Pumpkin Fest!

The Myers' Family Annual Pumpkin Festival and Oktoberfest Dinner

Oktoberfest 2012

The festivities and preparation for this years' Oktoberfest and Pumpkin Festival are under way:

We've picked pumpkins and traveled to various markets for pop corn, apples, and decorations. We've baked the pies, prepped the potatoes, hand selected the sausages and cheeses. We've planned the menu and looked up the recipes. All 6 of us were diligently working in the kitchen last night, each with a specific assignment: making cookie dough, making pie crusts, peeling, chopping potatoes, shredding and slicing potatoes (many potato dishes today), mixing the pumpkin pie filling...

It all kicks off with breakfast, potato pancakes topped with a slice of bacon and cream and baked til golden brown -- served with baked apples, of course. The girls and I will bake our fall themed cookies while the boys run those few errands -- to the dairy farm and Lemon Street Market.

We'll get the cider warming in the crockpot mid-AM so it's ready for the noon Pumpkin Fest kick-off! This year's Pumpkin Fest Activities include:

Apple bobbing
Wacky obstacle course
Cookie painting
3 legged race and sac race
Pie eating contest

We'll break for an hour or so and then turn on the polka music and gather in the kitchen to begin preparing our feast all together. I'll post our menu later.

The point of all this mayhem is to create special memories with the kids and build some traditions to celebrate as more generations of Myers come to pass. It's just our little family of 6 but eventually it will include spouses and grandchildren and maybe even in-laws. Bringing the children into the preparation and cooking process helps us connect on a whole new level as well. The technology is left behind  and opportunities arise for laughing, spilling, flying chopped veggies, joking around, and family moments. It's hard as kids get older to pull them away from their social network lives, but we need to pause and take advantage of the time we have while we have it.

I believe I am finally becoming a major contender for the NOW. I've learned to live in the moment at long last, truly understanding that now is what we have. They are 13,13,11, and 5 now. I cant mourn all I missed and I can't worry about tomorrow or next week or 3 years from now (which I'm still working on). I have now, today, and I'm celebrating it! Too much time was stolen, too many moments missed. Too much time spent hurt or offended or striving or creating an image. Today, it's now!