punkinpatchpunkinpartypunkinpatchpunkinparty

i'm finally starting to feel settled in to the new place - so it felt like a good time to celebrate my favorite season and, equally as important, being able to SLEEP IN on a saturday (!).

this weekend there was to be no painting, no unpacking, no hammering, no laundering, no gardening - nothing but fun with a few of my friends.

on saturday, some of the girls (and dave, who was a total gentleman and very patient with all of our photo taking and general giddiness) joined me on my annual road trip, complete with spiced apple cider, to farmer john's pumpkin patch in half moon bay. (this place is so famous that even martha has visited!)

this is a truly special place. while it is very well known, it is set away from all of the other pumpkin patches in half moon bay - so it is quieter and more relaxed than the craziness of all of the bouncy houses and rides that happen on highway 92.

but, even better is the riot of colors. this place specializes in heirloom pumpkins and squash - so they have every color and shape of pumpkin you could ever dream of. for someone who loves fall as much as i do, this is a dream come true.

just a very few of the species available. can't believe i forgot to take photos of the white stars!

so, we indulged our inner dorks and this happened:
and we got to spend some time with the man himself:

(seriously, WHAT is up with my hair?!)

mineminemine! one of the 3 wagon-loads of pumpkins that made it home with me!

after workin' up some FIERCE appetites huntin' punkins, i took the girls to my absolute favorite seafood resturant-slash-stand in princeton-by-the-sea, barbara's seafood parlor. if you've never been there, do yourself a favor and GET THERE SOON.

barbara's is across the street from the half moon bay brewery - where you pay many more dollars for both mediocre food and service. instead, park at the brewery, grab some cash from their atm, and walk right up to the window at barbara's.

i'm not usually bossy (i lie) but I AM TELLING YOU to order the tempura-fried day boat scallops. they're as big as silver dollars, moist and juicy, with a light and crispy tempura shell.

then steal a picnic table (with amazing views of the marina and the bay), spritz a little lemon on yer scallops and grab a sierra nevada pale ale to wash it down. i mean, seriously, people - LIFE IS GOOD.

...after the lunch, we headed home to prep for the carvin' party.

how could i have a carvin' party without a spooky cake?

and to relax by the fire...
lots of my favorite tricks showed up with their favorite treats (i.e. boyfriends and hubbys), with some fabulous pumpkins in tow (and one very adorable bulldog puppy in a yoda costume).

so, fortified with my "famous" applewood-smoked bacon mac 'n' cheese, we got to carving.

lots o' carvin', in fact...

and there were many jack o'lanterns...

and just general cuteness...

followed by some whiskey with the girls, resulting in some late-night mac 'n' cheese thievery.

good night! hope you all had as much fun as sarah did (ha ha)!

for more photos, click here!

p.s. anyone know how to set picture widths WITHOUT resorting to the html editor?