the most wonderful time of the year!

Fall, that is. Not everyone will agree, of course, but I absolutely love it. What is there not to love? The colors outside are absolutely gorgeous, the weather is beautiful...then you have pumpkin farms, Halloween, apple cider, falling leaves, boots & sweaters...I could go on forever.

It just recently started feeling like fall around here, believe it or not. Thank goodness, because I was itching to put on my fall gear AND Audrey's new fall wardrobe!! On Tuesday, the husband and I celebrated 3 years of marriage. He took the day off of work and we spent the morning hanging out as a family. We decided to go to the pumpkin patch because a.) we hadn't gone yet and b.) we hoped that with it being in the middle of the week, it would be less busy. Thankfully, it was.

Last year, I couldn't wait to take Audrey to the pumpkin farm for the first time. She was 8 months old and crawling (and pulling up), but I was able to get a few good shots of her sitting near the pumpkins. THIS year, photos weren't nearly as easy with a busy toddler that never stops moving. BUT, she absolutely loved it. Her reactions to everything this year was so much more fun to watch (makes me anxious for Christmas!) She had so much fun climbing in and out of all of the wooden play areas, and "driving" the tractors.

When we reached the patch (after climbing was felt like Mt Everest) she was in heaven. She kept saying "Ooh! Nice!" while running from pumpkin to pumpkin, trying to pick them all up. It was so cute.

Since we were the only few people in the patch, we let her run around for awhile, just taking it all in and enjoying herself. Whoever said "to see the world through a child's eyes is truly living" (or something like that) is totally right. I absolutely love experiencing these things with my daughter and look forward to each and every new experience we get to have together.

After we chose our pumpkins, we made our way back down to the main area to pay for them, and to pick up some fresh apple cider. We grabbed a small pumpkin just for Audrey, and she was THRILLED she finally had a pumpkin she could hold on her own :) In fact, she was so attached to that pumpkin she insisted on bathing with it that night. LOL!

I'm sure this is not the last time this season we'll find ourselves at the pumpkin farm, but the first time sure is the best!

What sorts of fun fall activities do you do with your family?