From an outside perspective, it certainly appeared that we Gersons had a perfect fall weekend. Social media posts showed matching mommy-and-me headbands and a sweet baby nestled among pumpkins. In reality, we were up against sleep deprivation, traffic, and missed connections. But the one thing that made this weekend of fall fun truly perfect, was each other.
On Saturday, we had a hard time getting out of the house as our teether was exhausted and took an exceptionally long nap before refusing to get in her carseat. Fun times! I later made like a basic crafting mama and headed to Michael’s to blow way too much cash on birthday supplies and pumpkin-scented candles. We then made it to Manhattan for sushi with Josh’s mom. Willow enjoyed her first-ever “kids’ meal” of chicken teriyaki (she loved it), with sticky rice and plenty of water out of a real glass. She was in heaven!
Then came Sunday. Oh, Sunday. You were off to a rough start. Josh and I couldn’t sleep Saturday night, finding ourselves on the couch at 2 am watching Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown. We had plans to head an hour north to the “best” pumpkin patch in the State of New Jersey, but of course I had two meltdowns about work and laundry before we managed to get on the road. Willow pooped about five minutes into her car-nap, mandating a dramatic diaper change on the side of the road.
We finally got to Princeton and found ourselves waiting another hour on the road leading to the patch, before eventually calling them to find out what the deal was. Informed that there was no parking and we’d have several more hours to wait, we jumped ship, headed to an apple-picking farm, popped the kid in a pile of grass and snapped some pics. Looking around at a sea of inedible, half-eaten apples and a line of portable toilets, we decided our best plan adjustment was to hightail it into town and settle for a fancy lunch al fresco, so we did just that.
After walking around and some light shopping, we piled back into the car and stopped at a chic nursery on our way out of town to nab some pumpkins. Luckily, they cost about a third of what we’d pay in the city, so we considered the day a success.
I did not ingest a drop of pumpkin spice this weekend. My child did not experience her first hay ride. There was no corn maze, no glass of mulled local wine for her parents. But we had sunshine, family, and yes, fun. I think there is often pressure with our kids to do things just perfectly for them — this season, to give them that FALL experience.
But I can honestly say that despite nothing going according to plan, we had the perfect weekend. As we head into this season of love and gratitude, my heart is so full of both. Thankful for a baby girl who isn’t jaded, and a husband who shows us both again and again, how truly loved we are.