Family traditions matter because they give people a familiar place to reconnect, slow down, and create memories together. In the Howell’s Farm Experience episode “Why Do Families Keep Coming Back to the Same Farm Year After Year?”, host Mike Downer speaks with guest Erin Conner about authentic farm life, screen-free family time, multigenerational activities, and community connection. Their conversation answers an important question: why are family farm traditions important? They connect generations through real experiences that families can revisit and make their own.
An Authentic Farm Experience Feels Different
Erin says Iowa family farms stand out because they are authentic. Visitors encounter real animals, crops, work, and people running a family business. The experience feels personal rather than manufactured.
Families are entering a working farm where something is always growing or changing. That sense of real life helps visitors connect with the place and the people behind it. A single outing can gradually become a lasting family relationship.
Howell’s began welcoming the public during the farm crisis of the 1980s. Since then, several generations have visited. Some adults who first arrived in strollers now bring their own children. Parents, teenagers, grandparents, and young children can all enjoy the farm together.
Traditions Grow Through Repeated Memories
A tradition does not always begin with a plan. It may start with a funny photo, a favorite animal, or the yearly search for the biggest pumpkin.
Erin recalled families talking about a grandfather fitting into a bathtub photo display, a goat eating a five-dollar bill, or a child buried in the corn pool with only their nose showing. Years later, those stories still begin with, “Remember when?”
Other traditions are intentional. Families return to take the same picture, pick a flower bucket with Mom, visit a favorite goat, ride the wagon, or compete to find the largest pumpkin. Repeating these simple activities gives everyone something familiar to anticipate.
The farm stays in the same place, but each visit changes as children grow, grandparents age, and new family members join. The annual trip becomes a way to notice those changes while preserving a shared ritual.
Screen-Free Time Helps Families Reconnect
A farm visit creates space to step away from everyday distractions. Families can put down their phones, move around, get a little dirty, and focus on one another.
Phones do not need to disappear completely. Erin noted that visitors still use them for photos and videos. The difference is whether the phone captures the experience or distracts from it.
Children can run, explore, interact with animals, and try activities while parents and grandparents join or watch nearby. The setting naturally encourages conversation, laughter, competition, and teamwork. These moments feel more memorable because everyone actively participates.
Activities Can Grow With the Family
Howell’s offers experiences for different ages so families do not quickly outgrow the farm. Young children can enjoy swings, slides, and playground areas. Tweens may take on the Ninja Warrior-style obstacle course. Teenagers and adults can try paintball, race through the corn maze, or use the pumpkin cannons.
Traditional activities remain central. Wagon rides, pumpkin picking, animals, flowers, and photo opportunities give everyone a way to participate. Grandparents may not climb an obstacle course, but they can cheer, take pictures, ride the wagon, or help select the perfect pumpkin.
Each person can experience the farm differently while still sharing the day. As Erin explained, the pumpkins may change every year, but families continue gaining new memories.
Farms Become Part of a Community’s Identity
Agritourism gives people access to farm life even when they do not personally know a farmer. Howell’s has become “the farm” for many local families. Children may first visit on a school field trip and later return with their parents.
This makes the farm more than a seasonal attraction. It becomes part of the community’s culture and is associated with fall, school memories, annual photos, and family time. It also gives younger visitors a glimpse of the farm experiences their grandparents or great-grandparents may have known.
By welcoming the public, family farms preserve a connection between agriculture and nearby communities. They make rural life feel personal, approachable, and relevant.
The Real Tradition Is Time Together
Families do not return because every visit is identical. They return because the farm provides a dependable place to create something new together.
A favorite goat may still be there. The wagon may follow a familiar route. The pumpkin patch may remain the yearly highlight. However, the conversations, jokes, pictures, and people are never exactly the same.
That is what turns a farm outing into a tradition. Families may come for the activities, but they remember how the experience made them feel: connected, present, and part of something carried from one generation to the next.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do families return to the same farm every year?
Familiar activities, annual photos, favorite animals, and shared stories make each visit personally meaningful while leaving room for new memories.
What makes a family farm different from a theme attraction?
A family farm has real crops, animals, seasonal changes, and people whose lives are connected to the land, creating a more authentic experience.
Can a farm visit appeal to several generations?
Yes. Playgrounds, obstacle courses, wagon rides, flowers, animals, corn mazes, and pumpkin patches offer something for children, parents, and grandparents.
How does a farm visit encourage family connection?
It helps families step away from routine distractions and spend time talking, exploring, laughing, and participating together.
Why do annual farm traditions remain meaningful?
They provide a familiar setting where families can recognize how they have grown, preserve shared stories, and create new memories. That lasting connection explains why are family farm traditions important
Mike Downer:
Everybody, I’m your host, Mike Downer. I’m here with Erin Conner again on Howell’s Farm Experience. How are we doing today, Erin?
Erin Conner:
Doing good, doing good.
Mike Downer:
Today, we’re going to go in a little bit of a different direction, and we’re going to be talking about why families keep coming back to the same farm year after year.
Here’s my main question for you: what makes a family farm experience so memorable that families return season after season, and why do traditions matter?
Erin Conner:
What makes Iowa family farms different is that they’re authentic. We have real animals, real crops, and real people. It’s a real family business. People can know the person behind the business, and it makes them feel more connected and more grounded in how authentic coming to an Iowa farm is.
Mike Downer:
Very good. I’m sure that over the years, you’ve gotten to know some families pretty well there at Howell’s.
Erin Conner:
Yeah. We opened up to the public back in the 1980s during the farm crisis, and we started growing pumpkins and having activities. We’ve seen several generations come through here.
Some parents brought their kids in strollers, and now those kids who were in strollers are bringing their own kids here. Some are bringing their kids and teenagers, and mom and dad still come, and grandpa still comes. It’s a whole family affair out here.
Mike Downer:
Why do so many families make Howell’s an annual tradition, and what keeps them coming back year after year?
Erin Conner:
You’re not going to get this type of experience in town or in a mall. This is real life out here, and you get to experience it. You get to step away from the screens, put down the phones, watch the kids run around, connect with each other more, and build memories.
Mike Downer:
That’s pretty awesome. How did Howell’s Greenhouse and Pumpkin Patch grow from Fred Howell’s first strawflower crop?
Erin Conner:
He did a great job starting so small and growing so big. I think a lot of what was behind that was the people who were affected by how great of an experience it is and the memories created out here.
The photo ops, the animals, and yes, the pumpkins are here, and the pumpkins will always be here, but it’s also the other memories you can build. People say things like, “Remember when grandpa did this on this slide?” or “Let’s take our picture here like we did last year.” People just love it.
Mike Downer:
That’s great. I know that everybody takes pictures and everything, but you mentioned earlier about putting the screens down. So let me ask you, why is screen-free family time more important than ever, and what does research say about the benefits of nature and outdoor play?
Erin Conner:
The best thing about putting the phones down is that you get to connect with one another. I think we kind of lose that. Yes, we are more connected on the phone with everybody, but that’s more of a world thing.
When you put the phones down, you’re connected with your community and your family more, and you’re creating memories. Yes, I’m still going to get my phone out to take pictures so I remember the day. I’m not going to completely put my phone down, but it helps. You get muddy, you get a little dirty, and you have a real-life, authentic experience.
Mike Downer:
I see what you’re saying about taking pictures and everything, but that’s not really phone time because it’s the same as having a camera. You’re just pulling your camera out.
Erin Conner:
Yeah, camera and video. That’s what I’m doing.
Mike Downer:
That’s not really screen time because if all you’re doing is taking pictures, not checking your messages, and then putting it back in your purse or your pocket, then it’s just a camera at that point.
Erin Conner:
Yep.
Mike Downer:
Connecting with your family nowadays is so important. I have kids, and I see how many times the whole family is just sitting at dinner on their phones, and you just want to look at everybody and say, “Stop.” This gives everybody a chance to just stop, so that’s pretty cool.
How does the Howell’s experience evolve as children grow from the Kiddie Corral to the corn maze and beyond?
Erin Conner:
We have evolved out here to include a lot of activities for more than just one age group. The playground is geared toward the littles with the swings and slides, but we also built another area to get the tweens involved, like the Ninja Warrior course or obstacle course.
We also have our staples, like wagon rides, the corn maze, and picking out pumpkins. Then we try to add stuff for teenagers, like paintball, or for dads, pumpkin cannons.
Mike Downer:
Paintball can be for the dads, too.
Erin Conner:
Yes, paintball can be for the dads. Dads also like getting lost in the corn maze and challenging their kids, saying, “I’ll beat you out of here,” or racing to see who gets out of the corn maze first.
Mike Downer:
That sounds like something my boys and I would do. We’re a little bit competitive. I think I’m a little too old for the Ninja Warrior course, though.
Erin Conner:
There are some harder obstacles. If you’re a little more agile, the kids with loose muscles can easily navigate those.
Mike Downer:
That’s awesome. That sounds like a lot of fun. What are some of the memorable traditions families have created over the years at Howell’s?
Erin Conner:
I hear a lot of memories like, “Mom, remember when grandpa did this?” or “Can you believe grandpa fit in that bathtub, and we got a picture with him?” or “Remember that goat that ate my five-dollar bill last year?” or “Remember when I was buried in the corn pool, and all you could see was my nose?”
It’s memories like that. You hear them year after year, or it could be five years down the road, and someone brings up something that happened out here. They’ll say, “I remember when you guys had this,” or “I remember when you did this. That was one of our favorite things.” They talk about it every fall, and it’s the memories you create out here.
Mike Downer:
Have you ever noticed your regular families doing the same thing over and over, even without them saying it?
Erin Conner:
Yeah, I notice my regulars always have to go check on this goat or feed that one goat. They have to go over here and find this other goat. That’s what my regulars do. They always go visit the animals because they are very connected to the animals.
Everyone also wants to pick the flower bucket that they do every year with their mom and make that memory with mom. I also see the ones every year who come and have to get the biggest pumpkin because they have to beat their neighbor and get the biggest pumpkin on the block. Every year they come and ask, “Where are your big pumpkins planted?” Then they go out and get them.
Mike Downer:
So when you see them pulling up your lane, you’re like, “Here we go. I better get the wheelbarrow ready.”
Erin Conner:
Yep, because you know that old Jeff is going to want that big pumpkin.
Mike Downer:
Why is agritourism growing so rapidly across the country, and what makes Iowa farm experiences stand out?
Erin Conner:
Agritourism is growing rapidly, especially here in Iowa, because it’s such an authentic experience. Iowa farms are something real. There are real animals, real crops, real people, and real family businesses.
People are not just stepping into a manufactured theme attraction. They’re stepping into something that has thought behind it, like the way we grew up. We’re trying to give people the experience of different kinds of activities we had growing up on a farm.
Mike Downer:
Very cool. How can a farm destination become an important part of a local community’s identity and culture?
Erin Conner:
We’ve become part of the community. It’s where school field trips come to have a day out on the farm. It’s where school kids go home, talk to their mom and dad, and bring them out on the weekend to create another memory there.
Not everyone knows somebody on a farm where they can go visit anytime they want. We’re a place where people can come visit and experience a farm like their grandparents or great-grandparents had.
Mike Downer:
I’m originally from Muscatine, and I knew a lot of farmers 40 years ago. But right now, I don’t know a single farmer other than you.
Erin Conner:
Yep.
Mike Downer:
You’re exactly right. I can’t think of many of my city friends who know a farmer they can go out and visit and enjoy what you guys have.
Erin Conner:
We’re a place to go visit the farm. We’re not just called Howell’s. People say, “Let’s go to Howell’s,” but they also say, “Let’s go to the farm.” We’re the farm to a lot of people.
Mike Downer:
That’s very cool. I like that you have that identity. How does Howell’s create experiences that appeal to grandparents, parents, teens, and young children all at the same time?
Erin Conner:
We offer activities for all those age groups. You might say, “Well, grandma and grandpa can’t go on the obstacle course.” No, but they can watch their grandkids have fun, take pictures with their grandkids, ride in the bathtub with their grandkids, and experience that hallmark tradition of taking the wagon ride or hayride out to the pumpkin patch and picking the perfect pumpkin.
Mike Downer:
Very good. It sounds like there are a lot of different activities the whole family can be involved with, as well as individual activities that keep everybody’s interest.
Erin Conner:
Yep.
Mike Downer:
I’m sure a lot of times mom and grandma like to walk through the flowers while dad and grandpa go out there and, like you said, shoot a pumpkin gun or something.
Erin Conner:
The pumpkins change every year, but the memories you gain every year are new and memorable. Those are the types of memories you gain with your families and friends.
Mike Downer:
I can see that as the family grows and gets older. Like you said, every time you come out there, it’s a different experience.
Erin Conner:
Yep.
Mike Downer:
Even though the location is the same, the experience, the words, and the feelings are all going to be different.
Erin Conner:
There’s always something going on out here because we’re a working farm, so something is new all the time.
Mike Downer:
Very good. It sounds like this fall, if you’re looking for something to do with the family, put the phones down, get a little family time in, and make some new memories. It sounds like Howell’s is the place to go.
Erin Conner:
We are the best place in Iowa to come for a fall family memory.
Mike Downer:
During the fall, what kind of hours are we looking at that you guys operate?
Erin Conner:
In the fall, we’re open 10:00 to 6:00 daily, and all of our fall activities start in early September and run through Halloween.
Mike Downer:
Very good. It sounds like you’ve got a full lineup going on for everybody, and I hope we see everybody out there this fall.
Erin Conner:
Yep. I can’t wait. It’s going to be fun.
Mike Downer:
All right. Thanks a lot for telling us all about what’s going on this fall, Erin. I look forward to the next time we talk.
Erin Conner:
Yep, thank you.
Mike Downer:
All right. Have a great day, Erin.
Erin Conner:
Thank you.
