Fall is absolutely one of my favorite times of the year.  

I love pretty much everything about fall. I love the smells, the changing colors, the crispness in the air, decorating, pumpkins, etc. With Covid being in the air this year, my fall is not looking at all like it normally does, but I've still found a way to enjoy the beauty of fall by bringing some fall goodness to my shop in the form of Face Masks and Bags.  Hopefully this small form of fall can bring some enjoyment to others and some beauty to the world amongst all the ugliness. 

Do you plan to let your kids Trick or Treat? 

I went back and forth on this with my two kids and we came to a decision that the girls are still going to dress up, but we will not be trick or treating the neighborhood like we normally would. I still haven't decided about handing out candy. Through all the craziness of Covid, I've found it hard as a parent to navigate what's worth taking a risk and what's not. None of us want to miss out on the traditions of our lives, but at the same time are those traditions worth getting sick and possibly getting others sick. I honestly can see it from both sides and I keep advocating that we all need to do what is within our comfort levels. Some ask me, how can I let me kids return to in person learning a couple days a week and let my daughter attend soccer practice and yet I won't let them go trick or treating? My answer to this is we do what's within our comfort zone of the risks we are comfortable taking. It’s kind of like playing the stock market. If you are comfortable with a lot of risk, you put your money in the highest risk accounts knowing that the return when they are doing well is the highest, but that they are also volatile and the risk of losing your money is also extremely high. Not everyone can handle that level of risk, which is why there are less risky options. For my family we realize that some things are ok to risk in order to lower the risk to our mental health. Soccer and school are very important to the mental health of my kids, but trick or treating is not. We talk with the kids about being safe and how to lower their risk when they are doing activities that put them at a higher risk, but we also talk to them about the fact that we can't just stop living as well. I think all life is about taking the risks we feel comfortable with. We just need to give everyone around us the benefit of the doubt that their risk meter may not be the same as our own. 

As we navigate through these crazy times, we just need to remember that everyone deserves to be treated as we ourselves want to be treated. Life is too short to navigate it any other way. 

Happy Fall!!