It was the same deal this year with apple picking. Emily asked once after a classmate shared that she had been with her family. Some of the orchards in this region lost a portion of their crops due to the wonky spring weather and I didn't feel like driving over an hour away for an expensive outing that lasts all of ten minutes. Well, in the girls' defense, that was two years ago. Maybe next year, we'll plan better.
This past weekend, we visited a local farm that was less than an hour away. This farm does have apple picking but you are required to make reservations and by the time we called (the end of September), they were already sold out. They still had plenty of apples and cider for sale.
There was a tractor ride (hayride without the hay) up through the orchards which the girls loved, mainly because it was so bumpy. The adults enjoyed the views.
We did purchase some apples and cider donuts and visited the pumpkin area. The aroma of fresh apples filled the store and even outside, which was quite refreshing As we were leaving, I asked the girls if they had enjoyed themselves and made a comment regarding "the fall experience." For me, childhood memories of fall revolve around searching for beautiful leaves, the sound of crunchy leaves underfoot, wearing handmade or hand-me-down sweaters to play outside in the crisp air and the smell of smoke from fireplaces. I sometimes think about how the girls' childhood differs from mine but the world was a different place 34 years ago. Somethings should and will remain the same though.
* I was attempting to finish writing this post last night while talking to Rich. When I discovered that I had typed out "fall asleep" instead of "fall experience," I decided to power down for the night.
7 comments:
I had a similar experience with an orchard last year. I love my god daughter, but she was too young to enjoy it and lunch for 4 adults cost us around $40 (what?!). This year we found a smaller venue and were much happier, although we still spent more money than I had anticipated.
We were lucky - the pumpkin patch we went to (well, not actually a real patch but a ton of pumpkins of all sizes arrayed on a huge lawn in front of a church), I fully expected to pay a fortune, especially since it was a fundraiser. But they must have gotten the pumpkins donated, because we got out of there with a huge pumpkin (I could barely carry it) and many, many smaller ones for only $38. So either they're donated, or these people make no money for their fundraiser. But it was a good, not too expensive time!
Tantalizing pictures from my friends' pumpkin patch and apple-picking experiences are popping up all over my Facebook feed, but I just can't seem to find the energy to bring my own family out this year. (Might be the combination of pregnancy, a tireless toddler, a 9-month old who still doesn't know how to sleep, and a tendency towards insomnia...) {sigh} Maybe next year. In the meantime, I'm enjoying living vicariously through everyone else's photos. Yours are gorgeous, as usual. :)
Strange question, but is the Minnie Mouse doll that one of the girls is holding wearing a Tangled costume?
I know - I feel like you are paying for the experience of going to a pumpkin patch in addition to the actual pumpkin.
Stacey L - Yes - that is a Rapunzel Minnie. Disney makes Minnies wearing princess clothes.
I was super excited about apple picking this year, remembering climbing trees as a child. Well...it took us all of 5 minutes to collect over 20lbs of apples! The trees were bursting, about as tall as I am, and you could just tap a branch and catch them. It was, frankly, disappointingly easy! After that we grabbed some cider and headed home. I think that the hayrides will be reserved for a time when we have kids. Two adults...we would spend the entire time wondering if we got our money's worth. Luckily there are lots of orchards within a short driving distance, but this place was pretty darn packed, and expensive.
The girls are beautiful and it's so much fun to see how much older they are looking every time I come back to visit.
I can't get over Anna's clothing choice!! What a cute little fashionista.
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