Pumpkin Gathering

Yesterday was a truly glorious fall day.  The sun was out, the weather was warm, and thoughts of pumpkins were on my mind.  So, with the grass freshly cut, and a Sunday afternoon with absolutely no plans ahead of us, we decided to do a little pumpkin gathering.  

We opted for a new pumpkin patch this year and I'm so glad we did.  Creekside Farm in Port Orchard is exactly what we needed.  While it may seem small in comparison to some of those productions in the Orting Valley, this same smallness is what made it so charming.  It's a Mom and Pop operation through and through, with all six of their children helping out where ever they could.  

Initially, Nora was a little disappointed that there was no corn maze to wander hopelessly lost through, but the farm animals, a little hay ride, and pumpkins galore more than made up for it.  So after a very detailed account of the farm, it's offerings, and activities, by one of the farmer's young sons, we set off with baggies of feed for the goats, sheep, chickens and ducks.

Despite being an experienced horse-feeder, Nora was, surprisingly, afraid to feed the goats and sheep. First, she dumped their food in the trough:   

Here ya go little sheep!

When she got a little braver, she tried to pet them through the fence.  

I think she almost touched him here

I don't know if she thought they were going to bite her fingers, or tickle her, or what, but it took her a long time and many examples of "how to feed a sheep," from her dad and I, before she overcame her fear.  

Just hold your hand nice and flat Nora, like this.

See Nora: This sweet face would never bite you!

But when she did, they became fast friends.  

And then it was all smiles

But not as good a friend as Dave; they really bonded.  

That's the spot!  Keep it coming big guy!

Apparently, goats are a lot like dogs.  They like to get scratched!  And they know dog people when they meet them.  

Oh that feels sooo good Dave!

As did Sophie, the real star (in our eyes) of the farm.  

We loved Sophie 

Sophie is a sweet, gentle, all-black Australian Shepherd.  We spent a lot of time playing with her, petting her and wishing she could be ours.  Okay, maybe that was just me.  But I would've brought her home in a heart-beat, given the chance.  But, alas, unlike the pumpkins, she was not for sale.  

Although I could have stayed and played with Sparkle, Sweetie, (the goats) and Sophie all day, eventually it was time to load up the pumpkins and head home.  

So we did: even Nora's forty-pounder!

That's right: the littlest Larson picked out the biggest pumpkin!