Ode to Fall

I love fall.  I love the activities, the smells, the colors and watching my kids enjoy a beautiful day like yesterday.  I love a warm Oregon fall day.  They can be rare which adds to their beauty and enjoyment.  This year we are extra blessed in our new house.  We have a really gorgeous view off of our deck.  I have loved watching the colors change, even though raking is a pain, I love a yard covered in fallen leaves.  Sarah and Adam can go searching for leaves right in our backyard which is great for me, I can watch with a cup of coffee and never leave our family room.  We didn't have a chance to go to the big pumpkin patch this year, but yesterday was so beautiful that we thought, even though we are super tired and want to nap, let's go find some pumpkins and take a drive.  If you don't drive the outskirts of Salem often, you should.  It's such a pretty place to live.  We went out to a place we had heard of out South and it was closed.  They have a hay tower that you can play in right on the road, and it's free, so we went ahead and played for a bit even though we couldn't get any pumpkins there.  After we went to a local patch and picked out some pumpkins to carve.  It was relaxing, and a chance to really look at God's creation.  When we have such breath taking thinks to enjoy here on earth I can only imagine what heaven will be like!  Enjoy a few pictures of our fall day.