Fantastic Fall Weekend

This past weekend was absolutely the perfect fall weekend.  The weather was gorgeous (a nice change from the super-rainy preceding weekend) and we took full advantage of it!  Four amazing fall activities made it the "funnest" weekend we've had in quite awhile. 1. Beasley's Orchard This local orchard, which we have passed many times but never visited, was having its Heartland Apple Festival and we thought it would be a perfect time to check it out.  Davis enjoys nothing more than climbing and jumping, so he loved playing on the giant mountain of straw bales.  There was also a "sandbox" full of corn kernels to play in and plenty of pumpkins and apples to see. 2. Nehemiah Ranch Fall Harvest Days I've read a couple of articles in the local paper about this place, which happens to be less than 5 minutes from our house.  It's a privately owned 30+ acre wooded property that the owner wanted to make available for the community to use for the glory of God.  We went to the Nehemiah Ranch in the evening as it was getting dark.  There was a barn (which Davis called the EIEIO House), a bonfire, hot dogs to roast, s'mores to make, hayrides, and a pumpkin patch - all FREE (freewill donation optional).  We had a BLAST!!  There were some mechanical difficulties with one of the tractors for the hayride dying, so we had to wait in line for longer than usual, which actually turned out for the best because it was the most awesome hayride ever and was even more awesome being in the dark.  Seriously, as Greg said, "THIS is what I call a hayride."  It was a long hayride, on narrow twisting paths through the woods, where you sometimes had to duck for branches and at one point half the people had to get out for a minute because we got stuck on a rickety little bridge and the tractor couldn't pull us over (so a few of us unloaded and then got back on after the tractor and trailer made it across).  Also, the moon was really cool that night with wispy clouds going over it, so it made it kind of eerie and extra fun.  It was Davis' first hayride; I think his favorite part was the moon behind the clouds (like in one of his favorite bedtime books).  We ended at the pumpkin patch where we rooted around in the dark for a free pumpkin for Davis.  He was so proud of carrying that pumpkin!  Seriously, this was so much fun that we can't stop talking about it and I think that everyone we know in the area (especially with kids) should go!  on the hayride we think this one looks like a senior picture . . . maybe we should make him reenact it when he's 17 3. Eagle Creek State Park It's shocking considering that we live so close to it, but we had actually never gone to Eagle Creek State Park.  We went to enjoy some nature time and it was beautiful and fun.  Davis threw lots of rocks into the little lake.  We went on a hike and saw a really cool old sycamore tree that had a huge hole all the way through it and was hollow all the way to the top.  And of course we found a playground to enjoy, too.  In case you're wondering, the fall pictures in my previous post "Autumn" were taken here.  throwing rocks into the water  the cool tree  looking up from the inside bottom of the tree up to the top Davis wanted to climb the steps by himself, sternly ordering us to "stay here!" 4. Fall Festival @ local church A local church had a free fall festival for the community on Sunday night, with a cookout, balloons, bouncy houses, hayrides, "train" rides, games, and hot air balloon rides.  This was another chance to have a fantastic time and soak up the final moments of an especially fun fall weekend.

From Loving the Life We Live