I was sitting in our living room this week with my morning coffee when I noticed something was different. After a few years in a home, you slowly begin to recognize the way the light changes with each season — but that morning, the sun slipped through the blinds in a new way, scattering patterns across the wall I hadn’t seen before.

It’s surprising how a house can reveal new things to you, bringing beauty you hadn’t noticed, even years later. Especially when you pause long enough to see it.

Four years ago this month we moved to an island and into this little house. Sixteen seasons. Four falls. And in each one, both the house and our life in it have changed in big and small ways.

This living room has changed right along with us! We repainted walls, put in new floors, renovated the kitchen which used to connect to it, changed the furniture and rearranged the room more times than I can count.

There were seasons of renovation chaos and seasons when it felt more settled and cozy again. Each fall, this room has looked and felt just a little different — like home.

Life has changed, too! We downsized, became empty nesters, and found new rhythms in this house.

In four years, we’ve celebrated holidays, hosted family visits, welcomed a new son-in-law, and now two grandbabies.

We said goodbye to our beloved Jack the Goldendoodle last year, and the hole he left in our hearts and in this home is still felt.

We’re so grateful he spent three years here with us, filling this house with so many memories.

Bringing our puppy Finnegan home last year — along with the arrival of our two precious grandbabies — has filled the house with the joy of new life again.

Through it all, this little living room has welcomed us in every season.

It has been a place for quiet mornings like this one, holiday gatherings, work projects, and everyday life in between.

Living so close to the sea has its own rhythm — slower, peaceful, rooted in the beauty around us.

It takes time to feel settled, to create a sense of place in a new home and community, and to build memories even in the midst of change.

But that’s what creating a sanctuary is all about. It’s not just finding the ideal way to arrange furniture or the perfect color for the walls, but embracing the rhythm of each season at home — and all of the ways you can make it yours.

Wall paint color: Beach Glass Benjamin Moore

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Fall nesting is the slow art of evolving our home with the season.

Do you feel it where you live? The subtle change in the air, the softer light, the way the trees begin to turn? Fall has always been my favorite season for home — a time to slow down, gather in, and make our spaces feel extra warm and welcoming.

Over the years I’ve called this practice fall nesting. It’s the gentle process of evolving our home as the season shifts — not in a rush, not all at once, but with small layers of care and intention.

In fact, since 2007 I’ve been sharing this tradition with you here on The Inspired Room, and every year I return to it because it grounds me. Fall nesting isn’t about keeping up with trends or pressure to do more — it’s about savoring the season, noticing what comforts you, and creating a sanctuary right where you are.

Here are 6 reasons I believe fall is such a special season for our homes — and why years ago I created this list as A Fall Nesting Manifesto.

It’s my gentle reminder (and yours, too) that our homes don’t have to be perfect to feel like a sanctuary.

6 Reasons to Love Fall at Home:

1. Fall nesting is the slow art of evolving our home with the season.

Just as the trees turn and the light shifts, our homes, too, can gently change. This isn’t a process to rush or complete in a day — it’s an invitation to let our home grow and breathe alongside our own season of life.

2. Fall nesting is an opportunity to nurture ourselves.

This season is about weaving into our surroundings what comforts and inspires us, and preparing what will sustain our well-being in the months ahead. It’s less about what we lack, and more about noticing and enjoying what we already have.

3. Fall nesting is about creating a sanctuary.

When we welcome fall with intention, we don’t need to feel anxious about our home’s imperfections or worried about the future. Instead, we can focus on how we feel right now, and on small, meaningful steps that bring warmth, peace, and contentment.

4. Fall nesting is about layers of warmth and charm.

Sometimes that means adding something new, but often it begins with letting go, repurposing, or simply rearranging. It’s about textures and colors, natural elements and light, all coming together to set the mood of the season.

5. Fall nesting is about rituals of comfort.

It’s the joy of puttering, of tending to little corners, of finding beauty in small shifts. It’s lighting a candle at dusk, setting out mugs for tea, or laying an extra quilt across the bed. These simple rituals nourish us and those we love.

6. Fall nesting is about gratitude.

It’s slowing down to notice, savor, and give thanks for the season we’re in — then expressing that gratitude in our surroundings. Our home becomes a reflection of inner contentment and a welcoming place for others to feel it, too.

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If you long to apply these rhythms to your home, I’d love to welcome you into HomeBody Gathering Place. It’s where we bring this manifesto to life.

Inside HGP, you’ll find a private, cozy community where we practice these rhythms together with weekly encouragement and tools that make them simple and doable.

And even if you simply read along here, I hope this manifesto reminds you that your home can be a place of peace and sanctuary in every season.