Summer Berry Picking

One hot morning, I decided it was time to introduce Moo to one of my favorite things about summer...picking berries.

We got all sunscreened up, jumped in the car and headed over to the Temecula Berry Co. to pick some of their luscious Blueberries. First of all, let me say that no matter where you live, I am willing to bet that within an hour drive from your front door there is a small farm that either has a u-pick season or will let you pick a few berries, apples, whatever for a small fee. Temecula Berry Co. is a u-pick berry farm and while the season is short, it is worth it to get out there and take advantage. There is nothing like picking the fruit you will soon be eating fresh from the bush (or tree). Kids really love it and enjoy the hunt. At this farm, they even give a big smiling blueberry sticker to the kids so they know to only pick the blue ones, not the green or red (both have yet to ripen and are quite bitter). They give each kid a little beach pail to fill with as many blueberries as they wish...a full bucket is about 2 pints and will cost $10*. We went 1/2 way and got one pint for $5*. Some may argue that 5 is not the greatest price for berries, but consider that it took my little 4 year old Moo about 1 1/2 hours to pick 1 pint of berries and since you only have to pay for the berries (there is no per person fee) the whole family can have a day of fun for $10. Plus, you get to go home with delicious fruit that YOU picked! Not to mention the importance of helping out local farms and supporting the local economy instead of running out to the market and picking up some Colombian blueberries (ok, I don't know if blueberries are grown in Colombia, in fact I'm pretty sure they're not, but you get the point).

Not only do the kids get to have fun hunting for the perfect berry, but they get a little education in the mix as well - and they won't even know it! Visiting a farm, seeing how they work and learning the basics - fruits and vegetables grow on plants and you can pick them and eat them. Surprisingly, since so many of us just buy our produce from the supermarket, many kids have no idea how they are grown - even that they grow at all! My daughter loved seeing that plants not only produce flowers for smelling and picking, but yummy little treats like blueberries! She also got to sit on a big red tractor, climb all over scratchy hay bails and learn about how the funny looking scarecrow helped to keep the birds away from the berry bushes. A trip to a farm is a learning opportunity for any age group, and for the really young set, the idea is to have fun and show them where their food comes from.

After such a nice day of berry picking, Moo and I came home to make a yummy Blueberry Peach Pie, which was just a basic blueberry pie recipe that I threw some delicious peaches from the farmers market into because it just sounded SO good. A little dollop of whipped cream and you have summer on a plate! Fun, educational, yummy - what a way to spend a day!