Last week I posted about our
Chinese Harvest Festival, but today's post will cover our trip to the "American" Harvest Festival, celebrated at the local farmpark. It was more "Western-themed" than
mooncakes and
lanterns, I suppose. They had pony rides, peddlers, pumpkins, and...corn mazes (couldn't figure out a way to say that last one with a P).
An apple butter cooking pot. We got to sample the apple butter, and also had samples of a few different varieties of apples. I think I have not yet explained the apple consternation we have in the Tam household. I personally like all kinds of apples except
red delicious, because more often than not, this variety tends to have a tough, bitter skin and mushy, bland insides. I have heard they used to be delicious (hence the name) but modern fruit developers (is that the real title of those people?) tried so hard to get a beautiful
red color on the outside that they neglected to preserve the flavor. Jerry, on the other hand, enjoys only apples that are "sweet," rather than those that are "tart" or "sour." He insists
red delicious is the only apple variety he has tried that is reliably not too sour. So we never know quite what to buy at the grocery store. But sometimes I get red delicious just for Jerry and feel quite big-hearted as I do so.
Anyway, you may guess it was with great interest that we sampled apples this day. We consulted each other, trying to find the perfect apple for our household purchase that would satisfy both of us. Turns out one does indeed exist: the
honey crisp apple is perfect--sweet, crunchy, flavorful. Too bad I'm not aware that any of our usual grocery stores sells it.
During our last few visits to the farmpark we declined the pony rides because they cost a few dollars extra. But this visit, Lo seemed enamored with the horses--
finally! Note his cuteness pointing to the horses in the videos below (if you watch just one, the last one in the lineup is the best). So we couldn't resist letting him get the 2 min. saunter around the circle on horseback.
Again, a purchase we made just because our Lo is so adorable. He gave an excited grin to all these jack-o-lanterns-to-be, and then wouldn't let go of this mini punkin. So we bought it and he carried it around in his clutching paws for half the day. A lot of people commented how cute it was that he loved his pumpkin. And we agree.
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| Perhaps this child can never own too many pairs of overalls. He has four teeth on top; they never show, no matter the size of his smile. Interesting, no? We've only caught passing glimpses of those teeth when turning him upside-down. |
But he didn't seem to mind eating these little friends one bit. Now, they weren't all LITTLE pumpkins, mind you. This ginormous one has been a lot of fun even before the carving stage:
Testing his strength yet again, Lo tried to lift it. Not sure how much it weighs, but it even seems too heavy for him to roll:
I like that his shirt color matches the pumpkin. =)
Here is the whole pumpkin family that we brought home this October. 
I made Jerry stop for pictures as he carried The Big One out the door. Here it is next to a "regular" pumpkin for size comparison. 
And check out the guns on my man. 
We found half of our pumpkins at one of those road-side produce stands. Er, it wasn't an official "stand," but rather just some house that had an overabundant garden. Glad they decided to give us a bargain on the pumpkins. 
Lo got suspicious of Mr. Scarecrow. 
