# #316: Fall Bucket List

An episode of [A Beautiful Mess Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1485472892), 7 Sep 2026, 51 min.

Audio: https://mgln.ai/e/498/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.libsyn.com/secure/abmpodcast/ABM_EP316_Final.mp3?dest-id=1624655

This week we're sharing our Fall Bucket Lists and giving you ideas to make your own. We've also got a spooky season debate and a decor hot take that we're so excited to rage about. Thank you to this week's sponsor: Try their products and support our show by going to DrinkLMNT.com/ABeautifulMess. Get 10% off + free shipping at Tumbleliving.com/mess Halloween manifestos: Elsie - Do what feels good to you Emma - Loves fall Elsie's Fall Bucket List: Halloween Mouse House Apple Cider Slushies Pink House (Witch Theme) Social Media Challenge (100 days) Finishing my novel revision and query Emma's Fall bucket List: Family Halloween Costume Fall/Halloween Activities with kids Apple picking Bake seasonal treats Query children's picture book Book Report The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell You can support us by leaving us a couple of 5 star recipe reviews this week at abeautifulmess.com Have a topic idea for the podcast? Write in to us at podcast@abeautifulmess.com or leave us a voicemail at 417-893-0011.

## Transcript

[0:00] Emma
[0:01] You're listening to the Beautiful Mess podcast, your cozy comfort listen. I'm your host Emma Chapman.
[0:02] Elsie
[0:03] And I'm your host Elsie Larson.
[0:04] Emma
[0:05] And this week we're sharing our fall bucket list and giving you ideas to make your own. We've also got
[0:06] a spooky season debate and a decor hot take that we are very excited to rage about. Perfect. So I feel
[0:07] like I have to say it in an Oprah voice. Fall bucket list. That's what I want to do. I mean, hell yeah, why
[0:08] not? That wasn't really an Oprah voice, but you get it. I don't. It wasn't. I don't think you. I don't think you
[0:09] nailed it. I don't know. We should do impressions. I don't know. Can't do a good one. Okay. Okay. Okay.
[0:10] Okay.
[0:11] Elsie
[0:12] I have the cutest little story to share. Okay, okay, not to roast my husband, but let's just great start. Let's
[0:13] let's just get in there. So you guys know I have talked, I think, a lot of times before about how I buy my
[0:14] own Christmas presents, and it's just like it's not it's not a problem in our relationship. Like I do think
[0:15] that gifts are maybe one of my love languages, but I just like married a person who's not-he's just not a
[0:16] talented gifter, and he has so many other beautiful qualities. And honestly, like I'm really good at gifting,
[0:17] so I just buy my own gifts, right? And I kind of just like forgot that he was capable of doing it. So the
[0:18] other day, he this is like a random Tuesday. He's like, get in the car. I got you a present, and I was like,
[0:19] what? And he was like, I yeah. He's like, I found something for you on Facebook Marketplace, and he
[0:20] said, I don't know if you would want it. I think you have to have it, or something like that. And I was like,
[0:21] very intrigued because I was like, okay, it's probably used or vintage or antique, which is exciting, and
[0:22] it's also like I had a feeling just because it was from Facebook Marketplace that he probably was right
[0:23] that I would actually really like it, but I was like also scared because I was probably feeling the same
[0:24] way based on yeah, let's go look because like if you saw what he got me for my 40th birthday, you'd be
[0:25] like, oh, oh, like he's, you know, like like I don't know, like it's not his thing. It's not his his number one
[0:26] skill. So anyway, and I do think gifting gift giving is a skill. So anyway, in the car definitely is a skill.
[0:27] Yeah, yeah. We drive to Barnes and Noble parking lot. That's where he's scheduled to meet this
[0:28] person, and I see him like get out, go over to another car. I guess he been knows them or whatever,
[0:29] and he comes back and he's holding this big frame, and so I was like, okay, oh, piece of art. It. Yeah, I
[0:30] was, and I got really scared when I saw that it was like art. Was like, oh, like this is like this is scary
[0:31] because you know my wall. You're very specific. Yeah, yeah. Like I, I am. I'm very. I and I. I do. I don't.
[0:32] Emma
[0:33] I don't think I've even ever bought you art. Like no, because it's yeah. I would be very intimidated to do
[0:34] it. So I kind of like that he just did it, no matter where this story goes.
[0:35] Elsie
[0:36] Yeah, no, he did, he did. So I was like, ooh, like I don't know, and it kind of looked like a poster frame
[0:37] from the back. So I was like, what's this? What's this? So anyway, he comes into the car, he spins it
[0:38] around, and it is actually perfect. It is a movie poster from the 70s from The Shining.
[0:39] Emma
[0:40] Oh, I saw this in your painting room, and I was like, "Oh, where'd they get that? I haven't seen this.
[0:41] Elsie
[0:42] Yeah, and the best part is it's autographed by Shelley Duvall, who plays the wife in The Shining, and I
[0:43] like out of all the Scream Queens from the 70s, because you guys know like 60s and 70s horror is my
[0:44] thing. It is like my like corner of the horror movie world, and then in that corner, it's like Mia Farrow is
[0:45] the queen, and I seriously think Shelley Duvall is like the princess. So, yeah, it was it was such a fun
[0:46] gift, and yeah, I now I just have to decide where to put it. So I actually like might put it here in his music
[0:47] studio because I feel like it kind of suits like better. He has like some movie posters already in here. I
[0:48] don't know, like, but we could also put it upstairs. I don't know.
[0:49] Emma
[0:50] It could go in your bathroom. I feel like your bathroom doesn't have.
[0:51] Elsie
[0:52] My bathroom needs some help.
[0:53] Emma
[0:54] Yeah, that could be like a vibe because you're not gonna, you know, renovate anytime soon, so it's like
[0:55] it could kind of start having some stuff like that. I don't know. Yeah, be fun. I'm just throwing out ideas,
[0:56] you didn't even ask me.
[0:57] Elsie
[0:58] It's not going in the bathroom. Don't worry, everyone. Um, I think they could tell. But anyway, yeah, I
[0:59] was I was proud of him. I was proud of him. So. To give him a little brag, because isn't that cute?
[1:00] Emma
[1:01] Yeah, so random. And he was looking on there, and he saw something for you. That's really sweet. All
[1:02] the thought going into it too. I like that he took you to the drop too.
[1:03] Elsie
[1:04] I know, I know.
[1:05] Emma
[1:06] Cute.
[1:07] Elsie
[1:08] I know. I was fantasizing recently, like if we could have Stephen King on the podcast, and I was like, I
[1:09] can't do it because I can't just not try to talk to him about the Shining movie, and I know he doesn't like
[1:10] talking about that, so I just I just can't do it. I can't.
[1:11] Emma
[1:12] I don't think he'd talk to us anyway. But yes, he would.
[1:13] Elsie
[1:14] Yes, he would. He might. Yes, he might.
[1:15] Emma
[1:16] Yes, he might. Okay.
[1:17] Elsie
[1:18] Okay. All right. So we are doing a listener question before you jump in. Do you want me to read the
[1:19] question?
[1:20] Emma
[1:21] Yes, go for it.
[1:22] Elsie
[1:23] Okay, this is from Pauline. She says, "Give me your manifesto on Halloween. What is it about this
[1:24] holiday that makes Emma put her Halloween sweater vest on to cheer herself up in the middle of
[1:25] spring? Why do you love putting up skeletons and celebrate the spooky and the scary. I'm almost
[1:26] scared to admit this, but I just don't get it. I have never loved scary things. I have always hated haunted
[1:27] houses and horror movies. Admitting this to you, I feel like Erin when she admits that she doesn't like
[1:28] Michael and Holly together in the office. I just don't get it, but I hope I can still be your podcast friend.
[1:29] Okay, yes, you can still be our friend, Pauline. I've had a lot of actually one of my very very best dearest
[1:30] friends just straight up was like, I hate Halloween decorations, and I was like, what? Yeah, yeah, like,
[1:31] and that's. I think that's a normal affliction. Like, I think that's where the the fall harvest esthetic comes
[1:32] from. You know, like you can completely skip Halloween if you want to. Like, you don't have to celebrate
[1:33] it. Okay, I will say I know where it comes from for me. Like, and I didn't plan ahead a manifesto, but I'm
[1:34] just gonna make it up. What about you?
[1:35] Emma
[1:36] Yeah, I didn't plan a manifesto, but I have been thinking about this since I read it in the email inbox
[1:37] because I was like, "Hmm, why do I like Halloween so much? It's a good question, so I've been thinking
[1:38] about it because I'm like, "Yeah, why?
[1:39] Elsie
[1:40] I think that for me, it is all about nostalgia. So when I started decorating for Halloween was definitely far
[1:41] before I had kids. So I know that I don't just do it for my kids. I do I do do it extra for them, and I like
[1:42] impressing them. But I definitely do it for myself, and I think it's just because I've always loved the
[1:43] changing of seasons and like decorating, like even when it was like my first apartment, you know what I
[1:44] mean. Like remember when I made the Pez Christmas tree? Yes, you know it's just like it. It doesn't
[1:45] matter. It was never about like being for a picture for me. It's just like a thing that I want to do for life.
[1:46] Emma
[1:47] I think it's the feeling. It's it is like all about like connecting with like my inner child, my childhood self,
[1:48] like in nostalgia from growing up, and also you know all those movies, all the rewatching, all of that. I
[1:49] think also plays into it. So my I guess my manifesto is like do what feels good to you? Because that's all
[1:50] I'm doing. Yeah. So when I read this in the email box, you're definitely still our friend, Paulie, and I'm not
[1:51] offended. We don't have to like the same things to be friends. That's perfectly fine by me. But I was like,
[1:52] you know, we did grow up with some Halloween. So Halloween, we were like '90s, early 2000s kids. So
[1:53] and we also grew up religious. We've talked about that. So there was kind of this little era where
[1:54] Halloween and maybe it's still going on. I'm out of the loop, but it was a bit boycotted. Like it was like, it
[1:55] was like the satanic panic was somewhat over. We we weren't quite growing up exactly in that era.
[1:56] That's a little bit before my time, as far as childhood, but it was a little bit boycotted. Like you weren't
[1:57] supposed to, yeah, you weren't supposed to worship the devil. So, and you know, I guess some people
[1:58] think Halloween might have to do with the devil. I don't know, you know, little kids stuff, I guess. So
[1:59] anyway, so it wasn't always a big part of our childhood. Our parents did take us trick or treating. I
[2:00] remember one year in particular because I made this like we would make our own costume. Sometimes
[2:01] our parents would let us like go wild with whatever was around, and I made this like pink mask, and I
[2:02] used way too much glue to put all the glitter on the mask, and so it was kind of like sticking to my face a
[2:03] little bit while we were trick or treating. I just vividly remember the feeling of like, oh, I used too much
[2:04] glue and it's not fully dry, but it was it was fine. Nothing happened, but it's just like very homemade. So I
[2:05] remember our parents taking us trick or treating, and I remember a lot of like church. We didn't have
[2:06] trunk or treat. I don't feel like they had invented that yet, but they had church harvest festivals that were
[2:07] basically a stand-in for Halloween.
[2:08] Elsie
[2:09] Yeah.
[2:10] Emma
[2:11] But at any rate, I don't feel like it is. That nostalgic for me. It wasn't necessarily a big part of my
[2:12] childhood, and I'll also say, I don't particularly like more adult, like you know, teenager and adult
[2:13] Halloween stuff.
[2:14] Elsie
[2:15] Like Spirit Halloween. Actually, does not make me that happy to go into it because I feel like it's just like
[2:16] a bunch of plastic.
[2:17] Emma
[2:18] Yeah, and kind of like sometimes a little too much gore for me, and just like I'm not against the sexy
[2:19] Halloween costumes, you do you. But where I live is far too cold for that, so I'm not wearing that. It's too
[2:20] cold most years. So anyway, I also don't really like horror films. Like I'll watch one here and there, like a
[2:21] pretty like light one with Elsie, I I just get too scared. I just don't like it, and I don't like going to like adult
[2:22] haunted houses, like haunted houses made for like teenagers or adult, you know, they're meant to
[2:23] actually scare you. They're not for little kids. My wheelhouse is a lot more goosebumps scary, which is
[2:24] not actually scary. It's like little kid, you know, silliness.
[2:25] Elsie
[2:26] Spook. I've been making working on an Instagram post for those like spooky movies for kids. Yes, you
[2:27] can watch those movies.
[2:28] Emma
[2:29] This that's really more my like what I. It's not that I'm always watch. I mean, I do watch a ton of kids'
[2:30] movies because I have kids, but I just kind of like the silliness. I like the you know jack o' lanterns and a
[2:31] scarecrow that's like not that scary, just like a scarecrow. Like I don't know, I I that's more my vibe.
[2:32] Yeah. So I feel like I'm in a great season of life right now because I do have little kids, and they're not
[2:33] going to be interested in the super scary stuff until they're more like preteens and teenagers and stuff.
[2:34] And I've got a ways to go before then because I've got a two year old, as you might know. So yeah, I'm
[2:35] in this perfect era for it. But I think for me, it's really just I love fall, and Halloween is sort of the holiday
[2:36] that happens in fall where I live. So in this hemisphere, so I think it just sort of became a part of my life.
[2:37] And I did also grow up reading Goosebumps. That was like some of the first books that made me feel
[2:38] like I was good at reading. As a little kid, I was pretty bad at reading. Like I remember being in-I want to
[2:39] say it was second or third grade-and they had different books, and I remember them vividly. The red
[2:40] books was like the lowest reading level. The yellow books were middle, and the blue books were the
[2:41] best readers, and I was a red book. And by the end of the year, I had barely made my way into the
[2:42] yellow books, and I was so proud of that and and it didn't matter because we all learn to read, and we
[2:43] learn to read at different times. As an adult, I feel this more, but as a kid, I felt very self conscious about
[2:44] it. And to me, reading felt like a chore, something my parents wanted me to do, my teachers wanted me
[2:45] to do, but it was hard, and I wasn't good at it. And if I had to read in front of the class, it was a
[2:46] nightmare because I felt like I was really slow, and everyone could see how bad I was at it. And
[2:47] Goosebumps was some of the first books that I was like excited to read. And now, as an adult, I really
[2:48] get it. It's actually not about the spookiness. It's actually just that they're commercial books written for
[2:49] kids. Yeah, so they have they're they're easy to read. They have cliffhanger chapter endings, and it's
[2:50] very much about plot. It's not a huge you know character driven thing. So it's commercial books for kids,
[2:51] and I understand that more now that I understand books more. But as a kid, I was just like, oh, this is
[2:52] something I like reading. I guess I like spooky stuff, and those are sort of my first memories of kind of
[2:53] liking the silly, spooky stuff because goosebumps are not actually scary; they're silliness, yeah, and
[2:54] they're fun. And that was probably my that's probably the only nostalgia I have around spooky kids stuff.
[2:55] But for me, most of it is I just love fall, and if there was a different holiday in the middle of fall, that's
[2:56] probably what I would love. But it is Halloween, and so I love Halloween because I love pumpkins. I just
[2:57] love the the season changing. I love wearing sweaters. I don't know. It makes me happy. It makes me
[2:58] feel like hopeful. It makes me feel excited to like read and to go outside. It's not blazing hot. It's like just
[2:59] a nice time of year that I look forward to. And so sometimes I pull out a Halloween sweater vest in
[3:00] spring because I'm feeling down, and I think you got so many falls ahead of you. Don't worry about it.
[3:01] Elsie
[3:02] Okay. I feel like we missed one thing though that is a part of kind of our villain origin story, the Martha
[3:03] Stewart Halloween covers. Yes, from the early 2000s, and if you aren't familiar with them, just Google
[3:04] like Martha Stewart magazine Halloween covers, and you will see you will see every single year she did
[3:05] for her October issue a portrait in costume, and sometimes they were a double cover, you know, where
[3:06] there's like one on the back and one on the front, like they were epic.
[3:07] Emma
[3:08] One is not enough.
[3:09] Elsie
[3:10] I really miss her magazines, but I do. I have somewhere somewhere in my basement. I have the
[3:11] collection. I started like, you know, collecting the old ones, and I need to dig those out and find a special
[3:12] place for them.
[3:13] Emma
[3:14] I have a book that's like from the 90s, and it's her house.
[3:15] Elsie
[3:16] Yes. Thrift books. You can get like all of her old books. I mean, she has a over 100 books, so there are
[3:17] a lot of Halloween books. And anyway, I feel like the way I feel like she was like the person who like
[3:18] popularized sort of like the Pottery Barn Halloween esthetic, where it is where it like is this like mixture
[3:19] of like cozy and nostalgic and feel good and it's not really it's nothing like spirit Halloween it's more like
[3:20] homemade.
[3:21] Emma
[3:22] Because Halloween can be kind of tacky yeah just sort of ugly and I do feel like Martha kind of made it
[3:23] cool and like cozy and like I also feel like because this was happening when we were in high school, I
[3:24] was seeing those covers and stuff. It made me feel like, oh, adults can have fun with this too.
[3:25] Elsie
[3:26] Yes.
[3:27] Emma
[3:28] And that made me excited. I like when adults are like, I'm an adult and I still do silly things. I vibe with
[3:29] that, where I'm like, yeah, I don't want to lose my childhood just because I'm grown and I have
[3:30] responsibilities. I want to still do a silly childhood thing now and again. I think it's really joyful, and I think
[3:31] that was for me, like seeing Martha do her very elaborate Halloween costumes for her covers piece of
[3:32] that. I'm like, I think she's just having fun here. Yeah, yeah. I mean, I would just argue that if you don't
[3:33] like scary things, you don't have to. You can just do the cozy side of Halloween. That's what I do-the
[3:34] Pinterest mom side. Because I get scared of most hormones. Yeah. Okay. So we are doing fall bucket
[3:35] list today.
[3:36] Elsie
[3:37] We each have five items, and if you've never made a bucket list, we encourage you to do it along with
[3:38] us. Just you know, get a blank sheet of paper, write fall bucket list at the top. We have some downloads
[3:39] on our website, and you know, there's there's always yeah more. But like, you don't even need like you
[3:40] can just like make one. You can make it in your notes app. The purpose of it is to kind of remember all
[3:41] the cute little things you want to do before the season passes you by, because this time of year it does
[3:42] just like speed up, and pretty soon it'll be New Year's Eve. Like it's just I don't know. I feel like every
[3:43] year, and it's my favorite time of the year. So I like to try to like pack it with extra memories and extra
[3:44] cute things just to kind of make it last. Okay, you want to say your first one? Yes. Okay, my first one is
[3:45] I'm making a Halloween mouse house. So I started this in June, and it is still not done. It is in my art
[3:46] room. It is this half painted, kind of tall, skinny dollhouse. It has three rooms, and so my goal is to just
[3:47] finish it up and put it out. And Emma's two-year-old is really into the mice recently, which is fun. So
[3:48] every so I'll try to just do it. Like I kind of just need to like finish it at all cost and put it out by this
[3:49] weekend. So that's my goal. It doesn't have to be perfect. It's honestly pretty perfect. It's really cute, but
[3:50] yeah, like I just need to like finish because I can. I think I get like hung up on crafty stuff where I like I
[3:51] never finish it because I make it too big. You know what I mean? Yeah. And it's like maybe just like
[3:52] paint a few more things on it, like set a timer for an hour or two and just finish it.
[3:53] Emma
[3:54] So no, I do that too.
[3:55] Elsie
[3:56] Yes.
[3:57] Emma
[3:58] Where I'm like, why do I keep working on these papier mache sharks? Why am I not done with this yet?
[3:59] I don't. Anyway, I'll tell you about the shark sometime. Yes, you don't even know about that right now.
[4:00] Okay, first thing on my fall bucket list is I'm very excited. I'm always excited to do a family Halloween
[4:01] costume. And by the way, someday my kids may not want to do like all of us together. I don't care about
[4:02] that. Yeah, I just like doing costumes, making my kids something different. That doesn't matter to me
[4:03] personally. But right now they're at an age where they like doing it as a whole family. They think that's
[4:04] funny and fun. And so our contenders this year so far is we are leaning either pirates. Oscar's very into
[4:05] pirates, or he has a pirate costume, but I'll probably fill it out a little more. If we do pirates, I think we're
[4:06] going to bring our little fabric wagon, and I'm going to put like cardboard on the sides of it to look like a
[4:07] pirate ship, so they can like ride in the pirate ship a little bit. So maybe pirates, or we also recently
[4:08] introduced them to the cartoon. It's really old. It's from the 70s Robin Hood, has like a fox in it. He's
[4:09] Robin Hood, and the the bear is Little John, and it's pretty old. It's really cute. They love it. They love
[4:10] watching Robin Hood. So Oscar's really into that. So they may be Robin Hood and Little John, which
[4:11] actually they kind of have the same costume, but they look different in the movie. So, and if so, if
[4:12] anyone knows this movie, then you'll know what I'm saying. But you might think, "Oh, are you going to
[4:13] be Maid Marian? I think I'm going to be Lady Cluck. And if you don't know, you can Google it.
[4:14] Elsie
[4:15] Lady Cluck.
[4:16] Emma
[4:17] She's a chicken.
[4:18] Elsie
[4:19] Oh yeah
[4:20] Emma
[4:21] So we'll see. We'll see. I'm going to wait a little closer to time and see which one Oscar's vibing with.
[4:22] Hugo's too, so he's still kind of like whatever. Oh, we're going to. He doesn't know what's going on still,
[4:23] so he's open to whatever.
[4:24] Elsie
[4:25] Cute. Okay, my next one is making apple cider slushies. So I actually just did this two days ago for the
[4:26] first time, and I just put the video on Instagram, and it has the recipe, and it is just so. I got the Ninja
[4:27] Slushy Maker. I actually got it for our dad's. We're about to have our dad's 70th birthday, and he said he
[4:28] wanted frozen margaritas. So I got it for that, and then I just like got all these ideas. And so when we
[4:29] lived in Nashville, we used to always drive an hour to Bowling Green, Kentucky, to go to this. There's
[4:30] like a super cute pumpkin patch there. It has an apple orchard. It has like all this like kids. Did you ever
[4:31] go there with us? I think I did one time. I feel like it. Um, and they had this like apple cider slushie that
[4:32] was like is just you know an apple cider slushie, and then the top of it is topped with soft serve, so I
[4:33] recreated it at home. And I didn't have-I don't have a soft serve machine, so I just got Andy's frozen
[4:34] custard down the street. And so anyway, it it was so good. So definitely make them if you want to. You
[4:35] can also do it with a blender. I'm pretty sure I saw some recipes like that when I was researching it.
[4:36] Emma
[4:37] That's fun. Yeah, it's so fun, and I just feel like this time of year, like cute recipes, kind of bring me to life.
[4:38] I agree. Okay, I have mentioned this before, but I do a lot of like little arts and crafts and other things,
[4:39] play games, things like that. It's called an activity. I do a lot of activities after school, and it's my way of
[4:40] like doing something with the kids. So our routine is after school we do something, not just come in the
[4:41] house and immediately start watching TV. We watch TV, but I just like it to be we do something together
[4:42] first, and then we can have a little TV while mom makes dinner, and you know whatever. So anyway, so
[4:43] it's time to break out the fall and Halloween activities. So a couple things I have planned is this year for
[4:44] each of the holidays, I'm gonna have the kids kind of help me with making a wreath. So this is a twofer.
[4:45] Cute. This is kind of my vibe right now with this era of life that I'm in. Whenever I want to do my own like
[4:46] art project craft. Sometimes I kind of mix it with something the kids can help me with, so they help me
[4:47] with a piece of it, and then I kind of take that and then without their help, finish it off in a way that's like
[4:48] fun for me, and like I get my arts and crafts time in usually after they're asleep or whenever. So anyway,
[4:49] so what I'm doing with the wreaths is for Halloween, I'm gonna make kind of a black spooky snake
[4:50] wreath, so I'll have some snakes in it. So they have these little wooden snakes that they're gonna paint
[4:51] one day as their activity after school. And I got extras because I think they'll want to keep some of them,
[4:52] but some of them will go into the wreath. And then our tradition that Elsie started with her kids is a
[4:53] spooky haunted village. I was curious if you were still doing. Oh yes, I'm still doing it. So each year we
[4:54] buy like a little wooden birdhouse from a craft store or online wherever, and they turn it into a little
[4:55] spooky house. And I set them all out on top of the piano, and our eventually they'll have to go in a few
[4:56] places because it'll keep growing and growing. And you can also like it's fun right now because now
[4:57] that Oscar's getting bigger, it's like I can kind of see his arts and craft skills growing. Because like the
[4:58] very first ones is just like their footprints and their ghosts, and then it's like the next year, it's like it's a
[4:59] plain color with stickers on it, like that you know stuff that they can do, and it just keeps becoming more
[5:00] and more. So anyway, I usually do some kind of theme, like I give, I give them supplies for like it's going
[5:01] to be green monsters, and you can glue all the googly eyes on you want. Or this one's a werewolf.
[5:02] Here's little pieces of fake fur we're going to glue on, or whatever. So I kind of give them like an idea a
[5:03] little bit. I don't know what it'll be this year. I'm kind of leaning mummies. Yeah, so we'll do that. We'll
[5:04] add to the haunted village, and then I put them all out, and the kids like to look at them. And honestly,
[5:05] it's a little bit of a problem. They try to touch them a lot, and I'm like, "You can touch them, but if
[5:06] anything gets messed up, then you can no longer touch them because these are mommy special
[5:07] things. She's going to look at when she's old and you've moved out.
[5:08] Elsie
[5:09] t can always be fixed, though.
[5:10] Emma
[5:11] Yeah, it can be. I have fixed many of them already. Yeah, and then the last one I'll mention is I was
[5:12] thrifting one day and I found this random book that's probably from the '90s that was written by a
[5:13] preschool teacher. I read the back and it was just it's basically a whole bunch of silly craft ideas, very
[5:14] '90s. And I love getting on Pinterest and the internet to find craft ideas for my kids. I do that all the time.
[5:15] I still use Childhood Magic all the time, but I also was just like, this is fun, and I like letting my kids flip
[5:16] through a book and pick out activities as opposed to being on the computer because a lot of times,
[5:17] yeah, I just you know I just like it that way. So anyway, so one thing that Oscar found in the book that he
[5:18] just got so excited about was this craft that's like turning a. Black sock into a bat, and it's like hanging
[5:19] upside down bat.
[5:20] Elsie
[5:21] Oh, cute!
[5:22] Emma
[5:23] So we're gonna make a few of those and like hang them on the mantle. I bought some black socks from
[5:24] Walmart, so there you go. We're gonna do that.
[5:25] Elsie
[5:26] Magical. Okay, that is cute. I like it. Okay, my third one is okay. So I haven't really gotten into this yet,
[5:27] but we had like kind of a sad summer, and our grandmother had a fall, yeah, and she had to move out
[5:28] of the pink house, and so she no longer lives there now, and she's living with my aunt, and she's fine,
[5:29] and she's recovering, and yeah, it's been like a little bit of a sad season. So anyway, we had to make
[5:30] the decision of like, are we gonna sell the house? Are we gonna rent it out? Or is there anything useful?
[5:31] And almost immediately, I was able to like let a family member stay, and I we we kind of realize like
[5:32] we're not ready to sell it right now. There is a, it's also kind of a bad selling season in our town. Like no
[5:33] one has anything good to say about selling a house right now. So, and I don't know. I kind of have this
[5:34] visualization that my kids might live there in college if if we still, you know, if they if they decided to go to
[5:35] MSU, we live right by our big college in our town, and it would be a great house for that purpose. So I
[5:36] think we're hang on to it for now. So anyway, the house is it's unoccupied, and I've been kind of working
[5:37] on fixing it up, and it is on the big Halloween street of our neighborhood. It is, yeah. And our house is
[5:38] like not our house barely gets trick or treaters. It's kind of off to the side of the neighborhood, and this
[5:39] house is in the primo like best possible location. So this year, I decided that I'm gonna put most of my
[5:40] energy, at least on decorating the outside towards the pink house because of its location, and we're
[5:41] also gonna spend the night there. We decided, kind of like, which we have been the last few years, but
[5:42] it was our grandma was there, so it'll be a little different. But we usually make pizza and we kind of
[5:43] hang out there afterwards, and we obviously pass out candy because there's like people always say
[5:44] like there's like you can go through like 1000s of pieces of candy. So anyway, I we said we're gonna do
[5:45] a witch theme, and the big things I'm gonna do are the main big thing is kind of like out in the front by
[5:46] where the little free library is. I'm gonna do an arch over the pathway and like something to kind of walk
[5:47] through to get into it, and then I'm gonna do a witch theme on the house with brooms and ravens and
[5:48] toads, like kind of like familiars, and then I think I'll probably do the hats, the hanging hats. But anyway,
[5:49] I'm gonna put my heart and soul into making it really cute for Halloween, and I have been thinking I
[5:50] might also film. I've been I I said this in my newsletter, but I'm gonna launch a YouTube channel soon,
[5:51] and so I think I might film there too, which could be fun.
[5:52] Emma
[5:53] Yeah. So exciting, exciting.
[5:54] Elsie
[5:55] Yes.
[5:56] Emma
[5:57] I feel like some year we should do a haunted house again.
[5:58] Elsie
[5:59] I know.
[6:00] Emma
[6:01] Not this year, but yeah, letting people into the house is its own. It's a different thing consideration. Oh,
[6:02] and I was thinking maybe I could bring the slushie machine. We could make the slushies. We could
[6:03] also maybe set it up where it's like the backyard. Yeah, is not a haunted house, but it would be like an
[6:04] activity area. Like there's some kind of maze or something like that. I don't know. We could brainstorm
[6:05] next year. Garage is really open, so yeah, that could be something. Yeah, so could be something. Okay,
[6:06] okay. My third one is to go. I kind of have a tradition with some friends of ours who have kids about the
[6:07] same age that we go apple picking every year. Oh, I think we missed one year because we had tiny
[6:08] babies and older toddlers, and it was just not the year for us. But other than that, we tend to go. And
[6:09] last year we went to we have t here is a number of places around where I live where you can go apple
[6:10] picking. Also, they grow berries. You do pick your own berries. There is a lot of that around here. It's
[6:11] actually great and so fun with kids. So anyway, we did one last year though. That's like this really cool
[6:12] farm. It's kind of out near where our parents live. Oh, and they have like kind of like rides. Like they
[6:13] have this little like tractor ride and this like ride on top of a. It's not a real pig, but it's like a pig statue ride
[6:14] thing that they can do, and like this whole area that's like all pieces of corn that the kids can like play in,
[6:15] kind of like a giant sandbox, but it's dried corn. It's just a lot of like bouncy stuff, and like it was really
[6:16] fun. It was good for our kids' age, and I don't even think we ended up picking apples. They do have
[6:17] apple picking anyway, but I think we'll go there.
[6:18] Elsie
[6:19] Again, but I'll be texting them soon about it. But it's just kind of like something fun that I like to like keep
[6:20] up with them, and it's just special. That's so special. Maybe you could invite a third family to come with
[6:21] you that have older kids. Yes, Marigold wants to go in the corn pit. Yes, she'll be like, yes, no, it would
[6:22] be fun. Yeah, you guys are invited. Okay, I'm inviting myself. You can go. Ah, okay. My next one is I am
[6:23] doing a social media challenge for 100. I'm trying to post for 100 days in a row, and that is something I
[6:24] haven't done in many years, like more than five years, but yeah, this year I've kind of been trying to be
[6:25] more involved with it, and so yeah, for fall I'm doing this challenge along with Claire, who runs
[6:26] Childhood Magic now, and Katie, whose Instagram is OKD Day. So we're all just kind of like cheering
[6:27] each other on and trying to post every single day, like I have some specific goals. Like I am gonna try to
[6:28] like lean really hard into like the home and the food and the books. So I'm excited, and it is a lot of work
[6:29] and kind of like I mean I think that this is the perfect time of year to do it because there's so many things
[6:30] I already want to do, you know, like decorating and recipes, and so I feel really inspired. I love it.
[6:31] Emma
[6:32] The next one for me is I'm going to bake something that's kind of specifically for me, and it's actually
[6:33] more than one thing. I'll probably do like three or four, but it's like some kind of seasonal treats, some
[6:34] things on my mind: pumpkin bread or pumpkin muffins, apple scones, orange and cinnamon
[6:35] madeleines, which is those cookies that kind of look like a seashell.
[6:36] Elsie
[6:37] Yeah.
[6:38] Emma
[6:39] that one I might do with my kids, but really it's just I think I talked about this already. But over the
[6:40] summer for 90 days, I did this like no alcohol and no big sugar, which was like desserts and sugary
[6:41] lattes, and I finished that. And now it's the season where I can have those things when I feel like it,
[6:42] which is nice. And I just love, I love baking, and I really didn't bake almost at all summer. In part
[6:43] because my kids, I did like some sugar cookies for my kids around Fourth of July, and they loved that.
[6:44] But a lot of times, my my kids aren't like huge in treats. It's kind of more for me, if I'm being honest. And
[6:45] like baking is like a fun thing they like to do, but they don't even always eat that much of the final
[6:46] product. They're just kind of, they just kind of like the activity of it almost more.
[6:47] Elsie
[6:48] Cute.
[6:49] Emma
[6:50] Soanyway, so this is this is for me. Some fall baking for me.
[6:51] Elsie
[6:52] Yeah, hell yeah. I try to separate that like because of all of our years of food blogging, I kind of learned
[6:53] that like there's recipes to make with kids, and there's recipes to make when the kids are at school, and
[6:54] those are two different categories.
[6:55] Emma
[6:56] They are, yeah. It changes as your kids get older, but yes, it is real depends on their skill level.
[6:57] Elsie
[6:58] Yeah, and you kind of like you have to onboard them. You know what I mean. Like for like five days in a
[6:59] row now, I've been every single day. Like, do you want to make those oatmeal cookies that look like a
[7:00] teddy bear every single day? And they are, I don't know, they're finding other things to do. What?
[7:01] What? What's going on? Okay, my final goal for my full bucket list is I am finishing my novel again, so
[7:02] I'm doing a revision for my query process. It's called like an R and R, which stands for revise and
[7:03] resubmit, which is when an agent is like, "I kind of like your book, but what if you change it a lot and
[7:04] send it back again? Yeah. So is my second time to do this over my year of querying, and this one is a
[7:05] lot more complex than the first one. And honestly, it's been a lot of. It's a challenge. I will say it's
[7:06] challenging, but it's been super fun and exciting because I feel like it is changing the novel quite a bit.
[7:07] So that is kind of my September goal. I'm trying to finish the draft by the end of the month and do beta
[7:08] reading in October. It yeah yeah. Pray for me.
[7:09] Emma
[7:10] Oh boy. Okay, my last one for the fall. My fall bucket list that I wrote down is also about kind of work
[7:11] stuff. I feel like you did a work one, so I was like, I want to work one too. Okay, so it's kind of a twofer, I
[7:12] guess. So basically, I can't remember if I've talked about this on the podcast or not, but I wrote a little
[7:13] series. It's three children's picture books. So the first one is called Mama Chair, and I read a lot of
[7:14] children's picture books of the era I'm in in my life. You know, my kids are two and five. My five year old,
[7:15] we also read early middle grade chapter books to him. So he's kind of like in this zone where we do
[7:16] picture books, and we also do, and picture books kind of have a range as well. As far as because my
[7:17] youngest, we still do a lot of board books with him. Anyway, this is for younger picture book readers. So
[7:18] it would be great for like 234, year olds, but the first one in the series is called Mama Chair, and it's
[7:19] about a little boy who realizes his mom can do this magic trick where she turns into a chair, and he
[7:20] needs his mama chair whenever he's encountering like difficult situations, like when he's going down
[7:21] the big slide at the playground for the first time, he rides down it with his mama chair. Things like that.
[7:22] It's also kind of about growing up. It's also about the role that different people play in our lives. This one
[7:23] obviously is about a mom, and the series also has daddy chair and grandma chair. So I've written all
[7:24] three, and I'm querying mama chair right now. Some agents will have you send more than one
[7:25] children's picture book, so sometimes I get to send people two or three of them, which is really fun. But
[7:26] sometimes I just mention that I have all three written and I can provide them. So at any rate, I'm
[7:27] querying that right now, so I'm sending it out to agents. I would really, really love to do these children's
[7:28] picture books. Probably if you're a longtime listener, you know, but I'm an author only. There are a lot of
[7:29] picture book writers who are author illustrators, so they do both, which is really cool. I am not an
[7:30] illustrator or a graphic designer at all, so I would hopefully, if I get an agent and I get to do this idea,
[7:31] which I'm really passionate about, I would get paired with someone who would do the illustrations,
[7:32] which would be so exciting to me because to me, you know, any parent who reads children's picture
[7:33] books or librarians, teachers, anyone, anyone at all, if you've read children's picture books, you know
[7:34] that the text is really only half of the storytelling. For sure, the illustration is so much a piece of it
[7:35] because for children, that's how they're experiencing the book. They hear you read it to them, you
[7:36] know, but they experience it through seeing the illustration. So I definitely have illustrators that I like,
[7:37] love, and I tend to buy all the books that they do because I just love to show them to my kids. But I also,
[7:38] you know, could be introduced to someone I'm not even familiar with. Who knows? But that to me is just
[7:39] really exciting. It would be very different from anything else I've worked on because it would be so much
[7:40] more of a collaboration to bring a story to life. So anyway, I'm hopeful, but we'll see. And then, kind of in
[7:41] the same vein as far as like writing stuff I'm working on, I'm also working on a middle grade spooky
[7:42] series. So I'm currently taking the Arlstein Masterclass. I did most of it before, like years and years ago,
[7:43] but I had forgotten it, so I'm doing it again.
[7:44] Emma
[7:45] And then I have a couple books I'm reading that are specifically towards writing for children for middle
[7:46] grade, and yeah, so I'm I'm getting to a place where I'm going to be ready to start the outline for the first
[7:47] one. But it's a whole series that I'd like to do. It has a brother and a sister, and they're kind of solving
[7:48] these spooky mysteries. I'm going to keep it vague for now. I'll tell you more about it later. But yeah, so
[7:49] I'm hoping to have that first outline done sometime this fall season. Just the outline, maybe I'll get to
[7:50] writing.
[7:51] Elsie
[7:52] So exciting.
[7:53] Emma
[7:54] Yeah, I'm very excited to work on it. It's very different from my romance. It's obviously a completely
[7:55] different age range and just a completely different thing, but it's still, you know, I feel like I just went off
[7:56] earlier in this episode about how much goosebumps meant to me as a kid, and romance means so
[7:57] much to me as an adult. So I feel like I tend to like want to write books that are meaningful to me in
[7:58] ways that have been meaningful as a reader, yeah, and that's kind of where I'm at in my writing career
[7:59] right now, or wanting anyway. Is you know I tend to like lean towards romance as an adult. That's like
[8:00] my comfort genre when I'm in a rut or when I've you know had some difficult times like postpartum
[8:01] times. I always like lean towards romance, and as a kid, I had these like spooky middle grade
[8:02] goosebumps that really helped me get into reading and feel like I was good at it, and so I kind of am
[8:03] like wanting to write those types of things for those types of readers because that's who I am as a
[8:04] reader. So anyway, that's what I'm kind of working on.
[8:05] Elsie
[8:06] I love it. I'm so excited to read them. It's so fun.
[8:07] Emma
[8:08] I'll have to get Nova to beta read myself.
[8:09] Elsie
[8:10] Oh yeah, she will. She's into it. All right. Okay, we have a hot take, and this one is like, this one's kind of
[8:11] a, kind of a inflammatory. Go ahead.
[8:12] Emma
[8:13] All right. Okay. Liana says, as we approach a new decorating season, I would like to share my complete
[8:14] distaste for fall decor. Here we go. Fall decor is the epitome of boring and outdated. It looks the same
[8:15] every year and fits one decorating style. Early 2000s farmhouse. It is not transferable into many styles
[8:16] like Halloween or Christmas decor. It can be.
[8:17] Elsie
[8:18] Okay, so I think that she's saying she doesn't like like fall and Thanksgiving to court, like fall harvest.
[8:19] She's not saying she doesn't like Halloween, which is what Pauline said at the beginning. So these are
[8:20] two different issues. Okay, I think that this is a very interesting hot take because okay, I. As a person
[8:21] who lives in the Midwest, who on occasion passes through the sliding glass doors of Hobby Lobby, I get
[8:22] it. I do get it. There is kind of an ick to like overdoing it, but also, I mean, I'm just gonna say it. Like, I
[8:23] kind of think my kitchen does possess that same ick, and I love it. So I don't know. I think I'm gonna
[8:24] both sides this one. Like I think that like can fall decor be cheesy, yeah. But at the same time, like early
[8:25] 2000s farmhouse, I think I can kind of defend that too when it comes to fall. You know.
[8:26] Emma
[8:27] Yeah. Yeah. I mean, okay. So one, I got to go on record to say your kitchen does not look like Hobby
[8:28] Lobby. Okay, that is just not the case. That is just not the case. And I just that was important to me.
[8:29] Moving on, I will say so. I love fall decor. It is pretty specific on the colors. It's tricky, so I'm thinking
[8:30] about our friend who has a house that's very, to me, very like mermaid.
[8:31] Elsie
[8:32] Oh yes.
[8:33] Emma
[8:34] And it's it's gorgeous, and it, you know, all the colors, everything feels like it goes together. And she
[8:35] even incorporates so much of her kids' art into her house, and it still all somehow goes together
[8:36] perfectly. And honestly, I am hard pressed to think how she would decorate for fall.
[8:37] Elsie
[8:38] She has like a few like pink skulls and stuff from Home Goods.
[8:39] Emma
[8:40] See, but pink skull to me is Halloween. because I feel like Halloween actually does kind of have some
[8:41] different kind of like Christmas. Christmas kind of has like you can do the kind of evergreen farmhouse
[8:42] look, but you can also do this kind of pastel candy thing.
[8:43] Elsie
[8:44] You know, I think she does hate fall, and maybe it's like, do you hate fall or do you hate orange?
[8:45] Because maybe it's maybe that's.
[8:46] Emma
[8:47] I think the colors are super specific, and it's kind of hard to get away from them. They're all kind of warm
[8:48] tones, earth tones. So if you do like a completely different palette than that, I think it's tough to really
[8:49] make that work. You could do a lot of white, like white pumpkins.that could kind of be something. But
[8:50] yeah, it's just I think it's the colors more than anything that just don't necessarily fit everywhere.
[8:51] Elsie
[8:52] Yeah, I don't know if I was a minimalist, which I'm not. And if I was like a person who hated orange, I
[8:53] would just do like a white pumpkin theme. Right. I think there's a. I think where there's a will, there's a
[8:54] way. So that's where I'm gonna go on it.
[8:55] Emma
[8:56] iYeah, yeah. I think white pumpkins would work, but yeah, that's just kind of. It's a little limiting in that
[8:57] the colors are very specific. So I see that. But I personally love the colors. They're not ones that I wear
[8:58] very much because they don't go great for my coloring. But in my home, I love having like I would have
[8:59] burnt orange cabinets if I could. Like I love, I love colors. So to me, it's super fun.
[9:00] Elsie
[9:01] Love, love, love, love. Yeah, I'm. I'm just gonna say disagree.
[9:02] Emma
[9:03] Okay.
[9:04] Elsie
[9:05] Yeah. Whatever. Send us your hot takes, and remember, make them so mean because we we love it.
[9:06] We love it. Like I like it better when they're mean, and I like it when I think about something, and I like it
[9:07] when I disagree. Yeah, I just I just love it.
[9:08] Emma
[9:09] I just think it's fun. Yeah, mine too. Okay, do you have a book report?
[9:10] Elsie
[9:11] I do have a book report. So I just finished the marriage portrait by Maggie O'Farrell. Ooh, yes, and it
[9:12] okay.
[9:13] Emma
[9:14] This is on my shelf. What did you think?
[9:15] Elsie
[9:16] I have so many things to unpack with this. It's historical fiction. It's from the Renaissance era. If you
[9:17] have visited Florence, which we did last year fall, then if you've been in Florence for like any 24 hour
[9:18] period, you will hear like every single tour you do is all about the Medici family, and this book centers
[9:19] some of those characters. And I loved. I love the setting. I love. I actually was thinking like, was this my
[9:20] first Renaissance era historical fiction? Because I can't think of another one, so it might be, which was
[9:21] kind of exciting. Maybe I don't know. That's hard to say.
[9:22] Emma
[9:23] I read the other Boleyn Girl. .
[9:24] Elsie
[9:25] Is that like is The Girl with the Pearl Earring? Is that?
[9:26] Emma
[9:27] I don't know. I don't think so.
[9:28] Elsie
[9:29] okay.
[9:30] Emma
[9:31] Some of these times, I'm like, well, it was a long time ago. I don't know though.
[9:32] Elsie
[9:33] I would have to like get more informed on my eras.
[9:34] Emma
[9:35] Me too.
[9:36] Elsie
[9:37] So anyway, the book. So the sales pitch for this book is it's about a historical 16-year-old girl who gets
[9:38] murdered by her husband, which yeah is already just great. And then it does have like she has her own
[9:39] twist and her own imagination. There's a lot of imagination in the story because there's very little like
[9:40] official history to kind of work from, so that is exciting, and I feel like you get to really experience the
[9:41] setting of what it would maybe be like to live in a castle with lions and tigers in your basement. Love
[9:42] that. And like be a you know a rich person in the Renaissance era. Love that there is art in the book.
[9:43] The main character is painting for pleasure all the time throughout the story, and I loved that. So yeah, I
[9:44] I found it to be a really fun and interesting book, and it was my first Maggie O'Farrell book, so I'll
[9:45] definitely be back for more. Do we open with the murder and we're trying? Yeah, we're leading up to it,
[9:46] or opens with her being in a situation where she believes she's about to be murdered. She suspects,
[9:47] and it closes with that same ending with a little twist, a little twisty twist. So fun and fun, yeah.
[9:48] Emma
[9:49] Love it.
[9:50] Elsie
[9:51] Yeah, I I did. I absolutely loved it. It was fun and beautiful writing too.
[9:52] Emma
[9:53] Okay, now it's time for the best segment. Time for a joke or a fact or a meditation with Nova.
[9:54] Elsie
[9:55] Hey Nova, what do you have for us this week?
[9:56] Nova
[9:57] A joke.
[9:58] Elsie
[9:59] I'm ready.
[10:00] Nova
[10:01] What's the best time to go to the dentist?
[10:02] Elsie
[10:03] What's the best time to go to the dentist? I don't know.
[10:04] Nova
[10:05] At tooth hurty.
[10:06] Elsie
[10:07] 2:30. I love it.
[10:08] Nova
[10:09] Bye, and I hope you have a good week. Oh, and I hope your kids are enjoying school.
[10:10] Elsie
[10:11] All right. Thank you so much for listening. We want to give our final call for ghost stories. Final call. If
[10:12] ghost stories have a ghost story, please send it to us at podcast@abeautifulmess.com. We will be soon
[10:13] in the next few weeks recording that episode, and it'll be up for you soon in October. It is one of our
[10:14] favorite episodes of the whole year. We do it every single year. It's one of our traditions. Okay, we will
[10:15] be back next week with an autumn traditions episode.

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