Sometimes life just slips away from you and you forget to look back and appreciate all the things you were able to do in such a short time. For me October was such a busy month, focusing on my AppleJax and taking him to do all the fun fall things. Luckily I live in a Suburb but Rural culture is not too far away. With a thirty minute drive in any direction there is a multitude of farms. Growing up I was never into the season of pumpkins and Halloween. But now having Apple I really enjoy seeing his excitement and love for all the things he gets to experience. So it is a must to go to more than just one place since they all offer different scenery and activities.

Our first stop happened to be the first weekend in October. It’s an all time Southside favorite called hunt club farm. This is a cool place that is actually opened all year as a petting zoo. They have goats, llamas, a zebra, of course ponies for the kids to get rides on and my favorite is a bird house; not one you hang on a tree. Its a big enclosed space full of small, colorful, beautiful birds that are so social; I want to say they are budgerigars. These little winged souls aren’t afraid to come sit on a food covered popsicle stick as you hold it; it is one of my sons favorite things to do. During the fall they have a ton of pumpkins brought in and they turn a portion of the farm in to a pumpkin patch with a few rides for kids that belong at the fair. Definitely an enjoyable place to take your young one and makes for a great group activity with your friends.

Two weeks later I hauled the group to Greenbriar Farms which was close to the North Carolina border. The property had a beautiful farm house, a massive pumpkin area where pumpkins must grow for years. As we weren’t allowed to venture onto that part of the farm, they did have pumpkins picked for sale and they were some of the biggest pumpkins I had ever seen. They had a good area for the kids to play that included tractor tire swings, a bounce-house, a teether ball set and even a small area where they had a handful of farm animals such as pigs and chickens. For adults they had life size beer pong and fire-pits. It was worth the drive if you ask me, we were entertained for a couple hours; once we finally bought pumpkins we went back home to carve them.

It wasn’t but a few days later I had found out about Bergey’s Breadbasket. So on Rae and I went to this amazing working farm full of barns. Once arrived there is a shop in front that you could buy cheap pumpkins, shop the small market or even have lunch, its part bakery so fresh made pies and pumpkins bread were shelved.  The sandwiches looked amazing but we had already stopped for coffee and food on the way so we treated ourselves to ice-cream before we left. The farm itself was very welcoming and they homed all the farm animals you could imagine and they all wanted to be greeted. Especially the sheep and let me tell you, I fell in love with them. The cow truly did not want to be bothered and neither did the chickens but being so close to them was good enough for me.

If you are looking for a U-Pick pumpkin farm, Cullipher Farms is a great option. It also has a sunflower field, corn maze and a giant kids arena for only an additional charge and I cant forget to mention the hay rides. There is something just so cool about taking clippers and picking your own pumpkin off the vine and life on a farm is just so picturesque. Fall is my favorite season, its when the leaves start to dance as they start to bloom in colors other than green. It is the most gorgeous time of year to me and with my Apple it just seems more precious.

-xo