The South Texas Maize

This past weekend we went to the South Texas Maize in Hondo. Over the past few years we've been to 2 other pumpkin patches that didn't have a corn maze, so this time we wanted to give this one a try.

There were good and bad things about this farm.

THE GOOD
1. This is the closest pumpkin patch out of all 3 that are close to San Antonio. It was only a 30-40 minute highway drive, compared to the other ones that are closer to or over an hour on country roads.

2. Elina loved climbing and jumping on the hay bales. The minute she got down, she'd run back to the beginning and climb it again.


3. The corn maze was pretty fun. Each time you came to a numbered sign, you would look at your own themed trivia sheet with multiple-choice questions. Depending on the answer, you would either turn left or right at the post. So if the answer was "a," then it might tell you to turn left at the post. It was a really neat idea. We got Elina the Tot Trivia, so she was so proud that she could answer the questions and "tell" us which way to go.

4. The barrel train ride was loads of fun for the kids, especially for Eli. Now that he has an obsession with trains, we could not get him to leave the barrel train. After the ride, we'd get him out of the cart and then he would turn around and try to get right back in. I think he must've rode the barrel train at least 5 times. The thing is, it was an uncomfortable, bumpy ride for adults, but someone always had to go with Eli. Luckily, Elina rode with Eli the first time. It was pretty cute because she sat behind him and had her arms around his waist the whole time. But since the ride was so bumpy, by the end of the ride, Eli practically had his head in Elina's lap because he had slipped down.



THE BAD
1. First of all, this place is very expensive. You pay $9 per adult to get in. Then you have to pay a few extra dollars here and there for certain rides (the barrel train was $1 per person). Plus, you have to pay for food, if you eat there. All the other pumpkin patches charge extra for certain things, too, but I just thought that the $9 entrance fee was high, especially if we already have to pay extra for other things.

2. The pumpkins were brought in from another place, so it was not a REAL pumpkin patch. Maybe the other pumpkin patches we'd been to weren't REAL either, but the other farms carried lots more pumpkins and different kinds of pumpkins as well. The "pumpkin patch" area was just kind of a disappointment and didn't provide many photo-ops either.

3. There just weren't many good photo-ops, besides the circle cut-outs in pictures. Don't get me wrong, the cut-out pics were cute, but I also like pics with lots of real pumpkins in them. There just weren't enough pumpkins around.

4. There was no petting zoo or pumpkin painting. I know petting zoos sound nasty, but kids LOVE them. This place only had goats and you could only touch them through a fence. Last year, Elina got to hold a baby chick! And I know I can do pumpkin painting at home, but it's still pretty exciting for kids to do at the pumpkin patch.

Overall, it was still a good family outing and I'm glad we got to see this place first-hand. Now I know that next year I will probably go back to one of the other smaller pumpkin patches that don't have the corn maze. The smaller places are more geared toward little kids, so I think those places just suit us better for now.

We had lots of fun, but it was not a good photo day for Eli. He just looked so serious and sad while we were there...probably because we made him miss his nap. This was the best picture we got of the kids with pumpkins. Maybe I should Photoshop some more pumpkins into the picture? After all, we're supposed to be at a pumpkin patch, right?? Here's the picture from the pumpkin patch last year:Wouldn't you be slightly disappointed, too? Or am I asking for too much?