My Favorite Pumpkin Patch!

 The winner of my favorite pumpkin patch goes to...

Indian Knoll Pumpkins in Mechanicsburg, IL

There's just something so special about Indian Knoll to me. Even on a busier day, it's still peaceful. 

I stumbled upon Indian Knoll purely by luck. My mom, Daniel and I were driving back to Taylorville from Springfield when we saw a sign for a pumpkin patch. I had been on bed rest for the past couple of weeks, and my mom had just brought Daniel home from Iowa not long before that. My doctor had given me the go ahead to go out and go shopping or walking, just to kind of see how my body was going to react. That way my mom would still be there to help if I had anymore complications.

I was feeling really good, so we decided to follow the signs and pulled up to Indian Knoll. It was a quiet day, and I quickly recognized Elizabeth, who was walking toward me. I had taken care of her youngest son at the Y, had a just recently had to quit because of the pregnancy complications. She also introduced me to Penny and I found out their family runs the patch.

Daniel had an amazing time. I think he would have been content to play with the mini golf the entire time, but we explored, and had a wonderful day. We ended up with a wagon full of pumpkins and mums and I vowed that I would come back again the next year. Bonus: It pays to know the family who runs/owns the patch because your pregnant self will be able to use the nice bathroom instead of the port-a-potty. It's also come in handy with potty training. Ha!

Cue, the next Fall, and Daniel ended up in preschool with Elizabeth's son...and they obviously did a field trip there! My parent's drove over and we once again had an amazing time. I loved watching James crawl around and explore. This was his first pumpkin patch!

Over the years I've been on 4 field trips and many other trips with just the boys and I. I usually watch the weather and pick the weekend that looks like the BEST fall weather. I think the past 2 years we've spent 4-5 hours there. The boys know their way around, and while I still stick by them, it's nice that I can sometimes kick back and just enjoy the scenery and breathe in the fresh country air.

It's been so much fun watching the patch grow too. Every year, they add new activities for the kids. They've added food vendors. They have a barn filled with amazing crafts/foods etc, made by local businesses. Adults are free. Kids have an admission fee to do the activities or there is a wrist band, which is a great deal too. The only reason I never get the wrist band is because they don't like getting their faces painted, and we usually paint pumpkins at home. So they get one go on the barrel train, and then they know they can do anything else as much as they'd like.

I think one of my favorite memories was during Daniel's 4 year old preschool field trip. James absolutely refused to get on the wagon to ride through the jack patch. We tried to no avail, so I said to just go. As soon as the wagon started moving, James wanted on...so his little 2.5 year old legs went chasing the wagon until he his feet just couldn't keep going. It was hilarious and sad all at once to watch him stop and watch in defeat as the wagon kept on moving.

You will seriously not regret making a trip to Indian Knoll. I have a rule/tradition that no matter how many patches I visit in a season, the only place I will buy my pumpkins and mums are from them. 

Last year I had a wagon full and as I was debating out loud, "Do I REALLY need that white pumpkin?" Daniel replies with, "Yes. Just get it. You know you want too" Ha! And that white pumpkin looked very nice on my porch.

I'm itching to get out there this year too. Next weekend is opening weekend, but I don't have the boys, so it looks like we'll make it the following weekend. Fingers crossed for some perfect fall weather that day! And of course, one of the very first things I did when I got the green light to have preschool was to book our field trip there in October. 

What can I say? I'm a little obsessed.

If ever the day comes (and I know it will), that my kids outgrow the patch, my mama heart will probably break. I love to look back on the photos from each year. This is the patch that I can always say they "grew up" at. 6 years and counting. And Penny already knows that when my kids outgrow it...or even anytime, I'm down to work there. I told my mom the first time we visited, "I'm going to work here one day." Call me crazy, to have a dream to work at a pumpkin patch, but that's how much I love it.

I literally have hundreds of photos, but I tried to stick with only my favorites over the years. I can't wait to add more this year too! Fingers crossed this slideshow works.

 

Pumpkin Patch Love (Part 3)

 We've reached the top 3 of my favorite pumpkin patches!

2nd and 3rd place were really hard to pick because they're both deserving of a top spot.

Coming in 3rd place is Pumpkin Creek Farms in Sherman, IL

We first visited this patch 3 years ago. I had seen a few friends post pictures, and decided to take the boys one weekend to check it out. It was an absolutely beautiful day, and we spent several hours playing.
I was shocked at how cheap their admission was for everything that was included in the price. James even made it in just under the wire with his age for free admission. 

The first discovery was the giant corn bin. The boys even got me to come in and play. Have you really even visited a pumpkin patch if you don't come home and have corn falling out of random articles of clothing for the rest of the day?

They've got a small petting zoo, and you are also able to feed the goats, which James loved. They have bowling, huge hay bales to climb with slides, small corn tables for younger kiddos, duck races and swing sets. They have a hay ride that you can ride as many times as you want. The first year, I think the boys convinced me to ride it 3 times. They also have a barrel train that the kids can ride unlimited times. I think rode 2 or 3 times. I loved the atmosphere. The owners interact with guests. I love being able to breathe in fresh country air. The leaves were starting to change that year as well. Before we left, I decided to try an apple cider donut. Let's just say, I left with a dozen more and I crave them still. The donuts alone almost pushed Pumpkin Creek into 2nd place.

We also visited 2 years ago with my parent's. It was a blustery day. We're talking 40mph wind gusts and fairly chilly. We considered not going because of the wind, but I'm glad we did. We didn't spend as long as we did before because of it, but we still had such a great time...and ate donuts in the van. 

We didn't make it last year, so this year we're going opening weekend!

Squeaking into 2nd place is Bloomsbury Farm in Atkins, Iowa.

While they are pricier than some and quite a tourist attraction, I definitely have a special place in my heart for it. The sole reason that it got the 2nd place spot is because Bloomsbury was where my love of pumpkin patches began.

I don't think I even have any pictures from my first visit, because like I said in my first post, I only went because my mom and sister made me feel guilty. My mom had coupons with free admission or something, and so I went with my parents and Kendra. This was before I had kids, so I really didn't care about the activities. We were there for the huge corn maze. What kind of idiots enjoy walking around in the corn for a couple of hours? Turns out, this idiot!

I got to go on a field trip with the daycare I worked at. I worked in the infant room, so never got to go on field trips. My boss was complaining that she was going to have to go on one with the preschoolers, so I jumped at the opportunity. She took my place and I took her's. This time, I got to do all the kid activities too...and then spend the drive back on the school bus catching rolling pumpkins. 😂

When Daniel was 10.5 months we took him to Bloomsbury. Thus, beginning my tradition of going to patches every single year with my kids. We even pushed a stroller through a semi muddy corn maze.

We went back in 2014. I was pregnant with James, and Daniel was nearing becoming a "threenager"...so while we had fun, we also had meltdowns that day because he didn't get a nap! I legitimately handed him off to my parents and Kendra and I boarded a wagon ride so I could get a break from my child!

By this year, they had added so many more new activities for kids. A big bouncy thing, corn bin, petting zoo, pig races, slides and more.

2 or 3 years ago, we had planned to take the boys to Pumpkin Patch Pizzazz, but it rained a ton, and we decided that we didn't want to deal with the mud. But, I was sad. I really wanted to go to the pumpkin patch, so Kendra and I decided that we were going to sneak off without telling the boys and we went to Bloomsbury. We had so much fun! We obviously did the corn maze...and got ridiculously lost. We found the same checkpoint at least a half a dozen times which meant we were walking in big circles!
We played on the big slides and then decided to do the "haunted house" which is geared for kids. That didn't stop us from screaming and being terrified. They also added Bags so we played that, and we of course had to get our picture in the giant rocking chair!

This year (hopefully...because 2020) we're going back! This will be James' first time...besides in the womb. I know he'll love it! 

Tomorrow, I reveal the number 1 spot...which if you know me, then you clearly have already figured out which pumpkin patch it is. It deserved it's own post. Now, how I'm going to pick which pictures to use is beyond me. I literally have hundreds!

Pumpkin Patch Love (Part 2)

Tonight, I continue rating the pumpkin patches I've visited. Last night I shared the bottom 3. Tonight I'm sharing the middle of the road pumpkin patches.

Coming in 5th Place it The Great Pumpkin Patch in Arthur, IL

The Great Pumpkin Patch is beloved by many. The only reason it is ranking further down on my list is because I feel like it's super touristy, and always packed with people. I have only visited once. My sister came to visit and we decided to take Daniel, who was almost 2 at the time.
It felt overpriced, and I feel like we even had to pay extra to do the corn maze. I'm still confused to this day by that maze. We thought from the sounds of it, it would be huge, but somehow made it out in record time. We ran into these people who had been lost forever, and I have no idea how!
There was plenty to do there. They had animals, small hay bale mazes, the corn maze, hayrides and more. I'm pretty sure we stayed all afternoon, but it's not one I put on my Fall Bucket List each year.

4th Place goes to Pumpkin Patch Pizzazz in Monticello, Iowa

This is where is starts getting hard to narrow down my favorites! 2nd, 3rd and 4th are tricky because they're all pretty close. My number one is easy though. It has a special place in my heart.

My parents, Kendra and I took the boys here twice, and we absolutely loved it. Both times we went it wasn't overly busy. It was smaller, but they had so many fun things for kids of all ages. 
They had a ton of handmade games like, life sized Candy Land, Memory, tic, tac, toe and more. I'm not gonna lie. Life sized Candy Land was pretty epic. They also had cute photo props, so I of course had fun with those! A small corn maze, which was fun to go through. A corn bin, duck races and farm animals. I really loved the whole atmosphere of the place. 

I loved that was just the right size for the boys and we were able to spend lots of time exploring.

Sadly, last year they were unable to open, and as far as I could tell, it appears they may have shut down completely. 

And my all time favorite picture taken there:

Stay tuned for Part 3. I might give the Top 3 their own individual posts, or I might just save that for my number 1. What do you think? Let me know!

Pumpkin Patch Love (Part 1)

Anyone who knows me at all, knows that I love Fall and I have an obsession with pumpkin patches. The love quite honestly started before I had kids, but having kids gave me the incentive to go. The first time I ever went to a pumpkin patch, I went very begrudgingly. I rolled my eyes and said, "This is such an Iowa thing to do. Pay money to walk through corn."  Who knew I'd end up loving it!?

I'm gearing up for a fun season with the boys. I have them all week, but every other weekend. So, we're going to hit up a couple of my favorite patches, and maybe even check out another one I've been wanting to visit for a few years. Thinking about patches, made me go back and look through pictures over the year (and I have A LOT). I decided I'd write a post about all of the ones we've visited, but then I realized I have way too much to say, so I'm breaking it up into a few posts.

I thought it would be fun to rank them from my least favorite to my favorite. We've been to 8 pumpkin patches (although to my favorites multiple times!).

Tonight I will post about the 3 that just haven't piqued my pumpkin love as much as the others.

*Disclaimer: These are solely my own opinions, don't be hating on me!

8. Coming in last place, is Bart's Farm in Marion, Iowa. 

This little patch is right down the road from my parent's house. It's very small, but it's also free. I know a lot of people who enjoy going there, but for me it's just lackluster. There's a small petting zoo, a very small maze (I think?), and a few good photo ops. You'll only spend 20-30 minutes there, tops.

7. Cottonwood Farm in Lockport, IL

I almost feel bad placing this near the bottom, but I only visited there once when Daniel was a baby. My cousin, her sister-in-law and I took our boys. It was the perfect weather. It was a nice sized farm, with a hayrack ride, animals and a cute little playground. It was actually a fun day, just not one I'd go back to often.  (This was also the day my cousin tried to kill us...but proved she had excellent brakes. I've never let her live it down!)

6. Big M in Taylorville, IL

Okay, hear me out...this is a great little pumpkin patch to spend a couple of hours at. I don't know what it is, but it's just not my favorite. I've never even taken James there. I've taken Daniel twice. 

The first time I took him, he freaked the heck out on the hay ride and so I got us off in the patch, and walked back to the farm because he thought the tractor was going to eat us or something.

The second time, we had fun. James was a baby, so instead of making Daniel have quiet time during his nap, I took him to Big M and he had a blast. He went through the mini hay bale maze over and over. Climbed haystacks and went down the big slides. They have lots of cute little photo op areas set up as well. I also decided that we'd do the corn maze. Ya'll...I got straight up lost. Daniel was getting so annoyed because I couldn't find my way out, but eventually we found some guys to follow and made it out.

We've made so many good memories, and really each and every place has its own unique vibe. I can't wait to share more tomorrow night. Stay tuned!