Strawberry Picking

A few weeks ago, we checked off one of our items on our summer fun list. Berry Picking! A friend told me about a farm that had delicious u-pick strawberries about 20 minutes from our house. I wanted to make sure we visited while they were still in season so off we went. It was a cool, gorgeous morning and we got there early so it wasn't crowded. As we pulled in, I realized that I had been there before. For some reason the name of the farm and the directions to get there didn't ring a bell ahead of time. But when we got there I immediately recognized it. I had even blogged about it back in the waiting stage of our adoption.

Berry picking ended up being one of those activities that miraculously went perfectly. LB had a blast and he seemed to get so much satisfaction out of it. There was something about picking it himself that made it really special in his mind. He loves the taste of strawberries and I often make him strawberry smoothies but given his food texture sensitivities he's always complained of the little seeds and wouldn't eat them as is. But there was something about picking his own that made him change his tune. One of the first things he asked me was if he could eat them. I told him "absolutely" and he was off. We each got a little bin and he picked a row. The farmer told him to pick the really red ones and to leave the white ones. He was very serious about this and kept reminding me, "No pick the white ones, Mommy."

I think the first bite was a little sweet but he didn't seem to mind. One of my favorite memories from the whole morning was when we got home. I put LB down for his nap and I got to work on rinsing off the strawberries and transferring them from the little wooden bins to a bowl. LB loves to "help" in the kitchen and I knew he would enjoy to help pick off the stems while I cut them up. So my plan was to rinse them and then let him help when he woke up. I got to the bottom of his bin and found a handful of berries with just one bite. I paused and thought about how he must have picked a berry, taken a bite and then put it in his bin so he could keep picking. Something about it struck me as incredibly precious and sweet. It was a reminder that they are only little once and is there anything better than finding his half eaten strawberries at the bottom of the bin? I think not. Sigh. I hope I never forget little memories like that.

Don't you love his little arm wrapped around his bin? He guarded them very carefully. LB really enjoyed the process of searching for "the best" strawberry and would often exclaim, "Look at this huge one." Or "Wow! This one is really red." He would even brag to the slightly older boys in the row next to us if he thought he found a really great one. They were kind and would always agree with him. We both filled our bins to the brim and then made our way over to a shaded area to eat a few more and swing before heading home.

I promise he was having fun. He was just over my Mommy paparazzi antics but I had to get a final photo with all our loot. I told him he didn't have to smile so he didn't. LB continued to chow down on the strawberries when we got home and he was very eager to tell D all about it. We'll be heading back to pick raspberries in a week or two. It will be interesting to see if the u-pick aspect encourages him to eat the raspberries. If you live near a fruit farm then I highly recommend this activity!