A few of my favorite things...

First, let's all take a moment to remember the lives that were lost 12 years ago, the lives that were forever changed on that day, and the lives that have since been sacrificed so that we may continue to live freely.  Never forget.  

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The air has a bit of crispness in it lately, and the autumn rains have started to arrive.  A couple of times over the last few days I've smelled wood burning stoves.  People are beginning to wear light scarves, and jackets are making their way out of the backs of closets.

Back home, everyone is raving about getting the latest fall flavors at Starbucks, or making some cute fall decorations for their homes.  These things don't really exist in Italy (Starbucks for coffee?!  Blasphemy!), so I quickly learned I needed to adjust my list of "Fall Favorites" while living here.

Here are a few things that I'm excited about:

1. Pumpkins!  I've mentioned several times on the blog that Italy really loves to embrace seasonal fruits and vegetables in their foods.  No, I don't get to go to a pumpkin patch here, but soon, I'll be able to indulge in tons of pumpkin food goodness.  Pumpkin gnocchi, pumpkin soup, pumpkin ravioli.  It's going to be delightful.

2. Harvest time!  Grapes and olives are getting ready to be harvested, which means lots of harvest parties are about to start.  I had an awesome time at a grape stomp last year, and I can't wait to go to another this fall.

3. No more mosquitoes!  I thought mosquitoes in South Carolina were bad, but they don't have anything on the ones here.  If I get bit by one of the annoying little bugs flying around Italy, it results in an itchy, bruised, marble sized lump under my skin.  Sounds awesome, right?  One night I woke up with 3 bites on my face.  I looked like I had a disease.  Needless to say, I love that the cooler weather means no more bugs!

4. Boots!  I am a huge fan of fall clothing.  I love wearing boots, sweaters, and scarves, and sitting outside enjoying the weather without breaking a sweat.  Italian leather boots are a great purchase around these parts, and last year I bought myself some brown boots.  I believe I'll even out my collection this year with a nice black pair.

5. Chocolate!  Side note:  In the last year, my body stopped processing lactose.  I know.  Not cool, right?  Being able to pinpoint the issue has significantly improved my health, but no longer being able to enjoy some of my favorite things (like chocolate!) is a big disappointment.  Luckily, with a lot of research, I've found several ways to still have limited amounts of the things I love.  The chocolate festival is coming soon, and while I can't enjoy the milk chocolate goodness, I'm really looking forward to stocking up on some of the quality dark chocolate that I can have!  I hope John Ralph is ok with purchasing a year's worth.

So those are a few of the things I'm looking forward to.  Do any of you have some not-so-common fall favorites?