Picking Berries: Way Back When-esday

It was a couple of years ago that the girls and I first discovered a big berry farm and orchard about 40 miles south of town.  I'm a bit embarrassed to admit that I STILL have berries in the freezer we picked two years ago!  (We're  working through them slowly,  I promise!)  That didn't stop us from making another trip down a couple of weekends ago, though.

There's something just so picturesque about picking berries...and fresh beats frozen any day!

Of course a return trip meant breaking out the camera.   And of course that  prompted me to look  at the  pictures I just took in comparison to those from two years ago.  

The girls' intensity was very  similar...but those little baby cheeks aren't quite so round anymore!

2014

2016

Our first trip was just the girls and me.  After we  picked berries, we explored  the farm a bit.   I remember  Baby A,  in  particular, being absolutely consumed by a huge  field  of blooming clover.  The girls ran and  ran, and then they agreed to stop in front of  this beautiful  barn side.  It was such a great backdrop for a  picture!

Cuties!!!

This year we didn't see any blooming clover, but the girls were  awed with a romp through the orchard.   Here they were  checking  out  the  beginning of what I'm sure  will be  beautiful  peaches.

Still  cuties!!!

And  this year, Hubby accompanied us.  I sure miss those baby  cheeks, but at least I got a {rare} picture of the  three  of us together.

Day-before-Mother's-Day hugs!

Thanks, as always, to Cheryl at Twinfatuation  for  the prompt to dig  through my old  pictures this Way Back When-esday...even if  the comparisons get me  choked up now and again.

My (Dusty) Camera

Since the girls started school and I started back to work, I realized I haven't had my camera out nearly as often as I always have.  It isn't literally dusty (the horror!!!), but my September14 picture file was sadly thin.

I packed my camera this past Saturday morning, as the girls and I went to our beloved Jackson's Orchard for their annual Orchestra in the Orchard event.  [I have pictures from our visit each year that I could pull out...but I'm not quite that organized these days.]

Here are a few of my faves...

We started out, listening to the orchestra, under the shade of an apple tree.

Since we didn't get there as early as we'd planned, our spot wasn't very good, and we decided to find a snack.  In line, we ran into none other than "Grandma" June!!!  It had been waaaay too long since we saw her...what a fantastic treat!!!

The girls enjoyed playing...

...and Grandma June insisted she take a picture of the three of us.  What a rare treat!

And last, but certainly not least, we scoped out the pumpkins.

After a super-fun morning, the girls and I headed downtown for lunch.  We opted for Tea Bayou, one of my frequent haunts from the girls' preschool days.  How I'd missed that little place, too!

Here are the girlies, waiting on our food, near-tuckered out from a full morning of sun and fun...

And I had to snap a picture of A, trying to eat a big muffaletta.  It's hard to eat when you're short on teeth!!!

Before we wrapped up our sweet time together, we made a pit stop by the downtown fountain.  This picture opp never gets old.

I've been missing time with my precious babies...and with my camera!  So glad I got a good dose of both this Saturday.

{heart}

I'm Going to Miss This

I had a really hard time, the last few days before the girls started kindergarten.  It wasn't so much that I couldn't come to grips with my babies growing up...but it was all about how much I would miss the amazing 5 1/2 years we shared so intimately.

Sure, we'll have our mornings and our nights together, and we'll make the most of every weekend...but it's the random, middle-of-the-afternoon, impromptu trips to the orchard that I will miss so very much...

...it's being there for the most average of days, and enjoying the most incredible snuggles, any time I pleased.

...it's sharing the ups and downs and restlessness...turned to incredible displays of imagination.

Here's just a snippet of some of the carefree fun we had this summer.

Swim lessons!

Picking tomatoes from the garden!

Picking strawberries from the berry patch!

Getting lost in a craft!

Having fun at birthday parties!

Playing at the park!

Hanging out at the orchard with friends!

Learning new skills!

Ceramics!

Ice cream with Mommy!

 ...and one of my favorite pictures of the summer...

The dancing fountains!

And, of course, we enjoyed two amazing trips (no vacation time required).

Chicago!!!

New York City...with friends!!!

I am beyond grateful for these baby girls, and for the 5 1/2 years we've ENJOYED, together.  New adventures await, for sure...but these days will forever have such a special place in our hearts.

Berries and a "Bouquet"

We had plans to pick strawberries with some friends a few weeks ago…but the weather and life happened, and we didn’t make it.  I’d been meaning to call the farm (a place about 35 miles from here, somewhere we’d never been) to see about their berry patch, but, well, life kept happening, and almost too much time went by.

I finally got myself together to make that phone call on Wednesday, and I was told they would only have strawberries for a couple more days.

Thankfully, our schedule didn’t have anything concrete on it, and we quickly dressed and found our way to the farm [in the middle of nowhere!].  We got on our sunscreen, donned our hats, and went to work!

Baby A, showing me what a pretty berry she found!

Baby B, amid the rows.

The raised beds were very easy to navigate, and before long, we picked just more than 10 POUNDS of strawberries!

Not quite 10 pounds here, but the girls were showing off their bounty.

We paid for our berries and left them at the stand while we went to have some lunch at a little restaurant there on the farm.  We decided to walk across the grounds…and I’m so glad we did!  This mommy had so much fun taking pictures!

I loved the side of this barn!

Reaching up, showing our bellies!

When we got to the apple orchard, Baby A was mesmerized by all the blooming clover.  She knelt down , being very meticulous to pick just the right ones.

She was adamant about hanging onto her bouquet.  I kept it for her through lunch, and when we went to the restroom, we all traded turns holding it.  I wet a towel and wrapped the stems of the bouquet so we could take it home.

Baby A decided she wanted to give it to her daddy.  I put it in a vase (a tall shot glass from our honeymoon in Cancun…hahaha!), and Daddy was very gracious in receiving his gift.

The “flowers” lasted for two full days on the table.

And I got to see Baby A’s eyes light up every time she looked at them.  The strawberries were delicious, but this has to be my favorite part of the trip.

Frigid Field Trip Fun!

The girls went on their first real field trip last week...it was so much fun! 

The trip was to the orchard, where we go every few weeks, but it was still a new adventure to experience everything with their classmates.  And there were a few things we'd never done, or hadn't done in a long time, like the hay ride, corn maze, pumpkin patch, and apple cider demonstration.

We've had a pretty warm fall so far, but last Friday was FRIGID!  Lows that morning were in the 20's...and the orchard is located at the highest point in the county.  I think the car registered 35 degrees as we were driving there about 9:00 that morning.  Yikes!

I broke out the girls' warm coats for the first time, and I have to say I loved seeing my little snow bunnies all bundled up.

At least we had warm sunshine...and by the end of the morning, we were able to shed our hood and our top layer.

Of course I snapped a few (or a hundred) pictures...

Trying for our traditional pumpkin shot...but it was pretty cold for big smiles, apparently.

Classmates A&B with K&K.

Love these fluffy snuggles!

Climbing hay bales while we waited for our hay ride.

Group shot of both preschool classes.  You can tell it was bright!!!

My precious babes on the hay ride.

Love the morning sun and the pigtails!!!

The girls were initially excited about the corn maze, but the tour leader warned all the kiddos to stay with their mommies.  "If you get lost, we'll pick you up tomorrow," he joked.  Apparently the joke was lost [no pun intended!] on most of the kids, though.

The girls were pretty tentative as we went through.  They did not want to let go my hands, even for me to snap a picture.  This was one of only a couple of shots I got.  Poor babes!

Sticking together!

After the corn maze, we headed to the pumpkin patch.  The girls must have picked up 20 pumpkins each before making their selections.

B, holding up one for consideration...

A, testing out the feel of this one...

Heading back to the hay ride.

At last it was time for a snack...apple cider and a sugar cookie.  Here are a few of the kiddos, posing with Mrs. D.

We played a bit on the playground before it was time to pack up.  I got one last picture of my by-then tired babies.  

A, trying to get B to stand up straight...HA!

We rounded out the morning by going to lunch with one of their classmates, and we came home and took a bubble bath in Mommy's giant tub.

Fun, fun, fun!!!