Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing New Horizons: The Update

It’s been a few weeks now, so I thought I’d take a look at my favorite things from the recent update to Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

The highlight was the arrival of Brewster…I’m so happy to be able to visit The Roost again…he really understands how I like my coffee!

Your neighbors can now visit your home…they can either ask if they can come over, as Roald did today, or they can just barge in on you when you’re at home, which I love!

They’ve added some new home decor options, including the addition of accent walls and hanging fixtures:

Kapp’n and his boat have returned (not to mention his sea shanties!), and the islands he can take you to have the added benefit of allowing you to occasionally pick up seasonal items that might not be currently available back home!

They also added a ton of new furniture with the update, including the Plaza series, which I absolutely love, and used to make a permanent Oktoberfest installation:

Group stretching on the plaza is lots of fun!

There are also new recipes, new hairstyles, and a whole new addition to Harv’s island, where you can shop with some of the special merchants who occasionally visit your island, as well as have Cyrus customize furniture, which is especially great if you want to collect items in colors not native to your island. And I haven’t even mentioned the DLC, which is basically a way to marry a whole new game to your existing one…stay tuned for a look at that once I get it figured out!

Hello Stonehenge!

Last week, I finally received the Gulliver item I wanted the most…Stonehenge!

I can’t believe I had to play Animal Crossing: New Horizons for over 18 months before he finally sent it to me!

Reformation Day/Halloween 2021

Today was the rare occasion where Reformation Day/Halloween actually falls on a Sunday. We started the day at church, where we enjoyed some especially amazing music featuring hymns written by Martin Luther:

We went for a short walk in Forest Park after the service, where we enjoyed the beautiful fall colors (in spite of the wind):

I was so excited to pick up a box of Monster Mash cereal for the Fab Five for breakfast!

This afternoon, we watched The Nightmare Before Christmas for the first time, as well as It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. For dinner, I made potato-parsnip soup, cheese and jam turnovers, and butterbeer…it was the perfect meal for today!

Dessert was the Jell-O Halloween Special, as advertised by Harlow Wilcox in the 1940s…”Looks like a dish of sunshine all dressed up, doesn’t it?”

I chose my costume in Animal Crossing: New Horizons with great care…I’m a hot dog!

I tracked down the Czar of Halloween right away.

I think my neighbors enjoyed the festivities, too!

This was a busier Halloween than most for us, and it was a very fun day!

Costumes, Animal Crossing Style

Jack, the Czar of Halloween, will be visiting in just a week…here’s a look at some costume ideas I came up with that seem equal to the event. (My personal favorite for this year is the hot dog suit.)

And just for fun, a Roald cosplay I put together. The beak isn’t quite right, but I think it’s a pretty good approximation, don’t you?

What costume are you planning on wearing this year?

Fireworks Season

Pretty much the best thing about August is the Sunday night fireworks shows in Animal Crossing New Horizons. Here’s a look back at each of the five shows I’ve enjoyed this year. I dressed up in a different kimono (with coordinating kimono sandals) each time to really capture the Japanese festival spirit, and once I even carried a parasol, mostly because Roald was concerned that the fireworks were so bright, we’d need “fireworkscreen.” I also branched out a bit and designed a few more fireworks myself, including a pair of them to commemorate Tokyo 2020.

Now that the big, in-game summer event is over, I guess it’s time to start looking forward to fall!