It’s almost Halloween which means our annual trip to go pumpkin picking. It has accidentally become a tradition over the last 4 years, and there’s no way we’d be allowed to just buy one from the supermarket now! Luckily we live not too far away from the fab Cat & Fiddle farm at the edge of the New Forest and we always head there a couple of weeks before Halloween.
The farm grows nearly 20 different types of fruit and vegetables and though we always mean to go in the summer to get strawberries we never seem to get around to it.
Pumpkin picking
When we arrived we grabbed a wheelbarrow and headed towards the pumpkin patch. I’m not sure who had more fun with the wheelbarrow, Little H riding in it or the husband pushing her around fast!
You need to have a really good hunt around for the perfect pumpkin, some are a bit squashed, a funny shape, or still too green. There are loads to choose from though, and of course plenty of photo opportunities…
There are all shapes and sizes. Some of the pumpkins are massive, they reminded us of the one made into a carriage in Cinderella, and very very heavy!
We found some good ones and Little H did a great job of loading them into our wheelbarrow.
Once we’d found out pumpkins (including a tiny one that Little H wants to keep as a pet!) we headed back to get them weighed. Along the way, there was plenty of space to for a few cartwheels.
Our 4 pumpkins came to £9, more expensive than getting them from the supermarket, but so much more fun! There’s also a little cafe to grab a coffee, plus haybales and a tractor for the kids to climb on. If you want a pumpkin fresh from the farm but can’t be bothered to pick it yourself, there’s also some ready picked ones by the shop.
We had a great afternoon picking our pumpkins, and are now planning what to carve into them. Keep an eye on my Instagram for those photos!
Have you been pumpkin picking with your kids, or do you prefer to get them from the supermarket?
Ahh I love this! It looks like so much fun!!! Definitely looks like a Cinderella pumpkin 😉
Pumpkin picking! What a great idea. So far I haven’t found anywhere near us, so we opted for some cheap supermarket ones that we are going to decorate. I think a farm trip would have been much more fun though. Lovely photos. Thanks for joining us for the #DreamTeam x
Lovely pictures! We love this season and also make it a habit to go to local pumpkin farms in October.
This is something we haven’t done as a family yet. It looks so much fun! Thanks so much for sharing with #Blogstravaganza xx
I wish I’d taken my two to do this but I think we’ve missed the boat now! I’ve bought a couple though 😉 x
Thanks for joining #Blogstravaganza
Little H looks like she enjoyed picking a few pumpkins and loading them into the wheelbarrow. Such a fun way to select a pumpkin or two for Halloween 🙂 #countrykids
I am beginning to feel like the only Mum who hasn’t taken her children to a pumpkin patch, I have seen so many lovely photos now but still don’t know of any in Cornwall. I confess to creating our Halloween display using pumpkins from Tesco, not the same at all, though I try to make up for it with lots of Halloween crafts. I am seriously thinking of dedicating a field to pumpkins here next year! All your photos are delightful and part of a lovely tradition that little H looks set to enjoy for years to come.
Thank you for sharing with me on #CountryKids
HA HA I know what you mean about not being allowed to get one at the supermarket. We still haven’t gone yet hoping to squeeze it in this weekend x #Countrykids
Got to love all the pumpkin pictures at this time of the year!! Totally worth the extra expense! Love that she wanted to keep one as a pet! Lucky they keep well!! #countrykids
This is one of our favourite things to do at this time of year, such a lovely tradition to keep up! #countrykids
I’ve never been to that location but have been to others in Hampshire – in fact I didn’t even know it was there in the New Forest #CountryKids