Pumpkins for my Pumpkins

It’s interesting how family traditions become traditions. Some are carefully thought out and planned and some just happen to be something you did that your kid remembers. As my children get older it amazes me what they remember. Growing up, I never remember going to pick out a pumpkin. I just remember it showing up at the house. It was carved and sat on the front porch. But for Brewer, it’s become something bigger.

The first year we went to the Pumpkin Patch he was 3 and Eva was 1. I’m pretty sure I had nothing to do with it because I was in a fog and I don’t remember a lot of Eva’s first year. I was sleepy and someone was always calling my name. But that’s another blog post. That year, Jamie put a lot of effort into getting us out of the house. If he didn’t, I might have never got off the couch, you know, unless it was time to change a diaper. But really, that’s another story.

So off to the Pumpkin Patch we went. Brewer got to run around. Eva got to ride in a wagon. We picked out four pumpkins. Each family member got their own and it went according to size. So Daddy’s was the biggest, next was Mommy’s, Brewers was a small pumpkin and Eva’s was a tiny little thing. Afterwards we went by Starbucks and got some hot chocolate. It was a fun trip out. Once we got home, we collected the markers and stickers and went to town decorating. It was fun. And it was refreshing. And it was needed.

Fast forward three years later and it’s become a tradition. Not because Jamie or I decided, but because Brewer asks when we’re going to do it. We don’t carve the pumpkins. We decorate.  We use stickers and we use markers and we draw pictures. And each year they get better.

This year was so much fun. My kids are growing and so is their imagination. My kids are creative and insightful. They are caring and funny. They are protective of each other. They ran around taking turns in the wagon. They picked out the perfect pumpkin for each of us. We took pictures and made memories. We drank hot chocolate and we played eye spy for the 100^th time this weekend. We decorated and made the front porch look pretty.

So what are your family traditions? What’s on your fall checklist? What makes the season special to you?