To me, October marks the beginning of the holiday season. From now through the end of the year, I feel like there’s so much festivity going on — and I love it!
A big part of my afternoon yesterday was spent attending a festive October event at the nearby Uesugi Farms. I was covering their 23rd Annual Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off for the newspaper, and it was the first time I’ve seen pumpkins of that size in real life.
Some of the pumpkins were not very attractive looking…
…while others were pretty:
But all of them were definitely GIANT!
I got the chance to speak with the grower of the pumpkin below, a Napa farmer who told me that he has a severely disabled daughter who watches him tend to his pumpkins on a daily basis. The sweetness of him talking about her totally made me root for him. His pumpkin was anticipated to win the event…
…and not only did the pumpkin take first prize, but at 2,032 pounds, it broke the world record for largest pumpkin! It was a cool moment to witness the sincere happiness on him and his wife’s faces.
After the contest, my hubby and I went to the farm’s pumpkin patch to pick out our own (normal sized) pumpkins. We’ll be carving them sometime soon!
We had planned on going apple picking afterwards, but we wound up being later than expected. Plan B: Head to our favorite local winery, Clos LaChance. There’s a gorgeous golf course next to the winery, and the PGA Tour’s Frys.com Open happened to be going on:
Not too bad of a setting for a golf event huh?
The golf event happening yesterday was awesome because the winery was open later than usual. We were able to taste a few wines, then grab a bottle and head outside to relax, sip some cabernet sauvignon, and eat a picnic lunner (late lunch/early dinner).
I brought cheddar/gruyere cheese, dates, hummus, crackers and hummus chips to munch on.
Verdict on the roasted red pepper hummus chips? Nothing great, just so-so.
We wound up being around for the golf event’s volunteers commencing at the winery after the tournament ended for the day, and hung around to watch a few speeches and such.
The winery was a great Plan B!
Even though we didn’t make it to go apple picking, I still had apple desserts on my brain – specifically this apple crumble pizza recipe I came across last week. Last night I wound up whipping up the dessert with store-bought apples. I just used less butter than the original recipe, and it was definitely a yummy, decadent take on the classic apple pie. Craving satisfied!
Question: What are your favorite things about fall?
Fall is my favorite time of year! I love so many things about it….the cooler temps, boots, leaves changing colors, all the fall decorations, and just being able to walk outside and not sweat profusely 🙂 Just to name a few!
Winery looks fun! My husband and I need to go to a winery soon.
Agreed, I love fall weather. And I’m a fan of boots too, though they definitely come second to flip-flops!
I love everything about fall, great pictures!! And I’m so glad you liked the Apple Crumble Pizza – we’re having it for dessert again tonight too 🙂
Thank you, Anna! So glad I came across your site.
It’s men like him that deserves to win events. Bless him & his families heart. <3 <3
I totally agree. It made me a fan of his!
Holy moly those are some huge pumpkins!! Fall is my favorite season and I love Halloween so much!
Yes they are! Oooh yeah, Halloween is such a fun holiday.
Whoa! Those pumpkins are insane. Looks like such a perfect day, even if you missed out on apple picking.
That dessert looks ah-mazing too!
I know right? Craziness! It definitely was…and there’s always next weekend for apple picking 🙂
I want your life!!! Also those pumpkins are straight up cray! I wonder what they do with them after pumpkin season? Think they eat them!??!
Us foodies think alike, I was obviously wondering how much pumpkin you can get out of those monsters too! Well, the winning pumpkin is going to NYC for a media tour haha no joke! And it’ll end up in the NY Botanical Garden through Halloween. After that, who knows!
Wow! I never saw pumpkins, that were sooooo big! O_O
Me neither, Katja! Pretty neat right?
Your pumpkin photos are amazing! I can’t believe how large those pumpkins are! I’m so glad the farmer from Napa won. It’s an unbelievable feat! We had a wine tasting as our plan B this weekend too! We were supposed to be in Yosemite but the government shutdown forced us to Sonoma. Not a bad plan B.
Thanks girl! Oooh I haven’t been to Yosemite yet but it’s definitely on my bucket list… but you’re right, Sonoma is not too shabby! 😉
Holy Cow! Those are GIANT! They look cool though! Your picnic looks so delicious.
Thanks, picnicking at a winery is one of my favorite things to do!