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It’s fall ya’ll!
I love fall. It means pumpkin spice and apple cider and temperatures lower than triple digits!
It also means it’s time for our annual trip to the pumpkin patch!
Hubby and I started this tradition a couple years before Emma was even born. In a state where we don’t see much seasonal change, it was a nice “fall-ish” thing to do together. We just went for the experience. We never even bought pumpkins.
Now that we have little ones, it’s become one of our most important family traditions. And I have to say, having kids along can, at times, be maddening, but it’s also way more fun! And now that Charlie’s finally old enough to participate in things, it’s even better still!
While there are a few pumpkin patch options in our area, our go-to has been the Marana Pumpkin Patch. It’s just a short 15-min drive from our house so it’s quick to get there (and get home, if a child is having a meltdown). It also has lots of fun activities for kids, like zip lines, slides, and a petting zoo!
My favorite part of the festivities is the train! It travels outside the festival area, around the corn maze, and back again.
They even have a smaller, kid-size pumpkin train! One adult can ride in a pumpkin, but the ceiling is pretty low, so you have to hunch the whole time.
This year, now that Emma’s older, she was actually interested in doing some other activities that have been “too scary” for her in previous years. Like ride a pony!
Or drive a little “tractor” (she actually did a really good job. Hubby swears she’s going to be a NASCAR driver!)
Then it’s time to burn off some energy on the bounce pillows and by climbing the giant haystack (because what could possible me more fun for a kid than to climb up to the sky?!)
The last thing we do before hitting the actual pumpkin patch is the corn maze. This is always Hubby’s favorite part. It’s fun to let the little ones “lead” (with guidance, of course. We don’t want to be there all day) while we follow behind. Occasionally I’ll take a detour around the opposite side of a loop we’re walking in just so I can jump out and scare Emma. Because I’m a bad mom who takes pleasure in making her children jump and scream.
Before kids, we’d just leave after the corn maze. But now, a trip to the pumpkin patch to pick a pumpkin (or two) is an absolute must! Emma’s very specific on what she’s looking for in a pumpkin (that girl has opinions on everything).
We love going to the pumpkin patch! It’s our favorite fall tradition! And this particular pumpkin patch has also started transforming the patch into a Christmas wonderland, complete with lights, hot cocoa, and Santa! We’re definitely going to try and make it out there this holiday season too!
What about you? What are your favorite fall traditions?
