We went on our first field trip to an apple orchard!
When we arrived at the apple orchard it started sprinkling. Then a bit more than a sprinkle. We grabbed our umbrella and jackets and continued to walk to the apple tree. It was warm and the rain drops were small. We decided to stay.
When we turned down the first row of trees the rain stopped and the sun pushed it's way through the clouds. We were blessed with a dry sky the rest of our time.
There was a lot of open space the boys enjoyed running through. With apples on the ground and slick grass from the rain the boys did fall often. It was adorable, as if they were toddlers again. They didn't fall hard, nor get hurt. All the falls were soft. They popped back up and would run again.
There were also plenty of bad apples on the ground to observe bugs.
The boys really enjoyed choosing which apples to pick, reaching up and grabbing them and crawling through the trees to get the perfect apple.
After our first bushel of apples the two little ones had not had their fill of apple picking. Myself and my sister-in-law to be decided why not pick a second bushel? We hiked back up to the building dropped off the apples we picked, picked up a second bag for our pickings and set off looking for a McIntosh apples.
We toured the facility enjoying the view of the apple trees (the boys enjoying the bugs) until we found the perfect tree for picking.
We really did find the perfect tree. We picked our full bushel (21 lbs) from this tree. It did involve a bit more lifting for the boys to reach some higher apples but they didn't complain. :)
With all the picking the boys wanted to taste an apple. Lucky we had a pocket knife to peel an apple and taste the fruit. It was delicious! I am not sure if it tasted better because I was standing there in the midst of the apple trees or not but it was the best apple I had eaten.
All full of apples, in our belly and our bag, we headed back to the building to buy our apples.
I was surprised at how much fun the boys had. Both of them mentioned multiple times how much fun they were having while we were there. The rest of the day Spencer kept saying he wanted to go there again.
It was beautiful and relaxing. Such a simple activity that encourages interacting together in nature. Taking time to enjoy the beauty God created on earth.
I haven't made anything with the apples yet but I will post when we start the baking!
What a great family tradition! And wow- you sure did get a lot of apples! I'm sure there will be some delicious fall treats served very soon in your home :)
ReplyDeleteFor the price they were selling them we decided to take advantage! I am planning to make some yummy fall treats, I have been on Pintrest all day :D.
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Great photos! Makes me want to go apple picking! Thanks for sharing :)
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