Joe's Autumn Adventures

Fall has definitely arrived here in Kansas City. It's simply wonderful. Autumn is probably my favorite season so I gladly welcome the chilly temperatures and falling leaves.

I feel like this is Joe's first "real" autumn. Yes, he was around last fall, but he was a newborn and I was in the first-time-newbie-zombie mom stage and was impervious to the changing seasons. This year, Joe absolutely loves everything to do with autumn. He loves to play in the leaves and play with pumpkins ("ba" he calls them, because he thinks they are balls.) Last week I took him to a local park and had our own fall photo shoot.





Have I told y'all that Joe is walking now? He would take wobbly steps now and again but a couple weeks ago at my mom's house he just took off walking. He's officially a toddler now. Makes me kind of sad...

He looks so grown up here!

This past weekend Ryan, Joe and I went with my mom and some of my cousins to Vala's Pumpkin Patch in Gretna, NE. This place is HUGE and so much fun! I think we are going to have to make this a family tradition! (The website to Vala's is down for some reason, but I encourage you to go check it out sometime to see how huge this place is!)

We stopped to eat at our favorite restaurant, Cracker Barrel, before we went to the pumpkin patch.

Joe LOVES pumpkins! Here he spots his first one!

"Ba!"

They have a huge, deep corn pit. Joe wasn't sure at first but you can see here that he eventually started having tons of fun!

Ryan and I jumping on these huge jumping things. Excuse my dorky look and the appearance of my husband being beamed up by aliens!

More pumpkins! Joe was in heaven!

Joe was fascinated by this huge dragon walking around. He kept dragging me to go see him!

Eating a pumpkin cookie!

Getting ready to get on the hay ride. Note the pumpkin in his lap.

The next day we decided to carve a pumpkin. We let Joe scoop out the guts. I wasn't sure how he would react (I personally think that pumpkin guts are the epitome of ICKY) but he LOVED it!

Yes, he is tasting some of the pumpkin guts.

Yes, he is chewing on the rind.

Grandma Mary carved an Elmo for Joe! (He is obsessed with Sesame Street!) She used a pattern and I think it came out quite well!

It is so much fun to see Joe react to all the seasonal goodies that come with fall. He is growing up so fast and it's amazing to see him learn and explore. It is so special to me to see the fun of fall through the eyes of my child.

I can't wait to see how he reacts at Christmastime!