Sweater Weather

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About the Image

Featured in today’s post is Serena’s cozy autumn sweater, a new creation from Sorumin for the current round of Kustom9. The Darn Cozy Sweater is perfect for those crisp fall days. It comes in six coordinating color sets, including blacks and whites, blues, reds, browns, greens, and oranges/yellows. Each set features four style options, with charming patterns and adorable stitched patches that put the “darn” in Darn Cozy. With sizes available for a variety of mesh bodies, you’re sure to find your perfect fit. Stop by Kustom9 to pick up a demo and get cozy in style!

Complete credits are below the story. Store and event SLurls are available on the Store & Event Links page.

The Story

The first real chill of autumn always made Serena want to pull on a cozy sweater, sip something with cinnamon in it, and wander through a pumpkin patch. She wasn’t entirely sure why. Maybe it was the changing leaves, the smell of hay, or the promise of pumpkin pie. Whatever the reason, she’d been looking forward to her annual pumpkin-picking adventure for weeks.

There was just one problem. Nobody seemed to be available to go with her.

Her first call was to Gavin, who was already at the veterinary clinic.

“Pumpkin patch?” he repeated, sounding distracted. In the background, Serena could hear a dog barking enthusiastically. “Oh, sweetheart, I’d love to, but we’re completely booked today. And Mrs. Henderson’s bulldog ate something he shouldn’t have, so I might be here late.”

“Again?” Serena laughed. “What did he eat this time?”

“A sock. Possibly two. We’re still investigating.”

“Well, tell him I hope he feels better. And try not to work too late.”

Next, she called Luna, who was elbow-deep in preparations for a large catering order at the café. Ella Rose was helping with a special exhibit opening at the museum, and Emi had a mountain of paperwork to finish before Monday. Even Sage, who could usually be persuaded to abandon her textbooks for an adventure, was buried in graduate school assignments.

Her mother was no help, either.

“Oh, honey, I’d love to go,” Claire said, “but your father and I promised we’d help the neighbors with their garage sale. You could come over afterward, though. I’m making soup.”

By the time Serena finished making calls, she was sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at her phone with a rather dramatic sigh.

“Well, Fiona,” she announced to the little Westie curled up on the rug, “apparently everyone in the world is busy today.”

Fiona opened one eye, considered this information, and went back to sleep.

“Don’t look at me like that. I know you’re available, but the farm doesn’t allow dogs.”

Fiona’s tail gave one halfhearted thump.

Serena looked out the window. The sky was a beautiful soft blue, with wispy clouds drifting overhead. A breeze stirred the branches of the maple tree outside, sending a few golden leaves fluttering across the lawn.

It was far too lovely a day to spend sulking at home.

“Well, that’s settled,” she said, getting to her feet. “I’m going anyway.”

The drive into the countryside was everything Serena had hoped for. The roads wound past fields of golden grass and trees dressed in shades of amber, copper, and crimson. She rolled down the window just enough to let in the cool air and turned up the radio when one of her favorite songs came on.

By the time she pulled into the pumpkin farm, she was singing along at the top of her lungs.

The farm was bustling with activity. Families pulled wagons piled high with pumpkins, children squealed their way through a hay maze, and somewhere near the barn, a fiddler was playing a lively tune. The air smelled of fresh hay, kettle corn, and warm apple cider.

Serena stepped out of her car, tugged the sleeves of her favorite sweater over her hands, and smiled.

“Oh, this is perfect.”

She began at the little farm stand, where an elderly woman was arranging jars of homemade preserves.

“Beautiful day for pumpkin picking,” the woman said.

“It really is,” Serena agreed.

“Here with your family?”

“Just me today.”

The woman smiled warmly. “Well, sometimes that’s the very best company.”

Serena thought about that as she wandered toward the fields.

At first, she felt a little self-conscious walking alone among the families and couples. She passed a young father trying to convince his toddler that a pumpkin nearly as big as the child was not a practical choice. Nearby, two teenagers were taking turns photographing each other in front of a display of hay bales and chrysanthemums.

Normally, Serena would have been right in the middle of the activity, chatting with friends, laughing at Gavin’s terrible jokes, or trying to convince Luna that she really didn’t need another decorative pumpkin for the café.

But today, no one was there to hurry her along.

She could stop whenever she wanted. She could spend ten minutes admiring a particularly beautiful arrangement of gourds without anyone asking if she was finished. She could take as many photographs as she liked.

And she could eat an entire bag of kettle corn without sharing.

That last realization was especially appealing.

Serena bought a small bag from a cheerful vendor near the barn and continued toward the pumpkin fields, happily munching as she walked.

The farther she wandered from the main attractions, the quieter the farm became. Tall stalks of corn rustled in the breeze, and sunflowers nodded their heavy heads along the field’s edge. An old windmill stood against the golden afternoon sky, its weathered wooden frame casting long shadows across the grass.

Serena took out her phone and snapped a few photographs. Then she put it away and simply stood there for a moment, listening.

The breeze whispered through the corn. Somewhere in the distance, a crow called. The air was cool enough to make her grateful for her sweater, but the afternoon sunshine still warmed her face.

She hadn’t realized how much she’d needed a day like this.

Her life was full of people she loved, places to go, photographs to take, and plans to make. There was always something happening, always someone needing something, always another item on her to-do list. Even her quiet moments often came with a phone in her hand and a dozen thoughts competing for attention.

But here, in the middle of a pumpkin field, she had absolutely nowhere else she needed to be.

She smiled to herself. “Maybe I should do this more often.”

Finding the perfect pumpkin turned out to be a much more serious undertaking than Serena had anticipated. The first one was too tall. The second had a suspiciously flat side. The third was almost perfect, except for a rather unfortunate blemish that looked remarkably like a nose.

She photographed that one for Gavin.

Found your next patient. Possible nasal abnormality. Prognosis uncertain.

A few minutes later, her phone buzzed.

Does it have insurance?

Serena burst out laughing, earning a curious glance from a passing couple.

She kept searching until she spotted a beautiful, round orange pumpkin nestled between two sprawling vines. It wasn’t the largest or the most unusual, but it had a sturdy stem and a lovely shape.

“Well, hello there,” she said, crouching beside it. “I think you’re coming home with me.”

She carefully lifted the pumpkin and brushed a little dirt from its side. It fit perfectly in her arms.

On her way back toward the farm stand, she passed a wooden bench overlooking the fields. The view was so pretty that she decided to sit for a while. She set her pumpkin beside her and watched the afternoon unfold.

A little girl in bright pink boots skipped past, proudly carrying a pumpkin no bigger than an apple. An older couple walked hand in hand along the path, pausing now and then to admire the scenery. A pair of farm cats lounged in a patch of sunshine near the barn, which Serena admired strictly from a safe distance.

She thought about how disappointed she’d been that morning when everyone had turned down her invitation. It had seemed such a shame to visit the pumpkin patch alone. Now, though, she wasn’t disappointed at all.

She’d enjoyed the freedom to wander, to think, to photograph whatever caught her eye, and to simply enjoy the season without worrying about anyone else’s schedule.

She loved spending time with Gavin, her friends, and her family. That hadn’t changed. But she was beginning to appreciate something she’d occasionally forgotten: being alone didn’t have to mean being lonely.

Sometimes, it was rather wonderful.

Before leaving, Serena stopped at the farm bakery and bought a warm apple cider doughnut. Then she bought another, because Gavin would certainly want one when he got home. And two more, because it seemed unfair to visit her parents later without bringing something.

She also picked up a jar of apple butter, a small bouquet of dried flowers, and a miniature white pumpkin that she thought would look adorable on her kitchen windowsill.

By the time she reached her car, her arms were full, her cheeks were rosy from the cool air, and she was thoroughly pleased with herself.

Her phone buzzed as she loaded everything into the passenger seat. It was a message from Luna.

How was the pumpkin patch? I’m so sorry I couldn’t come!

Serena sent back a photograph of herself holding her pumpkin, the golden fields stretching behind her.

It was wonderful! I had the best time.

A moment later, another message appeared.

You went by yourself?

Yep! And I didn’t have to share my kettle corn.

Luna replied with three laughing emojis.

Serena climbed into the driver’s seat, but before starting the engine, she looked out across the farm one last time. The late-afternoon sunlight had turned everything a rich shade of gold. Families made their way toward the parking lot, children carried their treasures, and the old windmill stood silhouetted against the sky.

She felt a small, unexpected sense of accomplishment.

She hadn’t climbed a mountain, crossed an ocean, or done anything particularly extraordinary. She’d simply taken herself on a little autumn adventure.

And she’d loved every minute of it.

As she turned onto the country road, her phone connected to the car, and Gavin’s voice came through the speakers.

“Hey, beautiful. How was your day?”

“Wonderful,” Serena said. “I found the perfect pumpkin, took about a hundred pictures, ate far too much kettle corn, and bought you a doughnut.”

“That sounds amazing. I’m sorry I missed it.”

“That’s okay. We can go together another time.”

There was a pause.

“You know,” Gavin said, “I’m glad you went anyway.”

“Me too.”

“Although I do have one question.”

“What’s that?”

“Did you buy just one pumpkin?”

Serena glanced at the passenger seat, where her large orange pumpkin sat beside the tiny white one.

“Define ‘one.'”

Gavin laughed. “That’s what I thought.”

Serena smiled as the road curved through the autumn countryside. Her favorite song came on the radio again, and she turned it up just a little.

The day hadn’t turned out the way she’d planned. Somehow, it had turned out even better.

And as the golden fields slipped past her windows, Serena decided that perhaps the best thing about sweater weather wasn’t the sweaters, the pumpkins, or even the apple cider doughnuts.

It was remembering that sometimes, the very best company was your own.