20 years of pumpkin bliss
Traditions to me are like Elmer’s glue to Kindergarteners… we stick together!
One of my favorite Fall traditions is our annual trip to the pumpkin patch. This year marks my 16th year working at Goebbert’s pumpkin farm, but our tradition of visiting the pumpkin patch in the Fall started a few years before I even knew I would be working there one day. I loved Goebbert’s then and I love it even more now thanks to the wonderful friendships and memories I’ve created there with the people I’ve worked with over the years.
Stan and I started taking Michelle to the pumpkin patch when she was a baby (still looking for that adorable picture of 9 month old Michelle holding herself up in the middle of hundreds of pumpkins… where are you picture??? I just saw you a few days ago!) It all started one breezy and sunny October day in 1998 and since then, we’ve visited the farm every single year. 20 years of creating Fall memories AND collecting pumpkins! 😊
Some of these twenty visits were carefully planned, some weren't. On those well planned visits, we would arrive early in the day and spend hours walking through the pumpkin patch, looking at all the animals, going on hay rides, enjoying the scenery, eating delicious Fall treats and even riding camels. As the girls got older and more involved in school and extra curriculum activities our trips to the pumpkin patch became more spontaneous and sometimes a little rushed, but nonetheless enjoyable. We made it a point every single year, no matter what our schedules have looked like, to all make it there as a family. That has always been very important to me. This year was the first year that Michelle wasn’t able to join us, but it’s ok, she is having the experience of her lifetime in New York City, learning and making memories of her own.
It has also been a lot of fun for me seeing the “behind the scenes” at Goebbert’s for sixteen years. All the hard work and commitment of hundreds of employees to ensure that families like us have the opportunity to create their own memories. I think I appreciate it even more now when we visit the farm on our day off.
Goebbert’s is a special place! The moment you drive into the parking lot you know you are in for a treat, a Fall treat that is! A big path of pumpkins and seasonal decor greets you. There are carving pumpkins, squash, gourds, jack-be-little pumpkins, corn stalks, fall mums, indian corn, and so much more. Then there is the kettle corn and roasted corn, hay rides (my favorite!), animal land, a pumpkin eating dinosaur and the funniest and cutest pig races you’d ever witness. But how can I forget the yummy treats (my second favorite thing!), everything is just delicious, especially the apple cider donuts and cherry slices if you ask me, yum!!! But my mom magnet at the farm is no doubt the “How Tall Are You?” sign towards the entrance of the farm. It doesn’t matter how old my girls are… they know I’ll be taking their picture there. They are so used to it now, they don’t even make a fuss walking themselves there, they stand tall and proud for me to snap a picture of them. Hey, after all, you never know if they’ve grown an inch or two in that year, even at the age of 20! 😉
Tonight we will be carving the pumpkins we picked at the farm on Friday night and something tells me that I’ll end up finishing the extensive work of pumpkin carving and seed roasting all by myself. My family has mastered the “ever so gentle (almost unnoticed) exit of the kitchen” the moment the gutting of the pumpkin starts, ay!
Family traditions (whatever they may be), are the soft voices inside our hearts that whisper to each other “I love you”, “we belong together”, “I’ve got you!” and I am thankful that October and the pumpkin patch has given us some of the best memories our family will ever have! ❤
P.S. I have created a gallery of photos in the menu tab to avoid cramming too many pictures in one post. The first gallery features a walk down “Goebbert’s’ memory lane. Some of my favorite pictures through the years. Enjoy!
