Frugalicous Marie: Family Weekend Fun at Linvilla Orchards!

Hey guys! It's been quite some time since I've posted a blog post about the family. Here's a quick update. Our oldest is in college! We've missed her however we are kind of glad she is away but not for reasons some of you think. We want her to learn about the kind of person she is, what she likes, and how to become independent. She's been a little sheltered so this is all brand new to her and homesickness comes into play a lot. This post has to do with her college. DJ attends Chestnut Hill College. This weekend they had their Witches & wizards festival. Our plan was to take our bunch to the festival but my partner was working and the second oldest had a hair appointment and the rest of the RR crew had to get ready. Which then pushed our departure to about 3:30pm. We didn't arrive at Chestnut Hill until about 4:15pm...the festival ended at 5pm.

We had to look for something to do with the kids and look fast. My partner is the best at finding activities and winging the day. He isn't much of a planner. On the other hand, I am. I always have a set schedule so needless to say I was a bit overwhelmed when we weren't on schedule but like always, the man of the house saved the day! He googled and found some places. We ended up at Linvilla Orchards in Media, PA. Our excitement grew as we started our drive to visit Pumpkinland at Linvilla Orchards! Linvilla Orchards is a 300-acre family farm dedicated to agriculture, entertainment and education.

The minute we walked in, we were so happy to see such a great crowd. We found a great parking spot within minutes even though all lots looks full. We could smell the apple cider and all of the food! We didn't bring cash so we had to find an ATM quick. Some stands do only take cash only but some take cards. We found an ATM at the market which was packed! And for good reason! Their pies. OMG, their pies! We wanted to take the kids on the hayride however the lines were long and in our defense, we did get there late. That is on our list for our next visit. We rushed into Pumpkinland to see all of the carvings. They were awesome. As you can see in the pictures, they had a mix of carvings. Take a look at the pictures below to see them all!

While walking through Pumpkinland, we decided to pick our pumpkin for the house. The big pumpkins were $0.79/lb. The white pumpkins, I believe were $0.99/lb and the mini pumpkins were $1.99. We let all 6 kids grab a mini pumpkin and then we grabbed a white one and a big one as the family pumpkin. I'll show you what those ended up being a little later. During this family trip, we all saw peanut pumpkins for the first time. They looked so cool! I'm trying to figure out how these came about so I just had to google. Peanut pumpkins are an heirloom pumpkin varietal notable for its distinctive peanut-like growths peppering the exterior of its pink-hued rind. This causes them to look quite unique. Some might say they're ugly but the “peanuts” are actually a buildup of excess sugar in the flesh of the pumpkin and they make them look different and different is always good.

After we grabbed our pumpkins we made our rounds to the register but we needed just a few more pics to show you. Photo credit goes to dad. I'm too short to have captured these. You can see the market in the pics below. They had so many different items from fresh produce to homemade pies to holiday decorations.

They had so many selections to choose from when it came to pumpkins and gourds. I was like a kid in a candy store. If you are ever in Media, PA, I suggest you look into visiting Linvilla Orchards. In fact, even if you are 2 hours away, take the drive! The apple cider, apple cider donuts, beer garden, and everything else is worth it! Linvilla will definitely be apart of our family now. Thank you for the memories my family made.