Fall Festivities

As much as I love Summer and hate seeing it end, I have to admit that I do love Autumn, especially now that I have kids.  Halloween is such a fun holiday.  I love hearing what the kids want to dress up as and I love going to the pumpkin farm.  The past three years we have visited Hunt Club Farm for their Harvest Festival.  We always have a great time.

The weekend after we went to Hunt Club Farm we traveled down to North Carolina to visit with some friends and checked out a different type of farm experience.  We went to 30 Acres and a Mule Farm for some gem panning.  When we pulled up we weren't sure if we were in the right place, but don't judge a book by it's cover. Our 5 year old boys were thrilled to do the gem panning. You pay $25 for a bucket filled with sand and gems. Then you are shown how to pan for gems using a pan and a water troff. The boys absolutely loved this activity. When we were done the lady looked at their rocks and identified the different types for them. She was very friendly and informative. You get to take all of the gems home with you. It's especially good for kids who have a rock collection or want to start one. If you have children aged 4+, I highly recommend looking online to see if there is somewhere near you that offers gem panning.  It was such a great, fun, educational experience for the kids and the grown ups.

Finally, there is the pumpkin carving:

Darth Pumpkin

Packer Pumpkin

And the costumes:

Happy Fall Y'all!!!