Harvest Party FAQ
Q. When and where is this year’s party?
A. It’s every year at the farmhouse on the last Saturday before Halloween.
· Saturday, October 26, 2024, 2pm
· 14502 Calhoun Road, Mount Vernon, WA 98273
· Phones: Kevin 970-412-9714; Christina 206-902-7373.
Q. How do you pronounce Skagit?
A. With a short A and a soft G; rhymes with gadget.
Q. Can I bring my spouse/partner/kids/friends to the party?
A. The harvest party is open to all invitees and whomever they want to bring along! The party is especially designed for people from 100 hours to 100 years old. The guest list is already a hodge-podge of folks from Christina’s and Kevin’s lives, including family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and clients. So, it’s “the more the merrier” for this party—there’s nobody that is unwelcome.
Q. Can I bring my dog to the party?
A. While we do love dogs, we kindly request that you leave your pooch at home.
Q. Is there parking?
A. Yep. You can park out back in or by the carport or in front of the barn. You can also park in the front along Calhoun Road in front of the house anywhere where you can get your entire car off the county road.
Q. What are the contests?
A. There are lots of contests and prizes at the Harvest Party. They are all completely optional—participate in any or all of them!
12-Chilis Cookoff: Cook up your favorite chili and bring it!
Email or text one of us to reserve one of the 12 contestant slots. We like entries to be a true “chili” which we think is tomato-based with some chili pepper in it but based on past years’ voting we know a white chili is pretty popular, too. We’ll try to get 6 reds and 6 whites in the contest this year—so email ahead so we can curate a little.
Bring your own crock pot (pot and lid labeled please!) We have electricity to keep it plugged in. We will supply electricity, ladles, cups/bowls, and cutlery for the guests to sample your chili. We also supply all the condiments and extras, like sour cream, grated cheese, chips, corn bread, and spring onions. Please don’t bring any of those! Give your concoction a clever title! We’ll put your title on the placard.
People vote for the chilis they like the best and we tally them to give a prize for the best red and the best white chili!
Pie Contest: Bring a pie!
Email or text one of us to reserve one of the 12 pie contestant slots. This must be a hand-made crusted dessert pie. Our goal is to have just 12 entries so voters can have a chance to try most of the entries.
We will supply serving utensils, plates, and cutlery. We’ve been long wishing to make the farmhouse a famous pie destination, so help us out!
People vote for the pie they like the best and we tally them to give three prizes—1st, 2nd, and 3rd place.
Best Costume: You don’t have to dress up—but do! We’ll have various categories that will get prizes and applause.
There’s an actual costume parade to show it off!
People vote for the best costumes in these categories:
best kid costume
best adult costume
best “group” costume (e.g., mama/papa/baby bear)
Pumpkin Carving: We for sure will give prizes to various categories of jack-o-lanterns carved at the party.
Usually kids win these, but adults can always try, too. There are prize categories for Under-7 and 7-and-Over. Each age group has prizes for:
creepiest
cutest
most creative
We have lots of pumpkins for carving, so no need to bring your own.
Sporting Events: Sack races, wheel-barrow races, corn hole and more. Lots of fun and prizes. Kids and adults are all welcome!
There are four official races with a medal for the winner, but we’ll likely have more informal versions of these, too.
three-legged race
sack race
wheelbarrow race
spoon and egg race
We’ll also have a corn hole playoff (watch out for Grandpa Pasquale—he’s a ringer). This will have a simple elimination tournament with quarterfinals, semifinals, and a grand final competition. Teams or individuals can compete.
Q. What can I bring?
A. Bring some anticipation of having a blast! We would love if you would bring a chili and/or a pie if you want to enter those contests (see above). We will be supplying all the condiments and the basics—sour cream for the chili, corn bread, chips, beer, wine, juice, water, etc. We’d rather not end up with 10 containers of sour cream after the party, so don’t bring your own condiments for your chili! We would welcome any drinks you want to bring, though we’ll have plenty.
Q. Should I arrive fashionably late?
A. No! Come at 2pm for the most fun. But don’t worry if you get here later either.
Q. What if the weather is horrible?
A. This won’t stop us! We’re crossing our fingers for one of those crisp, dry, awesome October days, but there’s plenty of fun to be had if we are stuck indoors. The house is huge and swallows up people on a regular basis. The party is designed to be indoor/outdoor in any case and if it’s more indoors than out, that’s just fine. No weather-based excuses will be accepted—what are you going do instead, anyway? And you have the chili already made…
Q. When is the party over?
A. Weather permitting, we’ll have a bonfire going by sunset with s’more fixin’s, so stay for that if you can. (Weather not permitting, we’ll have a fire in the wood stove.) Then just stay. There’s no ending time. Kevin’s been known to nod off sometime after midnight, but that shouldn’t stop the rest of us! And we’d be happy to have you stay over, too!
Q. Can I stay overnight?
A. Yes! In our five-bedroom farmhouse we have 6 double beds, 2 single beds, and couches galore. We’ve never overflowed those, but if you prefer, you could pitch a tent or just lay your sleeping bags in the upstairs of the bunkhouse (for a toilet, you’d have to come to the house or go in the weeds). We promise coffee and breakfast!
Q. Will I see snow geese/wild swans/eagles?
A. Very possibly, but they don’t share their agendas beforehand. Keep an eye out on your way here, too. The snow geese flock together in enormous groups, so we may get a show if they choose one of the adjacent fields for the day. Swans are in smaller flocks and arrive together in pairs and small groups. It’s really fun to listen to them chatting, especially when new folks arrive. The snow geese and swans get to Skagit starting in October/November and stay until April/May. The eagles are here all year, but many more of them come for the winter. They hunt the snow geese and salmon. The top of our Douglas fir is bald and is a favorite perch for the eagles. Most winter days there is a bald eagle or two, sometimes three or four, in the top of the fir tree.
Q. Will you have pumpkins?
A. Yes! No need to bring your own—we have plenty to carve.
Q. Will I see daffodils?
A. Not until March!
Q. Will I see tulips?
A. Not until April!
Q. Where else can we go on our way to the party?
A. Check out Gordon Skagit Farms and other area pumpkin patches. Also, tool around looking for the swans and snow geese. There’s a fun (sometimes wet) one-mile hike out to Craft Island. Stop and shop in the touristy town of La Conner just three miles west of the farmhouse.
Q. Where else can we go if we stay overnight?
A. Did we mention that our favorite people are the ones we have Sunday breakfast with? Skagit is a great jumping off point for the island ferries leaving from Anacortes. Anacortes, Edison, Chuckanut Drive, Bellingham, and Deception Pass State Park are all very close and worthy destinations in their own right, even if you hadn’t just had a great harvest party at the farmhouse.
Q. What’s the bathroom situation?
A. Well, the farmhouse used to sport a 3-seater outhouse. It’s still out back but we’ve closed up the working parts—so now just for show. In 1911 when the house was built indoor plumbing was still a novelty and they thought one would be plenty. The water and septic have been modernized, and there’s even been an additional half bath added—such luxury. Someday we might add more, but right now, we have a toilet on the main floor (just off the kitchen), and a full bath upstairs off the big hallway right next to the attic/back kitchen stairs. Feel free to use either one, of course.
Q. How do I get there? How long does it take?
A. Easy. I-5 North to Conway (exit 221). Follow the signs to La Conner/Swinomish Reservation until you see Calhoun Road, then take a right instead of the left into La Conner. We’re a half mile down Calhoun on the right. You’ll recognize the picture from the invitation. Without traffic it’s an hour from downtown Seattle. Traffic on a Saturday shouldn’t be bad, but if it is you can add 15 minutes or more.
Address for Google is 14502 Calhoun Road, Mount Vernon, WA 98273.
Phones: Kevin 970-412-9714; Christina 206-902-7373.