Oct 23, 2010

When I was growing up, my family had a ranch where we grew all sorts of fresh fruits and vegetables. It was hard work, and the rabbits, squirrels, and birds often got the best of the harvest. Zucchini did particularly well. Pumpkins, on the other hand, did not- The growing season was just slightly too short for them most years. So every Halloween, we went to the grocery store to buy our pumpkins.

When I moved to Portland, I discovered that while the grocery stores sell pumpkins at pretty reasonable prices, and going to the store is quick and easy, it’s so much more fun to go out to the farms. Especially when there are corn mazes, petting zoos, and all sorts of other fun diversions at the farms and in the surrounding area.

I have been to Sauvie Island and to Hood River in past years and both places have great pumpkin patches. This year I went to Fir Point Farms in Aurora with Alex, my sister, my cousin, her husband, and their 2 year old.

Fir Point Farms is located at 14601 Arndt Road in Aurora. The farm is a quick drive from Portland, just a few minutes from Highway 5 using exit 282A towards Canby. The Harvest Festival takes place every weekend in October, but the farm is open 7 days a week from 9 am to 6 pm. Fir Point Farms is a popular place to get a pumpkin. The farm has a large parking area, so we had no problem finding parking, even though it was just a week from Halloween and a Saturday.

There were many fun things to do at the farm. We decided to save getting pumpkins for last, so we walked past the pumpkin patch when we first got to the farm and instead explored the other attractions. Some of the rides and activities were free and others took tickets which you purchased in the farm store. We did not end up purchasing any tickets when we visited this time; however, there were many we might have done had the kids and the weather been more cooperative. Alex is, I am afraid, still a little to small for many things, and it was raining on and off while we were at the farm. I had intended to go through the corn maze, but being lost in the corn with a baby in the pouring rain did not seem like a good idea. Among the other ticketed activities offered at the farm were pony rides, a hay wagon, a corn cannon, a face painter, and a nut house (a log cabin filled with hazelnuts that the kids played in).

We started by visiting the farm animals. You can pet the animals free and the kids love it. If you want to feed them, the food is for sale for a quarter in little machines next to the cages. After feeding the goats and visiting the other animals, we stopped at the Inflatable castle. This was definitely my cousin’s two year old daughter’s favorite activity, and it was free! Alex did not go in as it was pretty popular and he’s still a bit too small. He had great fun at his birthday party at Inflatable Kingdom, but at his birthday party, he was the center of attention. There were a lot of kids in this Inflatable, and I would not have been able to go in with him. We checked out the nut house and considered going in there, but decided against it. The kids were having a lot of fun in there, but once again I decided Alex was too small. If we go back next year, he can do both.

There was an Ark play structure with paintings of animals, a steering wheel, stairs, and a slide. Alex enjoyed holding the wheel and climbing the stairs, but was too small for the slide. The 2 year old loved the slide. After leaving the Ark, we wandered about the farm a little longer, took photos on the tractor, checked out the spooky cabin, and visited the ponies, then we went into the farm market. I bought some fresh apple juice and a quarter pound of fudge, which Alex and I shared. The rain was really coming down hard, so we all sat down and snacked inside a large tent they have set up for parties. There was a pen in the center of the tent which had baby birds in it, and the kids really enjoyed watching the birds.

When we finished, we went out in the rain and picked our pumpkins. The pumpkins in the pumpkin patch are mostly mid sized. I did not see any really big ones or really small ones. There are wheel barrels and wagons to load the pumpkins in, and you bring your selections over to a measuring station where they price them and give you a slip of paper to pay for them. You then take the paper back to the store and pay for your pumpkins while they hold them at the measuring station for you. After you have paid, you can drive your car over to pick up your pumpkin. They had a pretty good system, but I messed them up by putting one of the pumpkins we had chosen back in the wagon. The pumpkin got lost and my cousin had to find a new pumpkin. Oops!

After we picked up our pumpkins, we all headed home and carved them together that night. It was a great afternoon and I am looking forward to going back again some time!

Have a great Halloween! Don’t forget, Inflatable Kingdom’s Halloween party is coming up October 31 from 6 to 8 pm.

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