the blackmons in chicago

Day at the Pumpkin Patch

The autumn bug has definitely hit the Blackmons and what better way for us to kick off the season than spending the afternoon at a pumpkin patch with our little one! This past weekend, we did just that and took Baker out to see his first pumpkins...wow, did he love it! On Saturday, the weather was perfect so we traveled up to Hollins Farms with Jeff, Anna and Charlie - a huge farm near Middleburg, VA where you actually pick them straight off the vine...a first for all of us. It's crazy to think that such beautiful farm land, mountainous terrain and scenic country is just a short drive outside of DC, only 45 miles away. Of course with traffic, it took about an hour and fifteen but so worth it.

As we were driving down the dirt road to the farm, we noticed tons of cows and huge pigs and we knew that we HAD to show Baker his first livestock. He first saw the cows because they were right next to the pumpkins and was so happy that he was kicking his legs, waving his arms and squealing! I think he smiled almost the entire time we were out there. It was a lot of fun for all of us. We were all shocked to see all the different colors of pumpkins too...from deep orange/red to white. Who knew? After we picked our pumpkins and gourds, we went straight to the pigs...HUGE pigs! I think that Baker fell in love with the pigs. After all of the excitement from everything else, this was by far the part that he was most excited about. I think it was a combination of the noises they were making and how funny they all looked that captivated him. He just laughed and squealed like all of the pigs. At one point, this one pig came right up to the fence and stuck his snout through it and had I not restrained Baker, I think he would have totally grabbed it! We tried to capture a video of his excitement but it doesn't do it much justice. One thing is for sure, he loves animals just like his parents!

Our first autumn with Baker...so much fun!

1. I love this picture of Baker eating out on the farm! 2. Baker and the pig go face to face!

Sitting in the pumpkins! They are about as big as he is!

1. The Laughlins 2. Charlie and Baker sit with their pumpkins.

How beautiful is this place?! View from the top of the patch and looking at the corn maze down at the bottom.



1. Before we left - Baker looks like a prisoner in his own crib. He was actually trying to stand up. 2. He does this back bend in his exersaucer to play with the toys dangling over his head!! It's a bit alarming to see him bend like that!

Video of Baker and the pigs