Fall Festival Weekend


At last the rain took a break so that we were able to enjoy a spectacular Columbus Day weekend with sunny skies and temperatures hovering around 80 degrees! It was a perfect weekend to pick pumpkins and Pauletta & Wil organized a pumpkin picking outing at Belvadere Plantation near Fredricksburg, VA (http://www.belvedereplantation.com).

Anna and her parents were a bit too ambitious in their efforts to take advantage of the nice weather and decided to pack up the car with the camping gear to take Anna on her first camp out at a local park following the pumpkin picking. First, the family got stuck in traffic in Fairfax City, VA thanks to the local fall festival (EVERYONE in the Washington area was out to enjoy the gorgeous weather). Then there was the traffic on I-95 south. Why - no one ever really knows. Finally we arrived at the pumpkin patch 2 hours late.

The pumpkin patch was not just any pumpkin patch. There were go carts, pig races, zip lines, slides, a rope swing in the barn, a corn maze,and finally a hayride to the pumpkin patch to pick your own pumpkin. It was a great afternoon (thanks to Pauletta for organizing along with many fabulous pictures). By the time everyone was exhausted, it was 5 PM. With the car loaded up, and our kettle corn in hand, we opted to forgo the barbecue at Pauletta & Wil's house to make it to the campground and set up before dark.

We arrived at the campground at 6PM to find they were sold out. According to the attendant, they never sell out. Now we had a car full of camping gear with no where to go AND we had missed a cookout. We drove home, unloaded the car, and vowed to camp another day. Maybe when the weather gets cooler, we can roast the marshmallows in the fireplace........

Columbus Day was another beautiful day, so Theresa decided to brave the crowds of vacationing Federal workers to take Anna and her friend Ella to Cox Farms in Centreville, VA. (http://www.coxfarms.com/) Cox farms has numerous slides along with a great hayride, corn maze, straw tunnels, farm animals, and live eentertainment. Anna and Ella had a fabulous time riding the slides countless times (Theresa joined them on the slides as well). It was a great way to spend a beautiful Columbus Day!

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