pumpkin |ˈpəm(p)kən| noun 1 a large rounded orange-yellow fruit with a thick rind, edible flesh, and many seeds: Take me to the pumpkin patch.
So, last week, the weather was getting colder in Dallas and I’d been wanting to take Field Christian and Camila to the Dallas Arboretum to visit the pumpkin patch there. I’ve been so busy with work, but I promised them on Wednesday night I would take them. After work, I piled my kids and friends in my car and took them to the Arboretum as promised.
But by the time we arrived there, after getting stuck in rush hour traffic, the venue was CLOSED. I had seen online that it would be open late on Wednesdays, but I didn’t realize that did not include the pumpkin patch. The kids were bummed… for a minute.
I heard some whining coming from the back seat and thought about what we could do… I quickly said, “Why don’t we make our own pumpkin patch at home?!!” The kids squealed in delight, and my mind raced with what on earth we would do in a Dallas high rise for a last-minute autumn celebration.
We picked up some big pumpkins and decorating supplies on the way home. Thank God, one of my friends that was with us had done this before because she had the best ideas. The kids actually seemed MORE excited about this idea–so we just started praying it would be good!
We started our little pumpkin-patch party by carving pumpkins in the kitchen. Each of the kids got their own pumpkin-carving station, and we had a contest for the best in the bunch.
After the pumpkin carving, we started a game of MUMMY WARS, and let the kids wrap each other up in toilet paper. This was so fun, and the kids LOVED it. We split them up into teams, and timed each player as they wrapped each other from head to toe. Such a fun, and easy game to play at home!
To end the evening, we decorated sugar cookies with frosting and sprinkles, and had a contest for the “scariest monster cookie”. The kids were covered in frosting, toilet paper, and pumpkin goo by the end of the night–but their smiles told me they had a GREAT time, even though we didn’t get to go to the actual pumpkin patch. Hey, maybe this is a new tradition for the Harrison Household!
Happy Pumpkin Patching!
XO-
Sabrina
