Happy Harvest Time!

October has flown by so fast! The nights are getting colder and the days are getting shorter. I do love this time of year though. I love the crispness in the air and the splendor of autumn colors. It brings about a time of year that has always been close to my heart. I have always loved taking my children to the pumpkin patch every year to pick out their pumpkins. I have some wonderful memories of sipping hot cider, taking hay rides and seeing the pure joy on my children's faces.

As my children get older I am trying to hold onto those memories as we make our yearly visit to the pumpkin patch. Gone are the days when they would go with their preschool teachers, or the kindergarten class and I would get to tag along as a chaperone. This year marked the next season, so to speak, as we ventured out to the pumpkin patch on our own as a family. We have always gone as a family every year anyway but this marked the first time that the kids almost seemed to be getting a little bored with the petting zoo and the hay ride. It almost seemed to be an obligatory part of the pumpkin patch experience. I can't say that I blame them but it does make my heart yearn for the days when their eyes would light up on their small little faces as we took a hay ride and surveyed the land full of shiny, orange pumpkins.

I have to say that I was glad to see that they were still excited to go hunting for the perfect pumpkin out in the patch. They were much more picky this year as they analyzed which ones had the best look and feel for whatever Jack O'Lantern face they had in mind. During past pumpkin patch experiences I always had to remind the kids to be sure that they didn't get a pumpkin that was too big, or too green, too squishy or too whatever. They were so independent picking out their very own pumpkin. I was in store for a special treat this year, low and behold, I didn't have to carry a single one.

I think I will continue our family tradition of visiting the pumpkin patch every Fall. I think we may just have to step it up to the next level and visit the pumpkin launching area and the corn shooter machines. They were also eyeing the haunted house as we left this year. My suspicions that my children are growing up were confirmed when my son wanted his pumpkin to be a barfing pumpkin this year!