Strawberry Fields

Gah!  June is just so busy! 

I was stressing about when we could get out to pick our second batch of strawberries because Sophie has been begging for her turn and our first batch was disappearing quickly.  I didn't think Sophie would be that bummed that Will got to go alone on his birthday but she's been asking daily for her turn ever since.  I just couldn't figure a time that we could squeeze it in and I was getting anxious! 

As we were driving from the shower to the dress maker's house, I realized that we weren't terribly far from Polter's Berry Farm and since we were skipping nap anyway, we kind of had the afternoon to do whatever we wanted.  Sophie was being so good and I asked her if she'd like to go pick strawberries today or if she was too tired.  And, of course, she definitely wanted to go.  So she waited patiently through the dress fitting and I borrowed some flip flops from Casey and then we were off!

It turned out to be such a nice and spontaneous trip alone with my girl.  She is 10x the helper that Will is/was and she did an awesome job contributing to our take-home pickings.  The weather was perfect and only started raining once we were on the drive home so it was great timing!  And it was a nice peaceful wind down from a high energy bridal shower.  Good for both of us. 

The bonus part was:  I would never dream of putting my child in anything other than play clothes for berry picking, but she stayed clean and I had my camera so I got some great shots of Sophie with a beautiful strawberry fields back drop.  We talked about eating only small ones and keeping her lips closed so that she wouldn't dribble juice on her dress and she did so well.

So grateful for this awesome afternoon with my sweet Sophie!

These next two are my favorite.  Especially the second one.

It took a smidge longer to pick at Polter's (compared to Whittaker's) because the crop was slightly less abundant, but still it wasn't bad.  Sophie's patience and stamina was impressive but she still got a little bored toward the end.  So she entertained herself by walking a ways down our lane, saying hello to some people around her and then sprinting back to me.  :-)  She's such a charmer.

And then taking over my camera for bit kept her entertained while I finished up.

Another 12# picked today!

One thing I love to pick up extra at Polter's is their shelled fresh sweet peas.  They're sooooo good and the kids always enjoy the novelty of raw, fresh, sweet peas.  So we sat for a few minutes after paying for our goods and had a mini strawberry and pea picnic before heading home.  :)  There were other families just sitting and visiting/picnicking on the lawn and it was such a serene looking setting.

Love these special moments and memories with my children.