A Fall Tradition We've Been Doing for 12 Years

I always get so nostalgic this time of year, and today is no different.

When we first started dating, I remember us always doing little things for each other here and there. Little surprises to make each other smile and gestures to show how much we cared for one another. We still do those now, though after 12 years of being together, sometimes it’s easy to take some of those things for granted. But there is something we both always cherish, year after year, as soon as fall hits.

When we first got together, I mean that very first year way back in 2010, that was when I first bought PJ a Pumpkin Pie Blizzard from DQ. I was 19 and had no money like, ever, but those were affordable and seemed like the perfect fall treat. The sweet pumpkin flavor, the delicious pieces of pie crust mixed in, the thick whipped cream on top. It’s exactly what fall tastes like, and another reason why I love the season so much.

And once the season came and went and it was fall again in 2011, I surprised him with another Pumpkin Pie Blizzard. And then again the next year, and the year after that, and the year after that. It’s always been a fun little surprise to start the new season with and, in a way, was the official kickoff of fall for us every year.

It became such a thing between us, that around September every year, when I would tell him “I have something for you!”, he would immediately guess what it was and get it right every time.

Sadly, the last few years have been quite busy, and I have let our little tradition fall by the wayside, and I hate that. This year, though, we were in the parking lot of a shopping plaza that happened to be connected to the DQ. PJ looked at me and asked if we should get a Pumpkin Pie Blizzard “like we used to”, which kind of broke my heart, but I digress!! I will get back on track next year.

I told him of course we should! So we went through the drive-thru with our sons and we each got a Pumpkin Pie Blizzard. It tasted just like it did in 2010 and, for a moment, I was 19 and PJ was 24 and we had no cares in the world. It’s funny how food (and smells and places and songs and movies) can take you right back to a specific place and time, isn’t it?

Fall has a special place in both our hearts: it’s when we first got together, when we got married, when we adopted our kids last year. I hope we never stop our little tradition. It’s such a magical time of the year to celebrate love.