The Patch

The plan for pumpkin selection 2012:
Wake up early, go out to a delicious breakfast, arrive at pumpkin patch as they open to beat the crowd, ride in a covered wagon out to a patch where we take J Crew esque photos of Sloane running through the pumpkins, pick four beautiful pumpkins, ride in covered wagon back to the petting zoo where Sloane spends time with the animals, take pumpkins home for a festive afternoon of carving while hot cider simmers on the stove.

The actual pumpkin selection 2012:
Everyone sleeps in until 9 (I'm not complaining about that one), rush to get everyone fed and dressed, out the door at 11 am, quick stop at Molbaks to return a tree that died, ooh and ahh over their pumpkins, head to the patch which is basically just a dirt field where they dumped a bunch of pumpkins and the petting zoo (if you could call it that) cost $9 per person, take 1,000 photographs in 45 minutes of Sloane jumping in every puddle and attempting to pick up every pumpkin she could get her arms around, decide that the pumpkins are pretty pathetic, head back to Molbaks to pick up 4 gorgeous and unique pumpkins for the price of one at the patch, squeeze in a quick lunch with Mimi and Bobba, head home for naps and snuggle in for an evening movie because pumpkin carving sounds too messy and exhausting.

Sloane painted her pumpkin a couple of days later. Unfortunately I gave her the kid friendly, washable paints without thinking so her pumpkin became our dining table centerpiece instead of sitting on the front porch in the rain for the neighbors too enjoy. John and I carved our pumpkins on Oct. 30 in about 20 minutes before swim class. In true "I'm still a junior high boy at heart" fashion John decided that his pumpkin needed to be throwing up the pumpkin guts so the crows had a blast pulling the guts and seeds all over our front walkway and yard on Halloween.

Reality is so much more entertaining than what I plan in my head. I bet Martha Stewart's Halloween activities are actually pretty boring.