When the girls were really little, one of my favorite things to do each fall was to take them to the pumpkin patch for hay-rack rides, pumpkin-picking, and sugar cookies. Many years later, that simple pumpkin patch has grown into an enormous country-folk attraction, offering everything from haunted houses to pony rides, with hot dogs and turkey legs (and sugar cookies) at every turn.
Last week was the opening week of Vala's Pumpkin Patch, and since the weather was perfect, we 5 Stewarts headed out.
The girls found a plastic duck race wherein each participant had to pump water as fast as she could to get her duck to "swim" the fastest, all the way to the end…
After the race, we realize that Mike had disappeared… and soon found him several yards away, stuffing a hot dog into his face before any of us could as him to buy us one…
Sabrina and Sophie decided to give the giant jumping pillow a try next…
This one cracks me up, bc Sabrina looks like an underwater genie…
Oh, the perils of long hair!
Again, we asked, "Where is Mike?"
"Where is our loving, strong father?"
"Where is that stud-muffin manly-man husband of mine?"
I honestly believe he had no idea we had found him.
Sabrina and Sophie decided to join him, and I had to laugh at my Sabrina… she waffles bw being the fun-loving child that still wants to play on a jungle gym, yet when she realizes she'll be 17 soon, she decides that if she's going to play on a jungle-gym, she must look glamorous while doing so…
Mike, on the other hand, doesn't know that he passed 17 many years ago.
I noticed a man sitting on a bench nearby, singing to his baby. It was the most precious thing, watching him in his own world, completely charmed by the bundle in his arms. Although everything in me was telling me to hush, I decided to ask him if I could take his photo. He was a little startled, but he agreed when I told him that I just thought it was the sweetest thing in the world to see, and I wasn't a crazed stalker…
Of course, maybe he wouldn't have been so startled if I hadn't looked like this:
Of course I'm kidding. This was inside a little shop – with LOTS of orange lights! – and we were all having fun trying on masks and looking at the creepy souvenirs. Although the background is the only thing in focus, I like it bc of the woman's expression behind us as Sabrina is sneaking up on me…
(See there? You have no need to fear the Grim Reaper, bc that's all he's going to do to you anyway.)
Mike suddenly showed up, when he realized someone was taking pictures…
Sabrina's second attempt at terrorizing a family member (it's hard to see, but she's wearing an enormous gnarled hand)…
Bre was happily trying on Halloween accessories behind Sophie…
Here is the photo that was intended for my October banner, but the light in the shop was too difficult to work with…
Back outside…I love this old car!
Clearly, Sabrina takes after her father…
Turkey legs! The rest of us had chili dogs and bottled root beer – and sugar cookies. 🙂
It was a pleasant time, as it always is at the pumpkin patch. We left with a huge bag of kettle corn to share on the ride home (I'm still finding popcorn kernels on the floor of my car), and we're already excited to go back again. (Okay, I can't really speak for Breanna, who is probably in her dorm, furiously practicing her duck-racing skills rather than studying for exams.)
Before I go, I'd like to share one last disturbing photo with you. It's of Sabrina, on top of some sort of dirt pile, pretending she had just climbed a huge mountain. However, Sabrina is not the disturbing part of the photo. Can you guess what is?
It's been almost a week since we went to Vala's, and I imagine Mike has no idea we even left.