A Peek at My Fall Mantel

Last week I made just a few changes around the house to make things feel a little more like fall. I changed out a few wall photos that were in desparate need of updating (they had photos in them from when Avery was less than a year old...talk about becoming house blind!) with photos from our recent trip to Leed's Farm. I also changed a few things on our mantel. Nothing drastic (forgot to take a before photo)...I used the same picture frames that were already on the wall (from Ikea), I just changed out the pictures with some pumpkin photos (which, again, were taken while at Leed's Farm).
I also added two lanterns that we typically use outside on our patio, but I thought they'd look kind of cute up here (got these probably five years or so ago from Crate and Barrel, I think), along with a few scattered pumpkins and gourds.

Pretty simple. I didn't want anything too fussy, and didn't want to have to go out and buy a bunch of new things (other than the gourds). I like the change. It makes the family room feel a little more cozy.

It's Pumpkin Time!

This weekend we went to Leeds Farm to get our pumpkins for Halloween. Our friends Holly and Nate introduced us to this place last year (thanks Holly!) and I'm so glad they did because it's so much fun for kids. Last year, Avery was in a foul mood during our visit and didn't want to participate in any of the activities (other than the tractor-pulled barrel ride). This year was a whole different ballgame. She was in a great mood and had so much fun on all the rides.


Here she is jumping on the giant orange pillow:

And riding the bicycle go-karts with her dad:

Riding the zip line (she did this about 25 times). Luckily we got there pretty early and there were little to no lines:

Oh, and there were pumpkins at the farm too:

Not only did they have regular pumpkins, but also "fairytale" pumpkins, pie pumpkins, and lots of gourds.

We had such a fun time. I didn't make it into any of the photos, but I promise, I was there :) I just played photographer all day.

I love this photo I got of Avery with the pumpkins (she's finally starting to smile for pictures again). It definitely beats any photo I was able to get of her last year at the farm:

If you don't believe me, allow me to remind you of our day with her at the farm last year. This picture pretty much sums it up:

What a difference a year makes! I'm hoping to do a little decorating with our purchases (and with the photos we took) to make the house feel a little more like fall (mainly just changing up our fireplace mantle, which I rarely do, other than at Christmas time). I'll be sure to post photos when/if I get that accomplished.