Autumn Family Field Trip

Thursday morning, as the girls arrived downstairs for breakfast, I told them we were going on a field trip. Their reaction was, "What? Where?!" They were excited, knowing they wouldn't have any bookwork that day, but also curious as to what I had in mind. I kept the suspense going for a while. We all got ready and just before we went out the door, I told them. "We are going apple picking!".

The orchard is almost an hour away, but it's an easy drive, and goes opposite most traffic for that time of day. I was concerned because it started raining about 15 minutes into our trip. It was off and on. I said a prayer, and felt that turning around wasn't an option. By the time we arrived, the rain had stopped and it was only a little wet at the orchard. I was so thankful that my prayers were answered!!

Here are some photos of our day that I'd like to share with you....

We stopped in the main building to get bags and a map of the orchard and pick up our "apple picker". Then we drove to a spot that seemed to have a good amount of apples left. We picked two different types of apples, but off the top of my head, I can't remember exactly which ones they were. I'll have to ask the girls tomorrow. It was so convenient to be able to drive through the orchard (very much appreciated by a mom of a two year old). We saw other people, but it wasn't crowded by any means. Then, when we picked enough, we got back in the van and headed back to the main building. We paid for our apples and some peach preserves (love it!)....
and then started the process of choosing the perfect pumpkin. Skylar grew her own pumpkins this year, but unfortunately, they've since rotted and had to be thrown out. That was hard for her. But we were all happy to pick a pumpkin from the ones at Stribling Orchard. They had a beautiful selection and they are reasonably priced.

It was hard to choose. But once we did, we headed to the van, and Sky and Alexa and I made a brief trip to see the animals. Evan was too tired, and Taylor was fine with waiting with him at the van. It was getting hot, and I think they Evan needed a drink and the AC in the van.We got to see a rather huge steer named Sparky (not kidding) and then we were pleasantly surprised when this pair came out from hiding. That's Blackie the horse and Rusty the pony.And the scenery surrounding this orchard is just breathtaking! We don't have full Autumn foliage yet, but it was still lovely. These pictures just don't do it justice.

We ate our lunches on the way home. It was a pleasant drive back. Everyone had a good time and I'm pretty sure they hope I spring this kind of thing on them more often. Hmmm.....I'll have to think where to take them next....

I am attempting an apple pie tomorrow, and possibly applesauce in the near future. Sky and Alexa LOVE applesauce. I'll let you know how they turn out.

Oh, and BTW, when we got back and after we rested and cleaned up a bit, we had a very nice Teatime for St. Margaret Mary Alacocque. I hope to post about it soon.

Hope you all have a wonderful Autumn weekend. It's actually starting to feel like Fall, now! I love this weather!

TTFN

~Tina