I used to love fall.  Is there anything better than fall in New England?  The falling leaves, the crisp air, the football games, the apple picking, the sweater weather.  Fall makes me think of new jeans and warm drinks and marching bands playing the fight song.

Now I’d have to drive at least an hour or two to see falling leaves, and while I could technically wear a sweater if I really wanted to, it would likely make me die of heat stroke (we’ve been hitting 115 this week), and the air won’t be crisp until December.

But I still love fall.

Everything is new again, filled with beginnings and promise.  Every year at this time I celebrate a little bit that we’re once again making a conscious decision not to send the kids to school.  Spencer is 15 now, so we’re right around a decade of opting out.   That is something to celebrate for sure!  Plus, when school is back in session, it means we no longer have to share the parks, libraries, and museums with crowds of other kids.  (That sounds bad, doesn’t it?  At least I didn’t go with my first instinct, which was to say we didn’t have to share “our” parks, libraries, and museums.  What can I say.  Us homeschoolers are possessive of our hang-outs. ;))

Cub Scouts starts up again soon, and I just registered both Everett and Tegan for gymnastics and karate, and gymnastics and ballet respectively.  Earlier this week we met with our little group of friends and fellow homeschoolers, for the first time since May.  It felt a little bit like coming home.  We’ll start getting together weekly now, as well as with our larger group, and the older boys’ with their teen group.

And of course this year, fall also means I’m starting a new business, which is perhaps the most exciting beginning of all.

Ushering in a new season is a good thing indeed.  Even without the falling leaves.