Pumpkin Patch at the La Verne Heritage Park

Those of you in SoCal still have time to get to this little gem of a pumpkin patch in La Verne. Today is the last day they're open. If you can't make it, there's always next year.

I was tipped off to this event by my friend, so when she took her kids to go, I took mine along. This pumpkin patch is sponsered by the La Verne Heritage Foundation and is located at Heritage Park in the city of La Verne east of Los Angeles. At the park sits the historical Weber House and its citrus groves. For a few weeks in October, the pumpkin patch is open to kids and adults alike. It's much less crowded than that of Cal Poly Pomona's, and more fun, and entrance is free!

Want a pot belly pig? They're on sale here for $150 and are suppose to make very good pets. Can we say George Clooney?

The kids had the best time feeding these friendly goats. There is hay nearby to feed the goats with, but we found out the goats loved the citrus leaves more. They (the goats) were very tolerant of the wild (human) kids.

C and J were afraid at first, but they did end up holding these adorable baby chicks.

For two bucks a person, you can ride on this tractor that takes you on a five minute trip around the grove.

Of course we had to buy a pumpkin to support the foundation. They have them in all shapes and sizes. There are also photo ops with giant pumpkins, cut-outs, scarecrows, and opportunities to pet bunnies and hold larger chicks. At the park itself is a cute playground for the children.

If you check their website, the La Verne Heritage Foundation also has other events here throughout the year. Have a great Halloween, everyone, and keep safe.

The Pumpkin Patch at Heritage Park is located at 5001 Via de Mansion, La Verne CA, 909-593-2862

Got Soymilk?

When I went on my quest for the perfect container for C to bring his lunch in, I also went searching for something for him to bring his milk in. Originally, I packed him with a bottle of Vitasoy soymilk everyday (the one on the left in the photo). This was a temporary solution because frankly, I wanted C to get his calcium too.

Then I came across these single servings of soymilk that were fortified with calcium and vitamins AND were organic too. I bought a case of these. Each case had 24 8.25 oz containers, and the price was comparable to the Vitasoy. Now today after reading the news about the melamine tainted milk that put more than 10,000 babies into hospitals in China, I went and checked to see where the Vitasoy was made. It was Hong Kong. All the more reason to ditch the Vitasoy for the Kirkland brand. C loves these chocolate ones, but I think they're kinda sweet for me. I wish they had the plain ones.

I had saw that Foogo had a straw bottle that would keep milk cold for 6 hours, and I tried putting milk into C's food jar to test it out. It did keep it cold for that long, but when I drank it, I felt kind of nauseated, and the milk tasted metallic. Reading reviews of it, some people experienced the same thing, so my quest for a good milk thermos continues.

Some Like it Hot (Or Cold)

The start of C's public school career a few weeks ago posed to me a dilemma that most unsuspecting moms don't usually encounter until they receive a menu from their child's school those first few days. You'd think schools would feed their students better, but these menus lists $3.00 lunches consisting of things that resemble second rate fast food. Chicken nuggets, corndogs, mini pizzas. Hello! I can get those things for much cheaper at Costco and "cook" them myself.

And so my research for the perfect lunch vessel began on the internet. I wanted to be able to pack both hot and cold items together in C's lunchbag. In my desperate search, I came across bento boxes large and small, tupperware type containers, and thermoses galore. I finally settled on this cute little food jar called a Foogo. I bought two of them.

Granted there are cartoon decorated Funtainers that function just as well, but I wanted to pick something that wouldn't make my kids become outcasts at lunch when they reach puberty. And for the money I paid for two Foogos, I expect them to last just that long, if not longer.

The Foogo containers are vacuum insulated, which means I can fill one with hot stuff and a second one with cold and place them side by side in C's lunchbag without one's hotness cancelling out the other's coolness. I tested to see how long it would keep milk cold, and after 6 hours, cold milk was still cold. I asked C if his food was still warm (or cold) when he opens them at lunch, and he tells me yes. You do have to prepare the containers the way it was meant to be prepared, and that means boiling hot water in the morning to heat up the insides of the Foogo, or putting in ice water and sticking the Foogo in the fridge overnight to get it prepared for cold foods.

These containers only hold 10 ounces each, just the right size for a small child. They are stainless steel, and although they're made in China like everything else, I don't think stainless steel can be laden with lead even if you wanted it to. These containers are great considering the recent BPA news, and for now will have to do. Any other options for bringing both hot and cold stuff together in a lunch box?