For many, the two best months of the year are July and August. (You summer people know who you are!)

I’m here to make the case for why September and October are truly the best months. Here’s just some reason why I love them so much:

• you get the best of both Summer and Autumn. In September you still get to enjoy the warm of Summer, and in October you get to enjoy the slight chill of Autumn. The Summer part is mild: the Autumn part is mild. No other two months give you such a range of pleasant weather.
• you get a great range of color. In September you still can see lots of flowers. As October rolls on, you get all the leaves turning from green to red and gold. Such a beautiful time of the year.
• you get all of the bounty of the summer growing season. Here in Ontario you get plenty of wonderful produce to eat in September and October… everything from apples to tomatoes. It’s a great time to cook and it’s a great time to eat fresh.
• while the nights get longer, there is still plenty of day light in these two months. The nights also get cooler which is great for people who like to sleep, while the longish days are great for people who like to get out after work.
• September feels like the start of the new year, and I love that. It’s a good time to plan new things.
• there are great holidays to celebrate in these months: Labour Day weekend, Canadian Thanksgiving and Hallowe’en. Oktoberfest isn’t a holiday, but people do celebrate it like one.

I could go on, but I think I made my point. As for the other months…well, July and August are…fine. June in Ontario is a great month, but September and October are better than May and June, although they are my second favourite month pairing. December is wonderfully festive, but January and November are blah. February is too cold and dark, and March and April are too weird, weather-wise. Nope, give me September and October any time.