BLISS List

We love lists, so from time to time we’re going to share some of the things are making us BLISS-ful. We hope you will like them too!

Here is our list for September 6, 2024:

(Please note that none of the shopping links are affiliate links—we just like these products!)

We’re only a couple of weeks away from the first day of fall, and already some of the trees are showing just the slightest hints of color.

If you’re trying to notice more of the nature around you, here are a couple of things you can be on the lookout for right now:

Migrating Monarch butterflies – In the Northern United States and parts of the Rocky Mountains, this is the time of year when these pretty pollinators start their migration to Mexico and the coast of California.

Look for them in parks, in fields or next to roadways (especially if there are still wildflowers blooming). A few lucky people may even get to see thousands of them clustered together in a tree (they like pine, fir and cedar trees!).

Migrating Birds – Monarchs aren’t the only creatures heading for a warmer climate this time of year. Many of the beautiful songbirds we see in the spring and summer are now leaving their summer nesting sites and traveling to the Gulf Coast of the U.S., Mexico, Central America or even South America to spend the winter months.

Sandhill Cranes (pictured above) can be seen gathering in farm fields in the Midwest. And songbirds and hummingbirds will pass through backyards, parks and nature areas as they periodically stop to rest and feed on their long journeys. To attract them to your backyard or patio, now is a great time to:

• Provide a bird bath
• Put up a hummingbird feeder (you can learn more on our post here)

Do you live in an apartment? You can still feed birds and attract hummingbirds if you have a balcony!

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If you have access to Netflix, we highly recommend the captivating 3-part documentary Secret World of Sound narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

“Advanced audio technology captures the sound of nature like you’ve never heard it before.”

You’ll never look at nature the same way again and be amazed at some of the ways animals, fish and birds communicate and protect themselves with sound.

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Crayola Coloring Books – Looking for a relaxing activity while watching TV or enjoying a cup of coffee? Crayola has several nature-themed coloring books for adults for less than 8 bucks each.

Our favorites are the Wildflowers Coloring Book and the Birdwatching Coloring Book. Each has 40 perforated pages of fun illustrations you can color (Em uses colored pencils).

Fall Mums – If you have space in a flowerbed or on your patio or deck, now is a great time to shop for fall mums.

If you put them in a spot that gets about 6 hours or more of full sun each day and you water them regularly (they have shallow roots!), they’ll bloom happily for weeks in the fall and add some outside color at a time when most flowers and plants are winding down for the season.

You can find mums for sale in the fall at market stands, garden centers, home improvement stores and also at many grocery stores.

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If you like gentle books about nature and life, put this gem of a book on your reading list: The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year by Margaret Renkl is a national bestseller.

“Margaret Renkl presents a literary devotional: fifty-two chapters that follow the creatures and plants in her backyard over the course of a year…With fifty-two original color artworks by the author’s brother, Billy Renkl, The Comfort of Crows is a lovely and deeply moving book from a cherished observer of the natural world.”

The writing is beautiful and will help you notice and think about about the creatures that live in your backyard and neighborhood. This is the perfect book to read while curled up next to a fireplace on a cool fall evening!

We hope you have a BLISS-ful weekend!