Thanks to television and storybooks, Monkey is really looking forward to jumping in leaf piles this fall.

Except that fall is stubbornly refusing to arrive and – more worryingly – even when it does, I know that we won’t be able to create the kind of leaf piles he has seen his favorite characters jump into.

In our area, fall tends to involve a lot of rain, so leaf piles are mostly a soggy mess – not something you’d really want to roll around in.

So I decided to take matters into my own hands, and on a particularly hot day last week, we stayed inside in the air conditioning and made our own “leaf” pile.

Here’s how you can, too:

How to Create An Indoor “Leaf” Pile

1. Gather your “leaves” into a pile – Use any soft materials like sofa cushions, pillows, and blankets.   Build your pile safely away from walls and furniture, and make it wide enough to cushion the inevitable falls.

2. To reduce the number of trips and spills, make the top of the pile as smooth as possible with, for example, a blanket spread over top.

3. Clear the surrounding area of any toys or other objects.

4. Don’t forget to get into the fun yourself!

I knew Monkey would have fun, but I wasn’t anticipating how much Baby would enjoy our leaf pile!  Besides just rolling around on the blankets, he loved it when I put him on his feet and helped him jump – love those baby belly laughs!

How are you getting ready for fall?