Pick Another Peck (or 2 or 3) of Apples

Apple picking has fast become our most loved, most anticipated family tradition. Calem was nearly 2 the first time we took him apple picking, and it has been something he looks forward to ever since. Once again, we returned to Miller's Apple Hill in Amherst for an apple-picking bonanza. This year we picked 2 1/2 pecks of apples. That's about 35 lbs. of apples!

Scott and the boys on the hay ride out to the orchard. Both boys were so excited to have their very own 1/4 peck bags to fill with their very own apples. We encouraged them to look for the little tiny apples just right for their hands. They really enjoyed hunting for them, and turned out to be perfect for snacks because they went through a phase of not wanting their apples sliced, but wanting whole apples for a snack.

Taking a ride on the hay wagon out to the orchard was less than comfortable for me and my ginormous, 8-month pregnant belly--but well worth the family fun and bounty of delicious apples we brought home.

I'm pretty sure more apples landed in their tummies than in their apple bags!

Calem managed to fill his bag!

Notice Isaac's is still empty, but his mouth is still full!

As much as the boys love picking and eating the apples out in the orchard, the trip would not be complete without a refreshing drink of fresh apple cider. They look forward to it so much, and the apple picking may very well be a means to an end! They like to take their little bottles of cider and relax in the pumpkin corral when we return from the orchard, and before they use their second wind to tackle the hay mazes in "Pumpkin Land." It's always a full and tiring day, but something we all really look forward each fall. I'm pretty sure it will be something we still put on the calendar and drag the kids to even when they're 17 and complaining they have better things to do. This family tradition shall live on.

Now, what to do with 35 lbs. of apples...

It's the most wonderful time---of the year...

Sure, some of you may think a post with such a title is a couple months too early. But, in my opinion, fall is the most wonderful time of the year. The super-blue skies. The trees that appear to be on fire. The warm sunshine on your back and a nip at your nose. The festivals, the pumpkins, the apples, the cider, the hayrides, the bonfires, the corn mazes, the costume parties, the candy, candy, candy!! The endless opportunities for more family fun than any decent family could reasonably handle. Well, folks, let me tell you--we have done our darnedest to handle it all!!

When the birthday festivities ended, the fall festivities began. Following is a list of the family fun we've dragged our weekend-napless children to since October 4th:

1. Peninsula and the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, followed by an afternoon running up and down the Virginia Kendall Hills in the National Park

2. The Wooly Bear Festival, held in Vermillion. Nary a wooly bear was seen, but the frequent-running freight trains and the nearby beach was a hit. And Calem really dug the marching bands in the parade.

3. Apple-picking at Miller's Apple Hill in Amherst. (There's a whole post for this one, but let me just say that apples, cider, pumpkins, hay AND live animals were included in this bundle of family fun.)

4. A trip to Gramma and Grampa Nagy's for a bonfire, tractor rides and the annual tradition of pumpkin carving with Grampa.

5. Hay ride with Grampa Bob, Aunt Cheryl and Heather.

6. Picking pumpkins, also with Grampa Bob, Aunt Cheryl and Heather

7. Corn Maze--whilst an easy one, a great first for the boys. Also with Grampa Bob, Aunt Cheryl and Heather

8. Boo At The Zoo. Calem as Tigger, Isaac as Pooh.

9. Trunk-or-Treat. A MOPS event and a chance for the kids to don their costumes and hoard more candy.

And it doesn't stop there. Oh no. We still have a playgroup halloween party. (If you're lucky you may get to see a photo of ten 3 year olds, three 1year olds and four baby siblings--all in costume.) We still have a road trip to visit the cousins in Michigan. We still have a preschool halloween party. We still have the neighborhood trick-or-treat night. We still have...

No... actually, I think that should do it.

That is, until all the Holiday Family Fun Festivities begin. :-) Wooo-hooo!! Bring it on, I say.

Pick a Peck of Apples...or a 1/4 Peck

Imagine a picture-perfect day. Bright, sunny blue skies, with puffy bits of clouds. It's a warm 75 degrees, feeling more like summer than fall. But then you hear the deisel engine of a tractor in the distance and you smell the hay on the wagon as it comes around the bend. Now you're remided that it's fall, and there is an entire orchard brimming with gleaming red, yellow and green apples just waiting to be picked and made into pie, bread, cake, cider, sauce and just about anything else you can think of!

Both boys absolutely LOVED apple-picking this year. A lot different for Isaac this year, not being confined to the Baby Bjorn!

They ate so many apples along the way we were a little worried about the digestive consequences, but fortunately there weren't any. Isaac loved playing hide-and-seek in the orchard. Calem was most proud that he climbed up a tree to pick apples he couldn't reach from the ground. They were both so cute with their little 1/4 Peck bags, and a lot of already-bitten apples found their way in. We lingered in the orchard for hours, picking, running, playing and sampling.

Thinking that a half peck of apples wouldn't be enough for us (mistakenly), we also purchased a larger bag. Once it was all filled, we realized the folly of our ways. Once home, Scott weighed the collective apples and found that we had 30 lbs. of apples, fresh from the tree! Whoa! 30 lbs!!! Now, the question is what to do with 30 lbs. of apples. I've already made apple cake and two batches of apple sauce. The kids, I think, are over the novelty of eating whole apples and are starting to snub the suggestion of apples for snacks. I have plans to freeze a couple pies, but I still have a bounty of apples to use.

After sufficient frollicking in the orchard, we boarded the hay ride once again and headed back to the market on the farm.

All that apple-picking really works up a thirst, so we rewarded our hard work with some delicious fresh cider. The boys enjoyed cute little apple-shaped sip-bottles while Scott and I simply guzzled from a jug. As you can see in the photo to the side, Calem was especially refreshed by his "cider juice."







Then it was on to explore the pumpkin patch and the cute area they had set up for kids called "Pumpkin Land." Pumpkins sure do provide a nice backdrop for fall photos. Below you can see Isaac taking a minute to smile for mommy while enjoying climbing all over and rolling through the pumkin patch.
Calem isn't at a very agreeable age when asked to smile for the camera. But I did trick him into using "all his muscles" to lift a pumpkin. He's pretty strong for the little squirt that he is.
After pumpkin fun, the boys giggled and squealed, pushed and pulled one another through a little hay maze with an open top, thinking it very clever that they could escape into a place where mommy and daddy couldn't find them.



Overall, it was a really glorious day in the history of Nagy family outings. The boys were happy, aggreeable, obedient--a good day in any parent's book. The weather was fabulous. The apples were delicious and the photos turned out great. It really makes us look forward to this family tradition for years to come...Even when our guys are 16 and we have to drag them to the apple farm, thrusting 1/4 peck bags into their hands and demanding they pick, and pick happily or they'll be grounded. A mom's gotta have her traditions!!!