Milo at the Pumpkin Patch

Today the community centre we like to visit is going on a field trip to "The Pumpkin Patch" — a farm in Richmond that really gets into the Halloween spirit. Luckily, we took Milo on Sunday.

Now I'd never been before, but that was clearly a mistake. Milo had so much fun that we started talking about coming back next year.

The deal is that you pay your $10 (Milo was under 3, so he was free) and go through the gates. There are pigs, sheep, goats, ducks, and ponies (available to ride for a few bucks extra) to look at, a big centre stage with a live band, and a big 'ol farm ready to explore.

Important note: the stage has rows of hay bales to sit on, but kids aren't allowed to throw the hay there. They've set up a separate tent about 30 feet away JUST for throwing hay! Man, Milo could have stayed there all day, and he already knew about the tractors.

Speaking of tractors, it was time for the hay ride. We jumped on a big wagon pulled by a tractor (one hay ride included in your admission) and drove around the farm. Past the Transylvania graveyard, past the Pumpkin Princess' castle, to the corn maze.

Another important note: We arrived just before the place opened at 10 a.m. If you arrived at 11 a.m., you would have been waiting half an hour to get in, and another half an hour (at least!) for the wagons.

We wandered through the optional corn maze then headed to the furthest pumpkin patch, which was entirely deserted.


Also included in the admission was one pumpkin per person, and picking them out was the best part. Milo's not going to be able to carve one, but he's gonna dig it when it's lit up... as long as it's not too scary.