On Saturday, we decided to take Bree to the pumpkin patch.  We took her last year to one of my favorite places, however she was too little and just learning to walk so the kid activities were still too old for her.  This year I knew would be different and be able to find enjoyment in what was around her.  One thing I liked was that there was no fee to enter.  It is hit or miss with some of the farms.  Some charge to enter and some don't but charge you for all the activities.  This place was the latter.  The food was all cash only so BRING CASH.  In order to enjoy the attractions you had to buy tickets.  They had delicious pumpkin and apple cider donuts which is one of my favorite parts of the fall farm experiences.  Their apple cider donuts were AMAZING.  They were soft, warm, and had a hint of apple flavor.  Their pumpkin donuts were ok but they had icing and sprinkles which Bree loved.  

One thing that I did not like about this place is that they do not have the pumpkin patches or apple orchards for you to go on the hay ride to the farms and pick your own stuff.  They had a hay ride but I thought it was a bit expensive.  It was 4 tickets per person and each ticket is $1.  We also had our in-laws with us so that is $20 alone just to take a ride on the tractor.  We declined this one.  We were also going to get Bree's face painted but it is 7 tickets for this.  I thought $7 to paint something on her face was a bit much.  We also declined this.  

The first thing we did with Bree was take her in the kid zone.  It was only a few tickets and only the kids had to pay.  They had a lot of fun activities for the wee little kids like some slides (which bree loves), a giant chair, little house, and some scary tunnels that Bree refused to go in because it was just too scary for her (haha).  It was well worth the few tickets to go in there and let her run around and play.  She went down the slide way too many times to count.  This is perfect for those toddler aged kids.  This was a win!

Next we took Bree to the area that was set up more like a carnival.  There were regular rides, pony rides, and a feeding zoo with goats, sheep, and chickens.  There were also bunnies to look at but not touch because they bite.  Bree loved feeding the animals.  You did not have to pay to enter this section and the feed was 25cents for a handful of ground corn.  Bree loved this!! Even I loved this!! The animals are so cute and come right up to eat out of your hand.  Bree is so in love with animals so this was a great experience.  This was a big win!! 

Next we went on the rides.  They had alot of options: a camel ride, a train, a giant slide, twisty rides, dumbo rides, and pony ride, and a car ride.  Most of the rides were only a few tickets so we had to do the pony ride.  They are all so adorable!! We gave her choices between the car ride, train ride, or dumbo ride and she wanted the car ride.  I had to stand with her on the pony ride and walk along because she couldn't hold on tight enough to not fall off.  This was difficult and took alot of exertion trying to hold her, walk along (it seemed faster than it looked) and avoid stepping in horse poop and pee.  Bree had a great time and loved it.  She also was super excited with going on the car ride.  She chooses red for everything! Her popsicle, her vitamin, and even the car is always red.  I'm not sure if it was her favorite color or just her favorite flavor but she always says red.  I had to sit in the back of the red car because she wanted mommy to go too.  I did it because whatever makes her happy....

There are also great things to do for the older kids.  There is a haunted house and a dizzy house as well.  Bree is way too scared to do any of it.  She was scared of the Halloween decor around the farm.  We tried to take a picture in front of a scarecrow but she was too scared.  There is a booth where they sell small and bigger pumpkins already painted and of course there are pumpkins everywhere in various sizes that can be purchased.  They also have gourds, pie pumpkins, fall decor like corn stalks and indian corn, scarecrows, and a small store with food items.  I had to bring home pumpkin butter.  I love it on toast.  Some things are made on site and some are brought in from local places.  Overall, it was a successful day.  We left the stroller at home and used her wagon which Bree seems to sit better in and worked well to carry our pumpkins and bags.  It was a fun day for all and one we can look back on and remember as a family.  It is also a dog friendly place so there were pups all over! Bree loves dogs so she got excited everytime she saw one.  

If you are in the West Chicago area or looking for a fun, family friendly place for kids then I would recommend it.  I'm not sure if if is necessarily worth a very long drive to get to since you can't go do your own picking and it is relatively small compared to other places I have been to, but it is great for any local people.  Thank You Sonny Acres Farm!