Thanksgiving at Faulkner's

For the past few years we here at Faulkner's have started and continued a tradition that has become a favorite for everyone involved:

Our Annual Thanksgiving Day Feast!

On Thanksgiving Day everyone gathers at Faulkner's Ranch for a huge celebration and dinner.

This year we had around 40 of our friends and family there to take part in all of the fun.

As is tradition, we started out by circling up and saying what we are thankful for.

The only rule is that you can't repeat what someone else has already said.

From family, friends, and new babies, to employment and togetherness we covered it all.

After our Thankful circle, we say grace and then it is time to eat!

And boy did we ever chow down! This picture of the buffet line doesn't even do it justice - in fact there were two other tables filled with appetizers and desserts!

There was so much delicious food contributed by everyone that you could barely fit it on your plate!

After everyone was completely stuffed it was time for our favorite game of the night:

White Elephant Pirate Bingo!

Here's how it works...

When someone wins a Bingo they get to go choose a gift from under the tree.

Everyone brought something that was either from around the house or worth under $5.

Here's the catch though! That gift can be stolen by future Bingo winners up two times.

Needless to say, it gets a little bit rowdy when those Bingo cards come out!

Here were a few of the amazing gifts from this year...

It's hard to believe that some of these were never stolen.  I wonder why...

Anyway, the rest of the evening was filled with lot of pumpkin pie and laughter.

What about you?

What Thanksgiving traditions do you have?

We'd love to hear all about them!

Have a great day ya'll!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

Thankful

Thanksgiving is a very special time of year that allows us to reflect on all the wonderful blessings that have been bestowed upon us.  Here at Faulkner's we have so much to be thankful for.

Just see below...

"I am thankful for all of our customers that have graciously supported the ranch this past year and our wonderful staff that tirelessly serves them."
- Bob Faulkner, Owner

"Of course I am thankful for my hard-working husband and healthy, happy kids.  Professionally I am thankful for my mentor.  To work 16 years alongside someone with over 50 years of experience has been incredible.  I have learned so much from his wisdom and feel that every successful business person needs a mentor such as I have in Bob.  Also, I am thankful for my mother who with Bob really built our event planning business from nothing.  And lastly, I'm thankful for the opportunity to conduct business freely (for the most part) in the land that I love, provide jobs, be creative, and love what I do!"
- Christine Loneman, Manager

"I am thankful that I get to be part of this wonderful family business even though we live three hours away.  I'm also thankful for my loving husband, my cuddly pooch, our warm home, and of course, our beautiful baby girl that is on the way!"
- Kelly Jo Jordan, Director of Social Media

"I am thankful to have Benjamin Ranch and Faulkner's Ranch in my family's life! The work experience it offers is incredible and the memories it offers will be treasured later in life. The fun and family togetherness it offers is an amazing blessing. The ranch fulfills a place of belongingness and without it, our family would incomplete."
- Lisa Gosselin, Creative Genius

And of course, we here at Faulkner's are all thankful for something absolutely wonderful - YOU!

So, from all of us, to all of you,

Happy Thanksgiving folks!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

Pumpkin Fluff Dip

Thanksgiving is tomorrow folks!

Are you in need of last minute side dish to bring along to your get-together?

Why not make something that will blow everyone's socks off!

This Pumpkin Fluff Dip is the perfect thing!

image via

It's easy AND delicious!

Plus, it works great as an appetizer while everyone is waiting for dinner or a light dessert after everyone is stuffed!

Trust us, everyone will be asking you for the recipe - it's that good!

To make a batch of your own, just follow the super simple recipe below:

PUMPKIN FLUFF DIP

INGREDIENTS:

1 (16 oz) container of frozen whipped topping, thawed

1 (5 oz) package of instant vanilla pudding mix

1 (15 oz) can of solid pack pumpkin puree

1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese, softened (optional)

1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice

DIRECTIONS:

1.  In a large bowl, mix together instant vanilla pudding mix, pumpkin, and pumpkin pie spice*.  Fold in thawed frozen whipped topping and cream cheese.

2.  Chill in refrigerator until serving.  Serve with vanilla wafers, cinnamon graham crackers/sticks, or apple slices.

*We often add way more pumpkin pie spice for taste, but it is best to begin with a teaspoon and work up from that.

Wanna get fancy? Serve in a hollowed out pie pumpkin!

We hope that you have a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with lots of love, laughs, and plenty of good food!

Have a great day ya'll!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

Throwback Thursday: Dosey Doe!

Have you ever heard how the Faulkner family began their family business?

It may surprise you that it all began over 50 years ago with a little dosey doe!

That's right!

It all started in the 1950's when Bud and Mary Faulkner began teaching square and round dancing lessons!

Bud and Mary Faulkner

While Bud was the caller, Mary recruited people for the classes.  The classes were such a success that there was an actual shortage of square dance apparel in the Kansas City area!

Mary seized the opportunity and started ordering square dance shoes, petticoats, pantaloons, and dresses which she would sell out of their house. One day, Bud came home from his full time job, hoping to lay down for a nap, only to find a group of women at the house shopping away.

It was the very next day that Bud found the location at 7914 Wornall Road to open Kansas City's first square dance apparel store.

Faulkner's Western Store

To this day, the Faulkner family still loves to pay tribute to the dance that started it all.  Hence why this year they invited the Crazy Eight Square Dancing Club to perform at the Pumpkin Farm.

The Crazy Eights Square Dancing Club performed at the Pumpkin Farm this October.

To read more about how the Faulkner's grew into the family business they have today, click here.

Have a great day ya'll and stay tuned for more fun from Faulkner's!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

Ponies and Pancakes: A Chance to Give Back

Join us this Saturday from 8am to 11am 
for another Ponies and Pancakes 
to help raise money for 4 Paws for Ability.

4 Paws for Ability is the wonderful organization that will provide Harley Herschberger, an awesome little 8 year old boy who is trying to live with high functioning autism, with an amazing companion.  By providing Harley with a service dog he will be able to handle so many of life's challenges.  From assisting him in different situations to comforting him and protecting him from harm, Harley's new service dog will be a life-changing best friend.

For more info on Harley, please visit: https://wwws.facebook.com/4PawsForHarley

So join us for a fun morning and help make a huge difference in this little boy's life!

We'll have pony rides and ALL YOU CAN EAT pancakes, sausage, and drinks from Chris Cakes!

Ticket Prices:

Adults and Children 12 and older: $10

Children: Ages 4 to 11 $5

Children: 3 and under FREE

*Pony Rides, Zip Line, Bags of Feed for Animals at Petting Zoo $2.00

Tickets are available at the door the day of event or can be purchased in advance by emailing michelle@ifamilykc.com
(just put "Tickets 4 Harley" in subject line.)

There will also be a raffle with some totally awesome prizes!  Tickets for the raffle are 1 for $5 or 5 for $20.

Some of the raffle prizes include:

A Fire Pit donated by Cripple Creek Rock Co ($450 value) 

*(There is a 2 ticket minimum to enter for firepit)

Fun Run Birthday Party

One night stay at the Holiday Inn and Breakfast for 4

One Day Horse Camp from Mariways Stable

Beautiful Jewelry

Mary Kay, BeautiControl, Silpada, and Scentsy Products

Plus too many gift baskets to mention!!!

There will also be a KC ROYALS PRIZE PACKAGE!!!

The prize package includes autographed World Series Items, a private dinner with a member of the 85 World Series Team, and 2 Dugout Seats to a game of your choice with a parking pass!

Tickets for Royals Package are 1 for $10 or 3 for $25. Tickets will be available on 11/17 or by emailing 4PawsforHarley@gmail.com.  The drawing for this specific prize will be held on December 15th.

We hope that you can make it to this fun event that helps out an amazing cause!
For more information please contact us here at Faulkner's Ranch at 816-761-1234 or e-mail 4pawsforharley@gmail.com.

To see some of our previous Ponies and Pancakes click the links below:

Ponies and Pancakes for SIDS Resources 2012

Ponies and Pancakes Q&A with Jessica
Ponies and Pancakes for Kairos Christian School in 2011

Have a great day ya'll and we hope to see you at the ranch this Saturday!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

A Great Big Faulkner's Thank You

Thank you everyone for another wonderful Pumpkin Season!

A good time was had by all and we couldn't have done it without you!

Check out some of our favorite moments from our 

2012 Pumpkin Season!

The fun isn't over yet though!

Check out what we have in store for the rest of 2012!

Fall Hayride and Bonfire Packages

Ponies Parties

and

Country Christmas Parties!

Have a great day ya'll!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's