I really enjoy this time of year. The days are still sunny, but you can sense a change in the air. Particularly at night, when you can feel a definite chill and smell a hint of the coldness that will soon be with us.
I was given a glut of cooking apples earlier this week, and the smell of them cooking with blackberries and cinnamon in a crumble yesterday was heavenly.
I'm still loving having my Girly Girl home from school. She's so easy to keep entertained and spend time with. We've made two more paper pumpkins this week, and this morning she got her paws on the paint and set to work adding faces.
While we are making the most of the time left before school starts again, I've also started planning ahead. I love to think about when the weather will get properly cold again. And when I see this happening in the garden ..
.. then it's time to put plans into action.
In June I started something that my husband finds totally hilarious. I emptied two storage boxes in the garage, and then each time we did the weekly shop I bought packets of the cheapest household salt for sale. Now my storage boxes are so full the lids won't click shut properly.
When it's cold, frosty and snowy, I become obsessed with the garden path and driveway. I worry about the milkman, postman, delivery people and paper boy falling over. The least I can do is make it a little easier when they walk in our front garden. The cheap salt sells out so quickly when the weather is frosty, that's why I'm hoarding it now. I'm outside three times a day when it's heavy with snow, shovelling, sweeping, and salting. The husband has laughed at me so much for what he calls my 'Salt Obsession', but when we don't have to dice with death walking along the garden path, I think he'll be thanking me.
Tinned goods. We always have a decent stash in the pantry, but from August onwards I buy more so I have an even better stash. Perfect for when it's far too cold to venture out, and at this time of year supermarkets tend to have bulk buy offers on the shelves.
I have been making subtle changes around the house too. During spring, any bathrooms with slatted blinds have the blind pulled right up to the top to let as much light in as possible.
Now I'm going round and dropping the blinds back down again. The slats stay open, but I like the blind to be down. It doesn't make it particularly dark, but I love the cosy, softly filtered look the light takes on as streams through. A little difference that I really like to see.
I've swapped Gorgeous Girls sofa for her comfy armchair.
She was getting a bit big for the sofa, and she didn't look very comfy when sitting on it to watch her Barbie dvds.
So I put the sofa upstairs in her bedroom, and brought down her little armchair. Now I need to persuade her to stop sitting on the top of it and actually sit in it properly!
I've done a little candle stocktake, as we're getting low. Candles dotted around on a rainy day are a must. I'll order more next week. 
And I'm planning another [White Month] later in the year, so I'll need to stock up on white scented candles. Not only are candles perfect for giving a cosy feeling when the nights draw in and days are cold, but they're very handy in case of power cuts.
I've washed down the outside of the upstairs windowsills. Something that no one but me notices I'm sure, but again it's something that I like to do. If not it will annoy me all winter long. I like to think of it as preparing the house and giving it a bit of love. I must write a list of new bedlinens that are needed to be bought, and check the hot water bottles for leaks before they're used for the first time. The spices such as ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg have all been replaced, ready for the extra baking I'm plotting.
Just little things, but little things that I like to do. What do you do to prepare for the colder months?