the faulkner pumpkin patch is the #1 pumpkin patch in the world and i plan to tell you just why. for starters, the trebuchet is the cherry on top if you can imagine that. getting there prior to closing is key we discovered this year. ...and as we entered at a nominal fee of just $3 a ticket, a non-smile that was somehow more comforting & casual than a smile-smile from an elderly fellow taking tickets, and a faulkner farm sticker we were certain that all of our pumpkin patch dreams were about to come true! we started with the hay-maze (pictured here) ...a labyrinth of bails where tiny tots went absolutely berserk squealing with glee whether or not they chose poorly or wisely. the free hay rides beckoned us so we took front row seats of the giant tractor (a first for the memorized gabel). the tour of the grounds detailing george & roda's 1886 victorian house and big red barn was just...plain swell... and i actually mean that. from there we perused the animal pens and petting zoo complete with frisky turkeys and baby chick-chick-chickens. the big barn we walked through was converted into a pretty sweet gift shop (in both senses of the word). while strolling through the plant shop we stumbled upon a lovable "meow-meow" (oddly enough this is not just toddler-talk but how i've always referred to cats... strange as it is) and a very pleasant older lady who was volunteering and insisted gabel become the proud new owner of his very first plant! she handed the kid a pot of soil with a single succulent leaf on top and he clung to it all day... collecting rocks in it... tipping its contents in the pumpkin-wheel-barrow, and loving it to pieces. let's see... from there we took a closer look at the trebuchet which if you've inspected one is always impressive... and watched as people paid 5 bucks to chuck a pumpkin at a tower of cinder blocks and miss every time. finally we made our way into the splendor that is thee world's greatest pumpkin patch ever. there we deliberated for hours and hours and hours over dozens and dozens of different pumpkin varieties... it is after all the largest and most extensive patch on the west coast! well, i don't know that for sure... but i do know it's very cool. in the end mr. gabel adopted a Baby Boo, i purchased a Lady's Purse and the chef snagged a Fairytale Pumpkin. (duke's is a little mixed gourd of some sort.) we capped off the experience with a pony ride for the tot on a tired looking steed named skunk...
...and all in all it was magical!
