Autumn Traditions

Traditions vary in every region and within every family. I would argue that traditions are part of what makes life so wonderful. Traditions help bind us together as a family...and if we're lucky as a community.  

We went on a pumpkin hayride this past weekend at a local farm. People load onto a hay cart, drawn by a tractor, and enjoy a ride across the rolling hills before they arrive at the pumpkin patch. The driver lets everyone out and the scramble begins!

Leaving the parking lot behind is exciting!

Are we there yet?  Yes, we're nearly there!

Beautiful skies over the smiling hills

At the pumpkin patch, big sister and little brother look for the perfect pumpkin

Everyone joins in the fun!

Hrmmm....which pumpkin do I want?

I got one!

After the hayride, despite the crisp temperatures, we followed the crowd into the farm's famous ice cream store. Everyone had some ice cream...well, almost everyone (I, myself, enjoyed a nice hot cup of lentil soup...but I did sneak a few bites of ice cream from the others).  We drove home under clear skies, the leaves falling like gentle rain in the wind. At home, the treasured pumpkins took their honored place in the center of the table.  

Seeing the smiles on everyone's face after such an outdoor adventure is so comforting on a SOUL LEVEL. It's a way to honor the changing season. Picking pumpkins (and apples) are traditions that remind our family that the season has changed.  Cooler weather is here. The leaves are falling and the landscape is changing colors. We're slowly putting our garden to bed and starting to dust off thicker blankets for our beds. We're putting air conditioners in the shed and getting out window insulations (see my posts on winterizing with Reflectix and my yearly winter window prep).  I'm drying and grinding up herbs from the garden to season winter meals.  We can anticipate more soups and stews, hot cocoa, hot oatmeal and more baked goodies. 

These are all traditions in our family. They remind us that the cycle of the year keeps turning, and with it come honorings and celebrations. We take a moment to pause and be grateful for the bounty of this year's harvest, as we continue to prepare for the dark of the year.  

Thank you, Autumn!  Your own unique offerings have given us another year to enjoy our traditions, and to become even closer as a family. What a blessing!