Oklahoma City family fun brings us the best of the season.
Myriad Botanical Gardens’ Pumpkinville opens today and is around all month until Oct. 22. The display of more than 16,000 pumpkins fills the Children’s Garden and surrounding areas, with themed activities throughout the month to celebrate harvest, Halloween and all the hallmarks of October. 
My oldest son, Sam, is 10 and we visited the gardens during his last week of summer vacation, long before Pumpkinville was set up. What surprised me about that visit was how peaceful he found the experience. We had just read a book about intentional urban green spaces together and he came to the conclusion that Myriad Botanical Gardens is one of those. You can read his Kid Review here.
Here are three reasons to visit Myriad Botanical Gardens this fall:
- See a cider press: Cider press demonstrations are offered on-site at the Thunder Fountain every Sunday from 1:00 to 1:30. Each cup of cider costs $1, a price I’d gladly pay to get everyone a drink during an outing and that also supports Myriad Botanical Gardens as a community feature. Knowing where food comes from and how processes work, that cider doesn’t just come from the grocery store in a plastic jug, is a good lead-in for other conversations too. Pumpkin seed snack making is also taking place tomorrow, Oct. 7, at 2:30 for just $3 per participant.
- Take a great family walk: My children ask me every day if we can go to the park. It’s been really rainy lately and our neighborhood play area is full of fallen leaves and mud. There’s really nothing about taking a walk in the evenings that seems inviting right now. The variety of plants, fall activities on-hand and seasonal displays at Pumpkinville, though, could get us all out and seeing the season’s natural beauty. There are always ducks, fish and butterflies to see too. Taking a walk doesn’t cost anything extra and at least in my family, we could all use the physical activity right now.
- Plan on attending the Garden Monster Bash: This Halloween party on Oct. 21 is described as “more friendly than frightening” and includes a costume contest. I’m sure it sells out every year, so purchase tickets at advance if you’re interested. Here’s more information.
MetroFamily’s calendar features an incredibly variety of things to do. Find our Fall Fun lists here, categorized events our editors select and research. There’s so much to enjoy this time of year! 
We’ll be on-site at Myriad Botanical Gardens, over in the Park House, for this Sunday’s Cover Kids Search. If you haven’t registered yet, it’s not too late! We’re taking registrations at the door. Click here for more information about the event.
Myriad Botanical Gardens brings the community together. Hope to see you there soon!
