Pumpkin Patch

We ventured to Enid, America's nearest legitimate pumpkin patch this weekend. It's about 30 minutes from us (as the crow flies, or 6 minutes if you're flying an airplane, Greg tells me), and while you're driving there, you think "Surely, we've passed it. There is nothing out here." And then, lo and behold, there is it: a few haphazard signs dotting the road 15 feet before the drive way and then, bam!, turn left and park.


 Let me first note though that was our second attempt in going. Last weekend, we wanted to go, but when I called to double check their hours on a  Sunday (always a good thing to do here in Enid, America) the gentleman that answered the phone said, "Open? Today? Well, ma'am. It's raining." Which means no, they are in fact not open. (What happened to rain coats? And boots?)

Anyway, I digress. Admittedly, this place advertises that they are a corn maze with a pumpkin patch.

I make this distinction because:
1. They charge $7 to get in (that's before you buy pumpkins. Which start at $2 a pop for the littlest ones!)
2. The gentleman that takes your money tells you all about their farm and the 5 different mazes they have this year. (There really are only 5 - though it sounds like more because he details how each one has more than on exit.)
3. As he is telling you about the farm and pointing out mazes, your eyes scan to the corn maze and you think to yourself, "Really? That's the maze, huh?" And you think this because you realize that it's really only a corn maze for Nate because the corn is much taller than he is.
(Quickly, the man taking your money tells you the corn is not actually corn. He calls it "city corn" and he notes that it's not very tall this year because of the drought. Ok, fair enough.)
4. Only as his spiel is winding up does he mention the pumpkin patch. Way at the back of the farm. And then he says, "If you want to get a pumpkin, come let us know and we'll get a knife and cut if off the vine for you. They are still growin', those pumpkins."

My initial reaction was pleasant surprise - I love that the pumpkins aren't already cut, just sitting in the field. I feel like that's a deceptive pumpkin patch. This pumpkin patch is a real pumpkin patch, where the earth has been tilled so that good natural beautiful pumpkins can grow. And my sweet little boy and pick one out from where they grow!

And then we got to the pumpkin patch. And I realized how fortunate we are in Washington to have Ed, who so kindly offers for us to come to his house, pick our pumpkins from his fields and taken them home. In his fields, there are pumpkins so big, you can sit on them! And there are tiny little pumpkins, perfect for small little hands to pick out and carry. And there are always so many!

There could not have been more than 100 pumpkins in the patch we went to on Saturday. And most of them were green in some way. Also, it's odd to pick out pumpkins when it is 80 degrees, and the dirt is dry and dusty.

But, we picked out four beauties (well, three pumpkins and a green and white striped gourd - it's gourd-geous!). When we took them to the table to pay for them, they said "Wow! Did you leave any in the field?!!?" Four pumpkins. No, three and a gourd.

Truthfully, though, Nate had a great time running around.

We may have to go to the church "pumpkin patch" (i.e., picked pumpkins that are displayed in front of a church in town, artistically displayed on hay bales) in town to get some good pumpkin patch pictures with Nate, though.

Oh, Enid, America - we love your quirkiness.