The 2015 fall bucket list focuses on activities to enjoy with your family during the fall season, with an emphasis on gratitude and service to others.
I hope these 100 ideas help you fill fall with joy.
Hello, Fall!
Cook
- Bake a Pumpkin Pie from scratch
- Succumb to the fall pumpkin fad with a Pumpkin Spiced Latte, or make your own
- Fill your home with the aroma of spiced apple cider
- Host friends for a football game with plenty of game-day food
- Make homemade Apple Sauce
- Cook soup from scratch
- Make this fantastic Pumpkin Cheesecake and serve with cinnamon whipped cream
- Celebrate National Pizza Month in October with some home-made pizza
- Buy and eat Local Honey
- Spend family night around a fondue pot (or make it a date-night-in after kids go to bed)
- October is also National Cookie Month – get baking!
- Roast Pumpkin Seeds
- Grill corn on the cob
- Make fancy caramel apples
- Warm up with a pot of chili
Events (Twin Cities)
- Head to Northfield, MN for historical fun at The Defeat of Jesse James Days (Sept 9-13)
- Tour the Franconia Sculpture Park any time, or during the Art & Artists Celebration (Sept 12)
- Bring your own cheering squad and showcase your football skills at the Minnesota Vixen Open Practice (Sept 12)
- Enjoy the parade and family fun at James J Hill Days in Wayzata, MN (Sept 11-13)
- Wander the Fall into the Arts Festival at Centennial Lakes in Edina, MN (Sept 12-13)
- Check out the Wild Rice Festival in Roseville, MN (Sept 19)
- Watch the Fall Raptor Release (Sept 26)
- Go to the Junk Bonanza at Canterbury Park (Sept 24-26)
- Drive along the Upper Minnesota River and local arts during the Arts Meander (Oct 2-4)
- Sign up for Twin Cities Kids Marathon family events and free training programs (Oct 3)
- Attend the Fallin’ Into Fun Festival in White Bear Lake, MN (Oct 3)
- Go to Stillwater Harvest Fest for some family fun (Oct 10-11)
- Attend the Twin Cities Book Festival at the State Fair Grounds (Oct 17)
- Reserve your spot for Restaurant Week in St. Paul and Minneapolis (Oct 18-23)
- Encourage science at the Girls and Science event at the Science Museum of MN (Nov 14)
Do
- Play a board game
- Start a Fall Family Tradition
- Rake leaves and jump in the pile
- Be a bell-ringer for the Salvation Army (starts in November)
- Set your fall schedule
- Play backyard football with the whole neighborhood
- Visit a new playground and have a picnic lunch
- Help your kids start a nature collection
- Plant tulip bulbs in your yard with the kids
- Write letters to deployed service members
- Spend the day cleaning the garage as a family before winter
- Stay warm on a chilly night around a bonfire while enjoying hot cocoa and S’mores
- Start a family prayer journal – keep track of requests and answers this school year
- Volunteer to serve meals at Loaves and Fishes
- Take a family photo shoot in the leaves
- Make the most of dark evenings – have a candlelight dinner date after kids go to bed
- Set goals for the school year and encourage each family member throughout the year
- Spend an afternoon at Feed My Starving Children
- Clean out the closets and give warm clothes, hats, mittens and coats to those in need
- Go to a local high school football game
- Let your child do chores to earn money to give on Sunday at church
- Deliver Meals on Wheels in your area
- Help the kids write letters and mail them to grandparents and extended family
- Spend the afternoon doing homework and reading together at the library
- Sign up for the family oriented fall Public Programs in the MN Valley Wildlife Refuge
- Start a Gratitude Journal
- Get lost in Minnesota’s Largest Corn Maze in Brooklyn Park, MN (Sept 19 – Oct 25)
- Gather all the neighbors and play an epic game of flashlight tag
- Download and start the JOY DARE from A Holy Experience
- Create your own family Fall Scavenger Hunt and take a nature walk together
- Read fall-themed books as a family
- Spend the next large family gathering playing a huge game of Capture the Flag
- Say Thank you to those who go out of their way to help your family
- Collect acorns and have some fun with Acorn Races
- Help your child take photos of fall leaves
- Help your child find a pen-pal and help them write and send ‘snail mail’
- Practice gratitude
- Clean out the toy box together and take your children to donate items
- Have a movie night with blankets, jammies and home made popcorn
Make
- Make squash bowling pins and enjoy a game
- Create leaf art with your kids
- Decorate by creating your own Painted Acorns
- DIY vertical outdoor Grateful/Believe sign to decorate your doorstep this fall and winter
- Explore nature with some tree and leaf rubbings
- Make each family member a ‘mail box‘ – exchange notes of ‘thanks’ all season long
- Assemble and give these simple stove top potpourri kits to your neighbors
- Spend a Saturday making a family ‘thankful tree‘ and fill it up!
- Help your kids thank their teachers on Thanksgiving
- Discuss safety while packing a winter survival kit with the kids and load it in the car
- Create a leaf alphabet
- Use fabric scraps to make a fall wreath
- Make a DIY Fall Sign using this free printable of 2 Samuel 24:14
- String fall leaf garland (fake leaves, spray paint and string is sure to win a child’s heart)
- Paint a teal pumpkin to signal you hand out allergy-free goodies on Halloween
Go (Minnesota)
- Escape a rainy day exploring the Minneapolis Skyway system
- Visit a MN Apple Orchard
- Go on a Mystery Cave Tour at Forestville/Mystery Cave State Park in Preston, MN
- Road trip to the Gunflint Trail to look for Moose during the October mating season
- Cruise around Minnehaha Falls with Wheel Fun Rentals (Bike Rentals thru Oct 18)
- Hike through Caponi Art Park and Learning Center in Eagan, MN
- Walk the MN Landscape Arboretum in Chaska, MN (Discount on Living Social)
- View fall colors from the Amtrak Empire Line from St. Paul to Red Wing, MN
- Plan day trips to see Peak Fall Colors on the DNR website (updates start Sept 10)
- Ride the North Shore Scenic Railroad for a comfy view of fall leaves (through Oct)
- Pick your own pesticide-free berries at Natura Farms in Scandia, MN
- Eat an Almost Famous donut and pick apples at Minnetonka Orchards
- Pick pumpkins and try your hand at Pumpkin Bowling at Anoka County Farms
- Enjoy fall weather and take one of these 16 amazing Minnesota hikes
- Explore Taylors Falls
- Drive the Great River Road
Love it!!! Fall is the very best time of year, without a doubt! Looks like you will be busy enjoying the season 🙂 You’ve got some great ideas on there and it certainly looks like your area celebrates autumn. We really have a short fall/winter around here, so we usually head to the GA mountains for a long weekend to get our fall fix. There is an orchard where we buy a bushel (which is huge!) of “ugly” apples and then spend hours upon hours making and eating apple sauce. It is heavenly! Happy fall!!!
This is a fantastic list! I am from Wisconsin originally and I so wish I was up that way this time of year it’s just beautiful! Color some acorns for me 🙂
Thank you, Steph! I hope to paint some acorns (once I confirm they have no relation to peanuts or tree nuts 🙂 I’ll be sure to post if we paint them – I’ve had it on my mind since last fall.
Wow! This is a great (and very extensive) list! Sounds like you are going to have a great Fall. Enjoy! My favorite Fall activity is picking apples and pumpkins!
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