7th Generation Farm Pumpkin Patch

Halloween is just over a week away so we've been busy ticking all the Fall must dos off our list. This week's activity was visiting a pumpkin patch. We decided to stay local with a visit to 7th Generation Farm right here in Louisville after school one day.

7th Generation Farm was our pumpkin patch choice last year too, however last year we visited on a weekend and it was pretty busy. We wanted to avoid the crowds so going on a weekday after school was perfect. There were still other people there, but it was pretty quiet over all. We had the tractor ride, the pumpkin patch and the corn maze all to ourselves. Actually, we had pretty much everything to ourselves which was perfect!

Let's take a look...

Our First Snowy Day

If you're following Little Hiccups on Instagram, or if you happen to live in Colorado, you'll know that we had some pretty crazy weather last week - including our first snow!

The week started off with fairly typical (or what we've found to be typical so far) Fall weather: sunny days with temps in the 60s and 70s F (10s and 20s C) and cool nights. It even got as warm as 79F (26C) on Wednesday. But as Wednesday evening drew near, the wind picked up and grew stronger and stronger bringing colder temperatures down from the mountains. Thursday morning we woke to light snow falling outside and a dusting of white across our yard.

By the time Lola, Mathilde and I were ready to walk to school, the snowflakes had become large and fluffy and our yard was transformed into a Winter wonderland. It was a pretty magical sight and the girls couldn't wait to get out there in the snow.

Decked out in our warmest puffy jackets, beanies, mittens and snow boots (all of which took forever to put on!) we headed outside and started our slow walk to school. Usually Lola and I ride our scooters while Mathilde zooms along on her trusty balance bike and we get to school in about fifteen to twenty minutes. With snow on the ground and the sidewalks icy I figured that wheels were probably not the best option so we stuck with walking instead. This meant that our journey to school took about half an hour as the girls slowly trudged through the snow.

When we arrived at school we discovered a yellow flag on the school's flag pole. This meant that instead of waiting outside their classrooms for the bell to ring as usual, the kids were to enter their classrooms right away. I had wondered what the procedure would be for snowy days.

Fall Fun at Anderson Farms

It's finally Fall!

Well, it has been for a few weeks now, but it's finally starting to feel like Fall. The leaves are changing color, the nights are getting cooler, and there are pumpkins and Halloween decorations everywhere. 

To celebrate the coming of my favorite Season we headed to Anderson Farms in nearby Erie for a Fall Festival with Kim's work recently. It was such a fun event and a super fun place to celebrate the season.

Visiting a pumpkin patch is always one of my favorite Fall activities and just like everything with our move, a new pumpkin patch was on my "must find" list! Anderson Farms perfectly fit the bill checking off all my pumpkin patch favorites, plus more! Tractor rides, pumpkin picking, a corn maze, cheesy photo opportunities, a petting zoo, fun rides and amusements... it's all there.

Chestnut Picking at Skyline Chestnuts

Autumn is the time of year for farm visits and harvests. 

Apple picking and pumpkin picking are definitely the two most common farm activities for visitors at this time of year, and something we thoroughly enjoy. Last weekend we decided to mix things up a little and spent an afternoon harvesting chestnuts. It was such a fun experience and so very different from picking apples. 

Years ago when Kim and I lived in Zurich, I tried roasted chestnuts for the first time and I was instantly hooked. I knew them as "maroni" and at the time had no idea what they were called in English. I'd buy them in little brown paper bags from street vendors in the cooler months and not only did they taste delicious, they instantly warmed me up whether I was eating them or just holding the bag in my cold hands. When we moved back to Australia chestnuts became a thing of the past, but every now and then I'd see them in a greengrocer and they'd bring back sweet memories of our time in Switzerland. 

It's been almost eighteen years since we lived in Zurich (eek!) and since then I've only eaten roasted chestnuts a handful of times at Christmas fairs in the Sierras and when visiting Canada in Autumn. I've missed their sweet, nutty flavor so when I discovered the U-Pick farm Skyline Chestnuts right here in the Bay Area I added it straight to my ever growing "must do" list.

The chestnut picking season is relatively short at just three to five weeks a year, and it falls right at that time of year when we're busy pretty much every weekend with birthday parties, harvest festivals and Halloween celebrations. Because of this, we've missed the season for the past few years, but this year I was determined that we'd make it. I'm so glad we did!

Apple Picking at Apple-A-Day Ratzlaff Ranch

The weather here in the Bay Area is always a little odd. It's technically Fall, and there are leaves falling off trees all over the place, but the sunny days we have had lately have been some of the warmest of the year. Of course, that's nothing unusual here as our seasons are kind of weird!

Despite the warm weather, I've been keen to get into the Fall spirit, especially seeing as Halloween is just over a week away! One of my favorite Fall activities is heading to a farm to enjoy the harvest season. Whether it be pumpkins, apples, pears or even chestnuts, there's just something about the Fall harvest season that is special.

A few weekends ago we headed north toward Sebastapol to visit Apple-A-Day Ratzlaff Ranch for an afternoon of apple picking. It was a hot, sunny day - definitely nothing like a traditional Fall - but we had a great time all the same. So long as we stayed in the shade!

Here's a look at our "not-so-Fall-looking" day of apple picking fun...

Hoes Down Harvest Festival 2017

Back at the start of October we attended one of my favorite annual festivals: the Hoes Down Harvest Festival at Full Belly Farm. This was our fourth time going to the Hoes Down and the event's 30th anniversary so it was a pretty big celebration.

As usual, we camped out in the car camping section, so upon arrival we set up our tent, grabbed a few snacks and then made our way towards all the farm fun.

Our first stop was at a big chicken coop filled with chickens that were not quite full grown but not longer baby chicks. The girls thought they were so cute (if smelly!) and spent quite some time talking to their new feathery friends.

Hoes Down Harvest Festival 2016

Last weekend we left the city and headed to Fully Belly Farm in Yolo County for the annual Hoes Down Harvest Festival. This was our third time attending the festival and it was just as much fun as it was in previous years. Even better - it wasn't scorching hot like it has been in the past! And it wasn't stormy overnight like last year, so camping out was a little more comfortable. 

Ready for Fall with Burt's Bees Baby

   

Summer vacation is almost over here. Ava and Lola have just two weeks of freedom left before the new school year starts. I can't believe how quickly this Summer has just flown by. I swear it only just started!

With the start of the new school year imminent, so to is the arrival of Fall and the cooler weather. Ok, well, technically Fall is actually our warmest season here in the Bay Area (we like to be different!) but as it doesn't get all that hot here, it's still pretty cool compared to other parts of the country.  

So with Fall and back to school on my mind, I've been thinking about what's in the girls' closet. Seriously, I need to go through and take out half of their clothes because there are dresses and tops in there that they're been wearing for at least two years. Well, not Mathilde, of course. That would be especially weird given that she's only two years old, but Ava and Lola both have some majorly outgrown outfits hanging in the closet. I spotted a size 3 dress on Lola's size of the closet. Size 3! She turns six in just a few months! Ok, Mathilde's part of the closet isn't much better with plenty of size 1 clothes still hanging around.

52 Weeks: Week 42

Week 42: Pumpkin Fun

California's weather may not have gotten the memo yet, but despite the lingering Summer weather, it's well and truly Fall now. And of course, that means it's pumpkin season!

One of my favorite places to take the girls in Fall is our local greengrocer, Monterey Market. Each Fall they have the most amazing pumpkin pile that kids can climb around on inside the store. You may remember my post from last year when Lola's preschool class went on a field trip to climb on the pumpkins (you can see it here).

Pumpkin Patch 2014

A few weekends back we visited Petaluma Pumpkin Patch to pick our pumpkins for Halloween.

Ava and Lola had been looking forward to visiting the pumpkin patch for such a long time. It's one of their favourite things every year. This year we had our friends Kylie, Joel and Sebastian visiting from Australia. We were excited to share such an American institution with them. Plus it was Mathilde's first visit to a pumpkin patch and therefore a huge photo opportunity!

Pumpkins, pumpkins, everywhere...

Yesterday Lola's preschool class had a field trip to a local greengrocer.

That may not sound like the most exciting place to visit but when you see the giant pumpkin pile below you'll see why it actually was an exciting place to visit.

Every Autumn a mountain of pumpkins can be found at Monterey Market here in Berkeley. It's a favourite place for local kids to visit and climb the pumpkins. And it's a great spot for photo opportunities!

Autumn Leaf Garland

Autumn really is such a beautiful time of year. The trees are so full of colour in various shades of reds, oranges, yellows, browns and green. And as the trees shed their leaves, so too do the gardens and sidewalks become full of colour. While I love seeing the leaves scattered everywhere I'm sure that those of you who have to sweep them up aren't quite so fond of this time of year!

Over the past few weeks the girls and I have been collecting Autumn leaves as we walk to and from school. I wasn't really sure what we were going to do with them but we kept on collecting them anyway. I really wanted to preserve the beauty of Autumn by bringing the colours into our apartment.

I've come up with a few projects for our collection of Autumn leaves and here's the first one: an Autumn Leaf Garland. It's pretty simple to make and I think it looks lovely hanging in a window.

Autumn Leaf Garland

Fall Harvest Time: Apples

Last Saturday really was a harvest day for us. After spending the morning and early afternoon at Petaluma Pumpkin Patch selecting our Halloween pumpkins we headed a little further north to Twin Hills Ranch, Sebastopol for a little apple picking.  

Ava's bucket of Fujis

Fall Harvest Time: Pumpkins

Less than 10 days until Halloween so it's time to get cracking with the preparations. The first thing on our list? Carving jack-o'lanterns! But before we can carve said jack-o'lanterns we needed to find the perfect pumpkins for the job.

Last year we arrived in America less than a week before Halloween. By the time we got over our jetlag and were somewhat settled in we had little time to go all out with the Halloween preparations. We made sure to carve jack-o'lanterns, however as we had left it so late we were left with the dregs of the season's pumpkins at our local supermarket. This year I was determined that we wouldn't let that happen again. We decided to get in a little earlier with the pumpkin selection and rather than just walking downstairs to our local Trader Joe's supermarket we hopped in a Zipcar and headed to the countryside. Dotted all around the countryside at this time of year are pumpkin patches. You don't need to travel very far out of an urban area to find them. In fact, there are even pumpkin patches within cities. I thought we'd go for the slightly more authentic option and get out of the city.

So on Saturday we headed to Petaluma, almost an hour north of San Francisco. Here we visited Petaluma Pumpkin Patch for our Fall harvest time fun. We started by selecting our pumpkins: Two medium sized pumpkins, three mini pumpkins and one swan gourd - a gourd that looks like, you guessed it, a swan!

Here's a look at our day of pumpkin fun!

Rolling pumpkins is easier than carrying them when you're little