Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Pumpkins and Turkeys!


On Sunday we took a trip out to Medina, Texas. Yes, it is about as big as it sounds. To get there you drive through Pipe Creek, then Bandera Texas, plus a few other little towns. It's a very Texan drive! We saw longhorn cattle and trail riders on horses on our way. I'm sure Phil saw even more interesting sites as he went on his motorcycle and took the scenic route (aka the back winding curvy oh-so-fun for him roads that would make me throw up! LOL!).

I will save most of our trip to tell about another day, but wanted to share a few quick pics & tell a bit about the Pumpkin Patch. First, in this part of the world, a Pumpkin Patch is not where you pick a pumpkin. Well, you PICK one as in CHOOSING one, but they don't grow around here. It's more like a Pumpkin Gallery or Exhibition. This Pumpkin Patch has many varieties of pumpkins. The girls thought the Blue Pumpkins looked molded & rotten. Thanks to Natalie's keen eyes and love of bargaining and shopping, we bought 3 good size pie pumpkins for $1 each. I laughed in the car & said, "They were only $1, plus the cost to drive out there, pay admission, and buy drinks, but they were only $1!" LOL!

There are animals at this place, too. In a small gated area a lady had 2 horses and a pony. The pony had been bought from someone who did not care for the animal. They named him Bucky because he was so wild that all he did was buck in the trailer and in his new home at first. He is now 2 years old and stood still for people to pet him. Natalie was in her element. She petted all 3 several times. I fell in love with a dog named Levi. He is a Golden/Labrador mix and the sweetest dog. Natalie & I would love a dog but Daddy still says no. : (

Then there were chicks to hold. I took Natalie towards the area with the chicks, but before I knew it, she had gone ahead, was in the "circle" and holding a chick.

Bethany held one next and got the full effect of farm life. Check out the Chick's "gift" on her jeans.

Next we walked down to an area where turkeys were roaming. People had been petting them. They seemed fairly tame. Natalie & I stroked the back of one, not provoking it, but being very careful. The bird became very interested in Bethany, who was not even touching or close to it. I moved over towards her & he kept getting closer as she backed away from him. She had a drink, but no food. She was not only NOT provoking the bird, she was trying to carefully move away. She has been known to pester some animals and likes to chase birds in parking lots, but this time she was truly minding her own business. Suddenly, he bit her fingers! Not the hand with the drink, but her hand with NO food, NO drink, nothing for the bird. As she pulled her hand away, he pecked at the elbow on her other arm. She got teary eyed & I was worried that she was really hurt. Okay, I also was thinking that birds could have some weird diseases we've never heard of. We didn't have neosporin with us, of course, but they had antibacterial hand sanitizer that we put on her finger.

I told her that Thanksgiving would be her day for revenge when she ate turkey. In her little literal Asperger mind, she processed that differently than I did. She apparently didn't feel that it would be true revenge because, "The turkey would already be dead." LOL! Later I asked her if she was scared when he bit her. She said, "No, I was mad! I wanted someone to take an axe and chop off his head!" She's not really a violent child, I promise! I couldn't help but laugh. I think we'd just talked about how chickens were killed last week, so I guess it was fresh on her mind.

By the way, I let the Pumpkin Patch know about this. As I told them, I knew we were in the birds' territory. We understood that & even though the bite was unprovoked, the birds had become accustomed to being fed, so they were looking for a handout. My bigger concern was that a small child would run from his parents to the turkeys and get hurt. I received an e-mail reply this morning from them with an apology and thanks that we let them know. Bethany is fine. She hurts herself worse than that on any given day when she is doing some kind of stunt, like climbing the walls!

More another day....

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