Blueberry Time Again!

This year's crowd...

Lisa, Isaac, Isabelle, Sophia, Jodie, Emma, me, Leo
I knew Leo wouldn't stand for these close quarters for long so I had to get to work!

Sophia's first blueberry experience...she was much more content to sit on my hip and pick than her brother was!

He was more into picking leaves off the bushes and trying to eat those. I tried to feed him blueberries and no, not so much into those!

Emma was a diligent picker this year!

Jenn and Trevor showed up to pick along with Cayden and a friend

okay, Mom, I'll pick 1 blueberry but I'm too sweaty to do more.

Lisa was hard at work while Isaac assisted

Sophia found this to be a much better use for her bucket

The girls insisted on cramming all in one car. Sophia was attempting a smile, although it doesn't look like it in this picture, she insisted on riding there!

Isaac was smart enough to wait for the next train and claim a car for himself!

Leo enjoyed playing in the grass and petting the farm dog

Sophia walked the balance beam and climbed the cargo rope before we left

Blueberry picking really wore me out this year! Sophia although excited before we got to the patch, quickly lost her interest in the heat. She basically refused to pick berries and I think maybe picked a few that she immediately ate and that was it. Leo was content, but he was pretty warm and just didn't want to stay on my side. He is FAR, far too busy for such things! He would have been happy crawling through the patches at his leisure, but I feared he would put too many things in his mouth to let him roam free.

Our crowd was a bit smaller this year than last year and mom wasn't able to make it, which makes a difference. I missed her but I also missed how great she is with all the kids! Last year, whenever someone would get tired she selflessly volunteered (okay, maybe she wasn't so into picking the berries either! ;) to play ring around the rosy and other favorite games. In the end, I still did get a good crop of berries to bring home, 3.3 lbs to be exact! Plus, all the kids really loved riding the train which they were too young to do last year and the Berry Patch makes delicious muffins that were also a hot commodity among the little ones. All in all, still a good trip and we'll definitely try again next year!

On a side note, I'm really not sure when I'm going to have time to process all those delicious berries into tasty treats as I'm going under the knife tomorrow! YIKES! I'm cleaning and freezing those berries for a later date! Although, I'm happy to leave out a few so that my darling husband can whip up some blueberry smoothies for my ailing throat! ;) Keep your fingers crossed! I know things will go fine, it's only tonsils for crying out loud, but I'm anxious to say the least! I'll keep everyone posted on my recovery!