A Muddy Pumpkin Farm

Saturday morning was dry, sunny and perfect for pumpkin picking. We decided to take advantage of the weather and went online in search of a nearby pumpkin patch and found one on the eastside that looked acceptable, I mean they had pumpkins -- our main agenda item, so we gassed up the family car, loaded the girls in, and went on down the road.

We drove no more than 25 minutes before we found ourselves on a long stretch of highway with nothing but grass and earth before us. We slowed to a crawl realizing that we had reached our destination. We watched as cars took their time turning into the pumpkin patch parking lot and then proceeded slowly until they found an open spot in which to park. We didn't understand why it was taking so long to pull into the lot until we pulled in ourselves.

We discovered that the lot was thick with dark clay that had turned into a soupy muddy mess no doubt from the torrential rains that had carpet bombed the area the day before. Cars were proceeding slowly because the chance of sliding or getting stuck was no joke. As we drove in, I thanked my lucky stars that we had just put four, brand new tires on our car for otherwise we would have been S.O.L. for sure. We trudged through, finding a parking spot sooner than expected. That was only the first obstacle. Next we had to step out into the goo and then walk toward the pumpkin area. The mud was slippery under our boots so we walked deliberately avoiding as many puddles as possible finally making our way over to the pumpkins.

While looking for the perfect shape and size pumpkin, I spotted a fellow coop mom and called over to her. Both of us giving a disapproving nod to the mud situation then guffawed over the pumpkin prices. I explained that if it were up to me, I'd be happy with buying a bunch of pumpkins from Safeway to save money and time. Of course I was mostly joking because I love the tradition of taking the girls for our annual pumpkin adventure. We both agreed that the visit to the pumpkin patch had very little to do with the pumpkins but rather that it was all about the ambiance. And it was.

We ultimately left the farm with several over priced pumpkins in tow, looking like complete mud monsters with smiles on our faces. Here are some images from our trip. They're less about the pumpkins and more about the rest of what was there.

And this wasn't the muddy part of the patch. This was the tolerable area -- the area where Alex pleaded, "Mud, mud. I want to go in the mud."

This Kettle Corn was delicious. Next time I'll remember to splurge on the larger bag.

I'm sure this honey taste very good, but I mostly love the container. Aren't they beautiful jars all nicely topped with these pretty jar hats. How crafty.

Happy Halloween!