket and head to dream land yet again at 7am! It is the time when cold fronts start coming in, when there is a crispness in the air, when there is an excitement as people look forward for their favorite holidays. It is fall! The slow change into winter, slowly before I know it would be below zero temperatures, bare trees and freeze warnings! But for now it is fall, the amazing autumn.

Yes it is cold after all I prefer the 80+ degree temperatures but still I love fall. The colors associated with fall, the food associated with fall, the festivities associated with fall everything is so merry, fun and so much of a change from the beach going summer days.

The leaves supposedly turn color, into yellow, orange, red and brown and then fall down covering the earth with blanket and leaving behind the smell of drying leaves. Unfortunately in H-town, the leaves don’t have the patience, from green to brown in a day and they are on the ground, no shades of yellow or orange here! Leaves of all shapes slowly fall down leaving behind bare branches to last through the winter. A sign winter bare and cold is definitely on its way. And to enjoy the cooling weather, the freshest harvests bring an abundance of colorful apples, pumpkins and cranberries. A riot of colors and a tasty one too! And with all this food and colors can celebrations be far off?

Starting off with the fancy dress Halloween moving over to the family style Thanksgiving and then time for holly and mistletoe during Christmas and before you knows the bells ring to welcome the New Year! And strewn between these American holidays are holidays close to my heart, navrati, the puja days, deepvali and karthikai! Between bites of cakes and pastries, are gulub jamuns and bombay mixture, and in the warmth of the home we spend the time with friends and family. Holiday Season is here and it is time for family, fun and memories!

And here’s wishing everyone a wonderful holiday season. Hope you enjoy times spent with family and friends creating memories!