Pumpkin Patch {Fall Bucket List}

I can barely believe I am writing our pumpkin patch post. Life gets so busy and before you know it, you're ringing in a new year. Right now, we are thinking pumpkins and before long it will be all about turkeys. Eek! How does this happen every. single. year? We wait so patiently for summer to turn to fall. And once the temperature drops...BOOM!...we are unwrapping Christmas presents. 

For our family, the past 4 weeks seem to have flown by. We are two weeks out from Halloween and a new month, November. I'm losing my footing, friends. I need to dig my heels in and start making the most of my favorite season. Thankfully a free weekend day presented itself and we headed to the pumpkin patch. Not the one in the mall parking lot but the farm type. Believe it or not, California does have real, true-to-the-name pumpkin patches. Bates Nut Farm is our local favorite. In fact, we have only ever ventured to Bates' pumpkin patch for our pumpkin hunting adventure. I love we are on an actual farm and we can scour the fields for the perfect pumpkins. The kids are especially into it.

The pumpkin patch keeps true to its farm feel with tractor hay rides, a petting zoo, and "corn" maze. By corn, they mean hay bales but you have to cut them some slack. It's Southern California, they probably don't know the difference!

The field of orange always makes a great picture. My kids love to walk through and try to pick up the heaviest pumpkins. Or stand on them... *ehm* Derrick. 

Seriously, it's like his thing.

Zac is all about pushing the wheelbarrow. Derrick too. However, Derrick is a bit lot clumsy. He managed to topple the pumpkin filled wheelbarrow one or twelve times on its side.  I had to put him on restriction. Ky is smarter than to believe in the novelty of a wheelbarrow. She was more into photographing Charlie. On the pumpkin, beside the pumpkin, looking at the pumpkin, sniffing the pumpkin. She is all about her dog.

Now, the torch is passed to the husband. He is the official pumpkin carver of our home. I do triangles. He does characters. Creative. Power tools. The kids love it. I get a break. Everyone is happy.

We've got two more weeks left of this wonderful month. Have you made a trip to the pumpkin patch? Are you finding other ways to enjoy the season?