Fall is by far my favorite time of the year, and it even passes summer on my list of favorite seasons (shocker, I know). Don’t get me wrong, Summer is great and all . Who doesn’t love warm weather, days on the beach and a break from school. I know I look forward to all the wonderful activities and opportunities that summer holds, but while I love all of those things, I hate the heat and the humidity. The excessive heat and humidity makes summer unbearable for me and let me tell you, the minute I step out of the door during the summer, my whole face is automatically red. Red as in I just worked out for like 6 hours red, not pink. Plus, I have very fair skin, so the sun and I are not best friends, to say the least. Fall, however, is completely different. The weather is gorgeous, the leaves are changing, all the scents are to die for and the food surrounding the season is tasty. Fall has great holidays attached also: Halloween and Thanksgiving (and who doesn’t love Thanksgiving food?).

I am the type of girl that pulls out all her sweaters, boots, flannels and anything fall related the minute I feel a consistent cool breeze outside. Fall attire is what I live for, the comfy, big sweaters with a pair of leggings and boots…perfection. I am all about comfort and I would much rather be wearing a nice cozy sweater or sweatshirt and comfy pants over jeans any day of the week. Sweaters and sweatshirts just make me feel like I am on a cloud or that I am still all warm and cozy in bed as I try and tackle the day ahead of me. Fall fashion is so versatile, and there are so many summer transitional pieces that you can rock in the fall with various layers. Don’t even get me started on the scarves, they are like a pillow for your neck! I have so many infinity scarves tucked away in my closet and when fall comes around, I have those babies out and ready.

Another thing I love about fall is the changing of the leaves. I think it’s so interesting to just watch the world change and watch the green full trees turn into a canvas of oranges and reds. The colors are warm and compliment pretty much every single environment. I love walking around campus and just seeing the colors in coordination with the brick buildings. The fall colors make for the perfect pictures, let’s be honest. Seeing the leaves on the ground is exciting, and hearing the crunch of the leaves as you step on them signals that winter is coming – let’s note the Game of Thrones reference here! As a kid, the best chore to do during the fall time was raking the leaves, which we probably had to do multiple times because we would jump in our raked pile over and over again. When walking around campus, I can’t help but want to lay in the leaves or jump in a pile of them like I did as a kid.

Time to talk about the food, and also, it’s time to make you hungry. Fall food is the best food. Thanksgiving food…. that’s all I have to say. The gravy, the turkey – or if you’re from Maryland, Maryland stuffed ham am I right?! – all the pie. Thanksgiving is more than just about the food though, and spending time with family while taking time to be thankful for everything you’ve been blessed with is the true purpose of Thanksgiving. However, everyone looks forward to all the food and fun that surrounds the holiday. I have always loved breaking the wish bone with my Pepa or one of my brothers, even though I always lose. Fall features pumpkin everything, pumpkin pie, pumpkin rolls, pumpkin spice lattes (all my fellow basic girls will appreciate the PSL) and so many other pumpkin flavored foods. I feel like you can add pumpkin to pretty much anything and it's automatically delicious.

Halloween is another holiday that is centered around the fall time, and who doesn’t love dressing up to celebrate the holiday? Sure, it may not be as socially acceptable to go trick-or-treating as a 21-year-old, but I would be all over that. I just love looking through Pinterest to find the perfect costume idea for myself, a group of my friends or for my boyfriend and I. Going to Spirit Halloween to look at all the options of costumes and trying them on with my friends is just exciting. There are so many options available and if you’re crafty enough, which I am not, then you can craft your costume for cheaper. The great thing about Halloween is that no matter how old you get, dressing up and pretending to be someone you are not is completely acceptable no matter how old you are. Halloween also has some other awesome activities surrounding it, such as going to a haunted house or maze with your friends. I don’t know why, but even though I am scared so easily, I love going to Fright Farm with my friends, which features a haunted house, a haunted maze, a haunted hayride and other various haunted activities. Sure, I may want to pee my pants most of the time, but screaming and holding on to your boyfriend or your friends the whole time makes for great memories. The decorations are fun too, and trust me when I tell you that my roommates and I already have our Halloween decorations up in our apartment right now (this happens when one of your roommates is obsessed with Halloween, and we all generally get pumped for Halloween).

All in all, I have generally fallen in love with fall and I always look forward to when it makes its appearance. It’s by far my favorite season and the reasons above are give you a look into why. It follows summer but comes before winter, two of my least favorite seasons because of their weather. If you aren’t a lover of fall, I hope I’ve changed your mind even just a little and for all my fellow fall lovers out there, it’s time to celebrate because fall is finally here!