I've always wanted to go pick berries with the girls. It seems like such a "Norman Rockwell" thing to do.
It was hot. Skin-melting, humidity hot.
It's the end of the season. We had to really dig around for ripe berries that hadn't been consumed by wasps (who were flying about quite liberally).
The vines were prickly and stuck in our gloves as though they were pincushions.
Princess #4 ran amok and kept trying to sneak unripe red berries. I would think the bitterness would have taught her to not eat them after the first one, but then again, she is the one that keeps going back to eat the dog's food.
We had to stop so Princess #3 could have a potty break, and a meltdown after we told her she'd eaten her quota of berries.
We ended up only collecting 2(ish) pounds of berries and had to spend extra $$ to purchase some pre-picked ones to round out our loot.
But a morning spent together. Under the great big blue sky. Unplugged. No iPhones. No TV. We actually entertained them for nearly 2 hours without any sort of electronic equipment. We made memories - like the one where we caught Princess #4 with about 6 unripe red berries stuck in her cheeks, like she was storing them for winter. Oh, we had the whining, the temper tantrums, the potty emergencies, but that's all part of the package.
And we loved every minute of it!
PS. I'm having formatting issues for some reason. Please disregard the change in font size, etc. I guess I won't be sending Blogger any of my homemade Blackberry jam! So there!
My friends, what are some of your favorite summer activities to do with your family?
So fun! We love berry picking too. LJ usually eats more than his fair share and then ends up sleeping through lunch...so I guess it works out. Glad you had such a fun "unplugged" day!
ReplyDeleteSounds like so much fun! I would love to do that with our girls, and reap the benefits of fresh jam or pie! But I don't know of any berry picking farms around Bend, so I'll have to live vicariously through you! My all-time favorite summer activity is the week we spend at the lake. It's guaranteed that it will come with it's share of whining, temper tantrums and who knows what other kind of emergencies. But, like you said, it's all part of the package and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I'm giving my girls the experiecnes and creating family memories. So glad you had a great day, despite the "skin-melting humidity." :) -Tara C
ReplyDeleteAww I always pick fresh fruit when in season. And it is the height of blackberry season. Such a fun family activity!
ReplyDelete