The Search

Discovering my deeply buried love of writing has been a very enjoyable experience. I feel so inspired... not every day, but it's becoming more of a prevalent feeling in my life. Today was definitely one of those days.

Got a late night text from my mother last night, saying something like blah blah blah... PUMPKIN PATCH ... blah blah... LET'S GO tomorrow. I was so ready. Practically dreaming of the pictures I was going to take of my girls and their FIRST Pumpkin Patch experience. *drool

Avery is very into "pumptens" right now, shrieking in excitement when we pass the house by our park that looks like Halloween barfed all over it. She LOVES it. Which means, I drive past this house daily, even if we don't need to go that way.

One of my favorite blogs to follow is ENJOYING the SMALL THINGS. Kelle Hampton (the author) is so cute and funny, inspiring, and... just seems so...honest. I adore her. You should definitely check out her blog, if you're not already. Point: I was reading a fall-inspiring post (link is above) and thought to myself: Self, I want my girls to grow up talking about things we did and shared together... about OUR family traditions. Well, traditions HAVE to start somewhere, right? So, when my mother mentioned this "pumpten patch", I knew that that was it. This is what we would find ourselves doing every year, without fail, in order to officially kick-off our holiday season. So, needless to say, I had high expectations.

Maybe a little too high... Ready?

We drove for almost 2 hrs (ish) to Jackson, OH. As we're nearing our destination, I'm getting butterflies in my stomach. So excited to see the spot where we will start the Caudill memory-making.

Looks perfect... right?

To say these pictures are misleading is the understatement of the year.

 You can feel the anticipation building as we continue, following our directions into this... Wait, is this a... Yes, this is a driveway.... Not a soul in sight. We stop, get out, and look around. Nothing. Just a house. A metal garage... wait, are those pumpkins in there?

Yes. The "patch" is a metal garage.

Mom and I lose it. Doubled over, cracking up. Where is the corn maze? The mums? The sign said something about apples? Nope. Just a metal garage.

 This is what I get for forcing my Kelle Hampton moments. Trying too hard to create a picturesque "Hallmark" memory.

Then, again...

This is us. Pathetically comical. 

These are our memories in the making. And, I'll take 'em.

After awhile, someone came around a corner asking us... well, what we wanted. To play. To run through your advertised pumpkin patch. To get some beautiful mums for my front porch, in bright oranges and yellows, deep burgundy... wait, I don't see any mums.

We, finally purchase a pumpkin or two, and then hit the road, with new directions to an apple orchard. Could it be? Maybe this is it. An apple orchard. Caudill girls. Woven baskets. Yes.

Well... No. **But, I will say, that it was better than the ghost town of a pumpkin patch garage we'd just come from. There were no woven baskets... but there were wagons. *happy

*WHAT A DAY?! 6 hours to try to find the "perfect" start to, what hopes to become a family tradition. The day ended a little rough around the edges, but you'll have that with a 2 year old + a 5.5 month old in the car all day. Over all rating of the day? I give it a solid "perfect". Not PERFECT, but my kind of perfect.

**But, I will say... The search continues.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Thank you for reading & sharing. Be back soon.