Okay, I'll admit it - I'm excited that fall is here! 

You probably know that I'm a huge summer girl and that I love the heat. But the seasons are also wonderful, and I am so excited to see the leaves changing! Fall is wonderful for so many reasons - the Jewish holidays, Thanksgiving, and my birthday! So I was really looking forward to decorating our house this year to celebrate autumn. I have never actually decorated for the seasons before, so this was a really fun adventure. Here are my tips and tricks for getting the cutest decor and the best bang for your buck. And watch the video above to see how it all turned out! 

1. Shop at HomeGoods. I love HomeGoods! They have the cutest stuff and it's all discounted. I originally planned on going to Target, but when I realized that their selection wasn't that extensive, as well as being expensive, I decided to head to HomeGoods instead. There, I was able to find literally everything I bought in this video.

2. Use fallen leaves as free decor. I placed a couple of things outside our front door to decorate for the season, and as I was setting them outside, I realized that we already had a huge pile of leaves right on our porch. So I swept them around the two items I bought, and it made it look extra autumnal! Adorable and free? Yes, please! You can also use fall leaves around your home - if you buy a small basket, you can gather fallen leaves and put them inside. 

3. Find a few items that you absolutely love, and then buy smaller things to match. When I went shopping, I knew I wanted a few themed pillows, so that was my first goal. I fell in love with a few, and then I just went around looking for smaller decor items to match. Of course, I ended up loving everything I bought - but this is still a good rule of thumb. :) 

4. Choose a color scheme. Do you like orange and gold? Or are you more of a yellow and red kind of girl? What about the more faded colors, or the more saturated ones? Choose what suits your home and your personality, and go all in! I like the saturated colors, so that's what I went with, but you do you!

5. Decide what vibe you're going for. Do you like really kitschy seasonal decor? Or do you like more classy, dressed up vibes? I like the pillows that have little sayings on them, so that's what I went with. I like the blanket with animals wearing fall clothing, so that's what I went with. But if you don't like "cute" home decor, go with the more classic vibes. Do what makes the season feel fun to you!

And that's it! Are you decorating your house for fall? Where is your favorite place to shop? Let me know in the comments below!

​*Disclosure: This contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click on a link and purchase something. ​​​Thank you so much for your support! ​ 

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Unless you're living under a rock, you probably know that Taylor Swift is political. 

She has made abundantly clear in the last year that she wants her music, her fans, and her persona to be political. As someone who used to like Swift's music (I admit it!), I started to listen less as she moved toward the pop genre. It wasn't my thing, and the innocence and sweetness of her original music began to fade into the past. The things that made songs like "Love Story" so relatable took a backseat to her new sound. I also use to love Swift's style. She would wear cute outfits that I would try and replicate at home - outfits that were close to being modest, if not entirely so. As her music changed, so did her fashion sense.

None of that influenced my feelings toward Taylor Swift as an artist. She had chosen a path that I didn't appreciate as much, but that many other people did. Fair enough.

But in Taylor's newest album, she has unequivocally decided to alienate half of the country. 

It began with the music video for "You Need to Calm Down." A portrayal of a political position was watered down to a caricature, a group of hill-billy rednecks holding misspelled signs. "You hold that position? The only person who would hold that position would look a little something like this," the video seemed to exclaim.

Then came her interview with Rolling Stone. 

This interview blew me away. Here's a quote: "I do think, as a party, we need to be more of a team. With Republicans, if you’re wearing that red hat, you’re one of them. And if we’re going to do anything to change what’s happening, we need to stick together. We need to stop dissecting why someone’s on our side or if they’re on our side in the right way or if they phrased it correctly. We need to not have the right kind of Democrat and the wrong kind of Democrat. We need to just be like, 'You’re a Democrat? Sick. Get in the car. We’re going to the mall.'"

Here's another: "It’s about the illusions of what I thought America was before our political landscape took this turn, and that naivete that we used to have about it. And it’s also the idea of people who live in America, who just want to live their lives, make a living, have a family, love who they love, and watching those people lose their rights, or watching those people feel not at home in their home. I have that line 'I see the high-fives between the bad guys' because not only are some really racist, horrific undertones now becoming overtones in our political climate, but the people who are representing those concepts and that way of looking at the world are celebrating loudly, and it’s horrific."

I have no issue with celebrities having political opinions. In fact, I think that's great! Be informed, learn more about the country we live in, have an understanding of the people that you're voting for. Do those political views need to be embedded into their art? Generally, I would say no, but even on that I can be convinced. 

But for Taylor Swift to essentially tell half of her fans that they're not invited to listen to her music? That they're not invited to go "to the mall" with her? That the "bad guys" are in charge, and by extension, if you share their opinions, you too are a bad guy? 

That's not political. That's clannish. 

Taylor Swift is not trying to convince anyone here. She has taken a side and she is digging her heels in. She's not welcoming political discussion - there is no discussion to be had. There is only right versus wrong, and she's right. But do you know who will follow her example? Young people who don't have a clear idea of their own politics yet, but absolutely don't want to be seen as "not in the cool club" of Taylor Swift. 

​When I read this article, I felt a little sick to my stomach. We've gotten to a point where the biggest pop singer in the world is telling the country to bisect itself in half and choose a side. No friendly discussions, no meeting of the minds - just pick a side and ignore anyone who challenges your views. 

Taylor Swift hasn't given her fans the option to listen to her music despite her politics. She has said, "Listen to me as a Democrat or listen to me as my enemy." I, personally, don't feel too comfortable with that dichotomy, no matter my political views. If someone on either side of the aisle were to dismiss half of Americans as wrong, I would feel incredibly uncomfortable. That was never the purpose of politics - we need both sides to push each other toward an apex of fruitful policy. As I've said before, we're all people, first and foremost. Let's start there. 

What do you think? Are you a fan of Taylor Swift? Let me know in the comments below! 

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Do you remember that Gillette ad that came out in January that criticized the phrase "boys will be boys?"

At the time, Gillette was praised for challenging traditional notions of masculinity and helping rewrite the narrative for young men. I was reminded of this advertisement the other day when I had to ask myself: If this is not the age of "boys will be boys," are we instead in the age of "girls will be boys?" 

I asked myself this question in reference to a podcast my husband introduced to me called "How Did This Get Made?" I've always thought it was pretty hilarious. But one of their recent episodes got me thinking.

On the podcast, a group of comedians hosted by Paul Scheer, Jason Mantzoukas, and June Diane Raphael, review terrible movies and ask the obvious question, how did this get made? In the past, Jacob and I had made it a fun date night to watch one of their suggested terrible movies and listen to the podcast afterward. But a few weeks ago, the hosts got into a heated discussion about a movie called "Drop Dead Fred." 

The premise of the film is as follows: a young woman named Elizabeth discovers that her husband is cheating on her. When her mother brings her back to her childhood home to recover from the shock, Elizabeth's imaginary friend from her youth (Drop Dead Fred) returns to cause chaos. Jacob and I watched this movie on our cruise knowing it would be terrible but assuming it would be funny.

Boy, were we wrong.

What could be a funny premise - young woman gets into crazy antics as her imaginary friend leads her into comic situations - is horribly undone by what seems like a true display of mental illness. Her actions are irrational and dangerous and put people in danger constantly. 

But here's what I found truly fascinating. Two of the hosts - June and Jason - defended a young Elizabeth and Drop Dead Fred as she acted in truly destructive and dangerous ways. In one particularly memorable scene, Elizabeth flashes back to a memory of her childhood in which she and Drop Dead Fred rob her parent's home, break their front window, begin to bury her mother's silver, and eventually cause her father's arrest by police. 

Isn't that just too sweet? I hope you can detect my sarcasm.

But the response from June and Jason was just that. They described Drop Dead Fred as the manifestation of Elizabeth's Id; they posited that she needed to express her ability to be bad and that her mother's horror at her out-of-control behavior was truly "internalized misogyny"; and that little girls need to be able to break the rules. Essentially, she was being oppressed by the patriarchy and was beginning her journey toward becoming a "nasty woman." They brushed off any insane or dangerous behavior by saying that she was releasing her repressed intensity that had been strangled by her oppressive mother. Consequences to other women in the film? Who cares, Elizabeth was on her way to self-fulfillment. 

Well, this got me thinking: What if this movie had been made about a little boy? 

In a culture where things like Gillette ads tell us that the phrase "boys will be boys" really mean "boys should have permission to sexually harass or assault whomever they wish," a little boy acting in the same way as described above would be considered a menace. And rightfully so. So why should we encourage little girls to behave worse than the little boys we are teaching to be held to a higher standard? 

Unfortunately, I don't believe that boys are only being raised to be held accountable for their actions. I think they're being taught to neglect all the masculine parts of themselves that teach them to guard and protect their values, their families, their communities, and their country. And all of this is happening as little girls are being taught to be rude, obnoxious, and confident in their own bad behavior. So, what will we end up with? 

A society of men too afraid to embrace their masculinity and a society of women who are so overconfident in their own opinions that they hurt the people around them callously and without regret.

I understand that we, as women, are women are trying to embrace our strength. My only regret is that some people believe it has be done at the cost of our femininity. We can be confident and brave without being disrespectful, in the same way that men can be strong and robust without being domineering. The idea that women need to throw men and civility aside in their pursuit of true happiness is unfair to everyone.

So, is this the age of "girls will be boys?" I'll tell you one thing: in my household, it won't be.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments below!

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