The perfect fall day

Yesterday, we awoke to a fabulously chilly, cloudy fall day!! Friday - nearly 100 degrees. Yesterday - nearly 70 degrees! What a splendid relief! And the perfect weather for a trip to the pumpkin patch!! We loaded everyone up, and off we went...the girls' first opportunity to actually wear jackets!!

They had so many fun things to do and to look at. We stopped at the entrance to take some photos by the old tractor.

Next, we got some tickets and headed off to the petting zoo. I wasn't sure how Anthony would do, since the last time we visited a petting zoo, he was TERRIFIED of all the animals!! But this time, he did remarkably well, and even got up the courage to feed a baby goat.

After a thorough hand-washing, we headed towards the "rides" and bouncers. They had quite a large selection...pumpkin bouncers, inflatable slides, a circus train inflatable thing, a couple inflatable obstacle courses...lots of fun.

After a couple trips down the big slide, and a round of jumping in the pumpkin bouncer, Anthony decided to drive the little John Deere. They were very cute - not on a track or anything - just very slow, but it allowed the kids to totally use the accelorator and the steering wheel. Anyway - Anthony drove his around for a while, and then, out of no where, hops out of his, and runs and hops in the passenger side of a little girl's. No one he knew, no one we knew...just some cute little girl driving her little John Deere around. What a flirt!!!

Next, Anthony wanted to ride the "race cars," which were 3 cars attached together, pulled by a quad kind of thing. I went on it with him - what a bumpy ride!!

Meanwhile, Mackenzie was the only one who had any sense and actually got some sleep. Makayla - not so much.

After that, we got some warm, fresh-from-the-kettle, kettle-corn - YUM!! And a mediocre burrito. I was really hoping for some pumpkin donuts - I have these wonderful memories of visiting the Apple Barn while growing up, and they always had freshly cooked pumpkin donuts which were splendid. Anyway, they had no pumpkin donuts...might have to drum up a recipe and try those myself!!

The next activity was the most surprising to me. I couldn't believe Anthony was SO brave!! They had this very cool Euro-Bungy jumping thing, which flies you very high in the sky if they pull you down hard enough (and they did!!). He was totally on board! Unfortunately, I had already put my camera away by the time they flung him REALLY high at the end of his turn!! Suffice it to say that he was AT or above the top of the poles on either side of him!!! And I only turned a couple shades of white watching my baby fly through the air!!

Finally, he used up the last of his tickets on the Spiderman inflatable obstacle course (which he needed help in getting through). Afterwards, he posed for some pics with Spidee himself...

We ended the trip by picking out a couple of pumpkins - a big one for carving, and a small one for Anthony (he wanted one he could hold and carry). They had the option of picking your own from the patch...but we figured...they already have these ones all nice and washed and ready to take home...and the kids were tired and ready for naps. So we went for the pre-picked ones. I'm such a tactile and sense-oriented person, I was in heaven just looking at basket after basket of gourds and mini-pumpkins and indian corn. I could've taken basketfuls home with me!

We came home and enjoyed the rest of the chilly day with some mulled apple cider and the first big pot of homemade chili of the season. Mmm... And if it weren't for getting woken up half a dozen times by a snotty-nosed sick baby, I would have slept so well in the chilly air. Let's hope fall sticks around!!