Rejoice in golden hues...

I love autumn.  It is by far my most favorite season.  I love the cooler weather, the crisp smell in the morning, and the colors...man, the colors in autumn are unparalleled.  I was so excited to be able to take Desmond to a pumpkin patch and for a drive out into Missouri wine country.  This time around, Desmond kind of knew what was happening and he actually enjoyed being out and about.  Unlike this one time (pictures from October 2010):

Not enjoying the splendor of autumn...

So uncomfortable...

Hating life.

We went to a farm in Augusta, Missouri, which just happens to be part of "wine country."  Yes, Missouri is home to several vineyards and the wine they produce isn't that bad.  This area of the state, just about 50 minutes west of St. Louis, was settled primarily by German immigrants, so a lot of the towns that are scattered throughout the area have vestiges of those old German towns.  It's such a beautiful drive.  We timed it so that we left around the time of Desmond's nap so that he could sleep the majority of the drive to the farm.  We got to the farm and it had a play area for kids, a maze, scarecrows, etc.  Nobody was there, so we had the entire place to ourselves, and got to have our pick of the better pumpkins.  I can now understand why parents go crazy over places like this...it's so much fun to see your kid run around and enjoying the fruits of fall.

This time, we had better luck with the pictures (compare with above):

It's funny how I still think of myself as being 22 or o and then I look at this picture and notice that I'm starting to get wrinkles around my eyes and am floored.  I certainly don't feel 30...but I look it.

Now this is the face of a kid who loves fall.

Look at the tin man!  And Dorothy looks like she's in dire need of a bathroom.

I'm so in love with these guys...

He wasn't as creeped out as I thought he'd be. 

I mean, I sure as hell was.

He looks like a little mini movie director.

Desmond's trademark Eff Off face.

Cute.

But this one's cuter.

We wanted to get a series of shots of him sitting in the tractor tire, to match the awful ones of him we took last year. 

We tried so hard to get him to sit by the tractor.

But he wasn't having any of it.

At a vineyard.

Ok, so now the cheesy part (Yes, I know the pictures themselves are super cheesy.  Humor me here, ok?)  I know I keep beating this dead horse over and over again, but being a mom is hard work.  Super hard.  Harder than anything else I've ever done.  I mean, learning how to write code in SAS is far easier in my book than being pregnant, giving birth, being the sole life-sustaining force for a newborn, and changing so much as a person with each milestone Desmond has achieved.  He's already shaking his head no (and wagging his finger back and forth for emphasis), can hold up one finger when I ask him "Cuantos años tienes?," and teases me by offering me pieces of his food and then taking them away.  I'm not the same mother I was a year ago.  Heck, I'm not the same mother I was 3 months ago.  He is constantly changing and I'm realizing, that like the beautiful colors of fall, this milestone, these moments, will soon come to an end and I will never, ever relive them with him.

Being outside with Desmond, watching the wind ruffle his (very straight) hair, and seeing the most joyful, explosive smile on his face when he picks up the leaves and crumples them in his hands...it's the most wonderful thing.  Better than wearing new underpants wonderful.  I am trying to sit back, take it all in, and cherish these sweet, simple moments because in another year, he's going to be yelling "NO" at me instead of showing me, he'll be saying "one" when I ask him how old he is, and he probably won't offer me anymore of his food (he probably won't eat any of the food I offer him...sigh.)

So, here's to the last few weeks of fall and to rejoicing in those golden moments in life.  I'll take them when I can get 'em...