“Can we go to the punkin’ patch?”
I can remember my kids asking that question about this time every year.
All it took was a couple of cool, crisp mornings on our ride to school, and they inevitably thought about a trip to our local pumpkin farm. And they rarely had to ask twice because, like them, I was ready as soon as the first leaf fell from the water oak in our front yard.
So, off we went on a Saturday in October. Of course, we had to dress to match (or at least coordinate) in some rich autumn colors because family pictures would be a necessity.
All four of us piled in the car and rolled down the windows to enjoy the cooler wind blowing in our hair. But we usually had to stop for a good, downhome breakfast first, with some eggs, bacon, biscuits, and gravy. (It’s never really breakfast without the gravy.)
After our bellies were full, we headed to our favorite spot, Pumpkin Patch Farms, which is about an hour away in Blue Mountain, Mississippi.
Even parking was fun. The farther away the better because we got a longer hayride to the front gate. By the way, if you have never had a good, long hayride on the back of a trailer pulled by a noisy tractor, then you really haven’t lived. There’s just something about a hayride that brings out the kid in everyone.
My 80-year-old daddy especially loved climbing onto a flatbed and riding beside his grandbabies. It sparked lots of stories from long ago of hayrides with his brothers and sisters.
At the front gate of the farm, the real fun began as we scrambled off the tractor-trailer and headed into the farm.
It is amazing how much activity can be crammed into such a small space: games, rides, food, arts and crafts, face painting, and an entire farm filled with animals to pet and enjoy.
But the best part of the day was searching through the rows and rows of pumpkins to find the perfect size and color. Sometimes, it could be frustrating because one of our sons was pretty picky about finding “his punkin.” One special beauty seemed to be calling his name, and he was determined to find it, no matter how long it took.
Looking back, his father and I were probably way too impatient. In hindsight, I wish we had made more of an adventure of finding that one special pumpkin.
But no matter the frustration, we often participated in campfire fun before leaving, including roasting hotdogs, singing songs, sharing stories, and making s’mores. It was the perfect end to a perfect Mississippi day!
Most of the time, our sons fell asleep on the way home, as my husband and I just held hands and smiled in exhaustion. It never failed though, both boys got a second wind as soon as we pulled up to the house, and we had to carve or paint our pumpkins right then and there.
What an ooey-gooey mess!
But according to the boys, that was the best part. They loved pulling the yucky, stringy pulp and seeds from their pumpkins. They could not wait to wash and dry the seeds to roast them for eating later. Every moment of the messy, marvelous process delighted them.
I can see some of those not-so-perfectly-crafted creations in my mind’s eye. I can also see the precious smiles on the faces of our boys. And I can remember their hugs and sweet whispers, “Thank you, Momma. Thank you, Daddy. Today was the best day ever.”
Even now, as I sit here in the cool, brisk air of this beautiful Mississippi morning in October, I look back and wistfully wish I could hear their sweet, innocent voices asking one more time, “Can we go to the punkin’ patch?”
Looking for a pumpkin patch to visit in Mississippi? Click here.
