Approaching The Finish Line...and Beyond!: 10/18/14

I think there are a few rites of passage that all parents must face. Many of them scare the living crap out of me (like teething, potty training, and, most importantly, do we really have to do Disney?). However, I recently learned that when you are with your kids, these may not be so bad. It will only get worse (or better, I guess) as the twins get older and I see how exciting and special these events are to them. So, I guess we owe thanks to Uncles Jim and Michael who invited and treated us to Goebbert's Farm near Barrington.

Yep, that's an enormous pumpkin on a silo

Goebbert's is 'the Disneyland' of pumpkin farms and by Disneyland; I mean bring a fat wallet ($15 a head to enter...thank goodness the twins are free...for now!), and various other expenses incurred if you want to take pony rides, hay rack rides, or feed the animals. Still, it was a beautiful Saturday in October, and we managed to have a great time. There are no elephants in Barrington, but the twins were thrilled to see all of the animals on the farm including sheep, goats, giraffes, alpacas, and camels (I was not always comfortable seeing these animals in captivity, but they looked happy). Before heading inside the big animal tent, Luke warmed up by pretending to be a sheep.

I didn't know sheep stick out their tongues!

Once inside, Uncle Jim raced to the carrot line, and at $4 for a cup of carrot sticks (I'll bring our own next time!), we decided to mooch off him.

Luke feeds the kudu (we saw these in Africa last year!) a carrot stick

What talent...she feeds and poses at the same time

Outside of the animals, there were many other things to do. We got lost in the corn maze,

Clare and Papa Chris may be lost, but are still smilin' anyway

Luke navigates me successfully to the exit

watched some pig races,

Watching some swine shuffle on a beautiful sundrenched fall day

and performed what many consider an annual ritual (yay, Disney every year!) at the 'How Tall This Fall' wall, entertaining many of the patrons at Goebbert's Farm that were walking by.

Proud of our little pumpkins' growth

Clare is sooooo big!!

Luke's lengthening as well

Of course, a trip to a pumpkin patch is not complete unless one (or two in our case!) poses with the pumpkins. (Thankfully, this was included in the cost of admission.) So, Luke and Clare did their best to mingle with the oversized gourds.