Go BIG or Go Home
What Happens When A Small-Town Family Visits The "World's Largest"... Whatever!

I ♥ Elwood

Thanks to everyone who took a guess at our “Where is it? Wednesday” game yesterday! Liza and Bill both knew that this fellow – his name is Elwood, sigh – lives in Iowa. To be precise, he lives in Reiman Gardens on the Iowa State University campus.  Mike offered a more compelling back story about Hans, Das mad Gärtner, which I think was a product of his new parent sleep deprivation.

Standing 15-feet tall, Elwood is the world’s largest concrete garden gnome. My special guy Chomsky is the second tallest, at just over 13 feet.

Thanks again to Jody at Family Rambling for providing the photo, and this background info: Elwood is modeled after a garden gnome statue made by Created in Johnston, a company which creates concrete statues.

He is named after both an ISU professor who taught Landscape Architecture, and the original street which Reiman Gardens sits on (which is now called University Avenue).

There is a gnome in Poland which is larger, but he is made of fiberglass.

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Where is it? Wednesday

First, a quick thank you to everyone who entered to win our giveaway last week! Kathy H. has won a copy of the Drive I-95 guidebook by Stan Posner and Sandra Phillips-Posner!

So, my love for garden gnomes has grown to uncomfortable levels. When I set my sites upon gnomes which are among the world’s largest, like this one, things just start getting weird. I mean, isn’t he cute?! Not as cute as Chomsky, the giant gnome here in my native Hudson Valley, but this guy apparently likes to garden, which is a plus in my book.

Jody, the travel blogger at Family Rambling who wrote a guest post for us on the world’s largest Souvenir Travel Plate, got to meet this fellow in person.  Ten points to the first person who can tell me where it is! Yes, he’s been referenced in a previous post, if you want to search.  Hehe, made ya look. Fifty points if you can tell me his name!!

Giant gnome

Also, I feel compelled to remind you to save the date of February 11th for the premiere of the animated movie Gnomeo and Juliet. It’s the humorous story of two garden gnomes who try to avoid tragedy and find a happy ending to their star-crossed love affair when they are caught up in a feud between neighbors. CAN’T WAIT!!

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World’s Second Largest Garden Gnome, Kerhonkson, NY

Worlds largest garden gnome

Meet Chomsky!

Up until April of this year, the world’s largest garden gnome was Chomsky, the jolly, 13’ 6” bearded fellow who welcomes you at the entrance of Kelder’s Farm in Kerhonkson, NY. Another feather in our Hudson Valley cap. I’ve learned there are two taller gnomes; one in Iowa, and the other in Poland.  I’m bummed. I have to categorize this post as “Biggish,” not “Biggest.”

Where we went, and who was coerced into going:

At the strike of midnight on September 30th, we begin the excited preparations for Halloween. It’s a long month of discussing, analyzing, and comparing costume choices; putting up decorations; watching Halloween TV specials (we own It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown) and reading our favorite books, most notably Jerry Seinfeld’s Halloween. Both kids can now recite the Halloween Three-Step Program by heart.

And of course, there’s the pumpkin picking. This year, we’re going to make Jack O’Lanterns, so inspired are we from going to the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze.

So this year, we went to get our pumpkins about an hour away, on Kelder’s Farm in Kerhonkson, NY.

WHY did you go there, exactly?

We’ve been there to see Chomsky once before, but it was in March when the farm stand wasn’t open. We went to get a better look at the world’s second largest garden gnome, with the added benefit of getting our pumpkins and having some fun on the farm.

Okay, what was so cool about it?

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