Summer is Winding Down.

While we still have the last hoo-rah of Labor Day just around the corner, we might as well face it, another summer is coming to a close. The back-to-school commercials are in full effect and the morning light has shifted, hinting at cooler days on the horizon. 

It's always a little heartbreaking to bid the warm days adieu, but fall has its own little magic that you just can't deny! Freshly baked bread, warm soups on a cool evening, cableknit throws on the couch... 

To make the most of the coming months, follow the three H's.

Health 

If you don't already have one, create a schedule that allows at least three workouts each week. Summer is a naturally active time, but winter is all about hibernation. Use the glorious in-between months to establish a healthy lifestyle. It will keep you looking amazing, feeling great and help ward off the imminent winter blues. Plus, next summer will be all the sweeter when you are bikini ready by February!

Some ideas:

Yoga - amazing working, incredible health benefits, excellent for every fitness level. Take a class, pop in a DVD in your living room or download a program on your ipod and get outside.  Try The Biggest Loser: The Workout - Weight Loss Yoga. I've used it for over a year and highly recommend it for beginners.

Kickboxing - my personal favorite. An excellent stress reducer and a ridiculous workout... burning over 1000 calories an hour? Yup. Kickboxing does that. Try CKO- you won't regret it. If you're in northern NJ, you've got to see Darlene and the gang at CKO Franklin!

Play - just get outside! Go for walk, grab the neighborhood kids for a day of throwback games: Red Rover, Mother May I, Simon Says. Whatever, just get moving!

Home 

Get organized! When you take your fall/winter clothes out of their storage space, go through it all before you put it away. Toss whatever you won't wear, bring items for repair to the cleaners and make a list of the items you will need to purchase... hello new boots! 

          

The end of summer is also the perfect time to flip mattresses, wash curtains and generally clean your house from top to bottom! The crisp fall air is extremely hospitable to paint, so if everything is prepped and cleaned, you can quickly spruce up any room before the holidays arrive.

Check out this great checklist by Real Simple to take the guesswork out of getting your house in shape!

Happiness

Its so easy to get wrapped up in life once summer is over. Keep the carefree spirit of the warmer months with you all year by creating a list of activities that you'd like to do during cooler days. Think Little: read a few books or Think Big: snowboarding trip to Vermont.

Some items on my list?

• Apple picking, followed by pie baking
• Wine tasting
• Plan garden for next year (start growing seedlings)
• Fall camping trip (its seriously the BEST time of year to camp!)
• Weekend snowboarding trip to Vermont
• Bake fresh bread every weekend
• Work on writing my novel
• Watch as many movies as possible

To really keep you motivated, start planning next year's vacation! In addition to giving you something to look forward to, planning now will give you plenty of time to budget and save. Vacation will be all the better when paid for in cash!