Hellobee

I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit sad about the end of the school year. H went to 10 hours a week of Parents Day Out and those hours helped my sanity so much this year. The prospect of keeping a toddler occupied all summer is very intimidating to me, and so I decided to embrace and celebrate her first day of summer break by planning a fun activity! A friend of mine and I loaded up two toddlers and headed out to the suburbs of Dallas to Blase Family Farm. As with any outing with a two year old, I wasn’t sure what to expect but we had a great adventure. Since this berry picking season in many places, here are some tips for taking your little one to pick some produce.

Working as a team.

Visit an organic farm. H was sampling the wares non-stop during our time on the farm. While I know that they were still dirty and my inner germaphobe cringed, at least I felt better knowing no pesticides were being ingested. And since it’s a family farm, I just added a couple dollars to our blueberry total to make up for the amount in her tummy. And remember that no pesticides also means lots of pests. There were lots of gnats and ants, so socks and shoes/boots and bug spray are a must.

Don’t forget the lessons. Wow, I didn’t even think about how this would be such great practice in hand eye coordination and color spotting! How often do our kids pick a single, tiny berry from a bunch without squeezing it? It’s fairly hard even for adults! We walked along singing “only the blue and purple ones” and H got better and better as we went along. We also talked a lot about farms, and how some have animals and some only have vegetables and fruits, and which ones grow on the ground or on a tree. H also got some much needed practice with balance and holding a bucket steady while walking and running.

Blue ones only!

Set an age appropriate timeframe. H tapped out at about 20 minutes, right when I was really getting in the zone and making blueberry cobbler in my mind. Accepting toddler attention spans is hard for me, so I usually set a timer on my phone. I know that if her attitude appears before her normal time limits, maybe she’s thirsty or hungry. And if after… time to start walking towards the car. Since H had a friend with her, we let them run wild for a bit while we finished picking. H is a runner, so having a fenced in space is always helps me breathe easier.

Right before the meltdown that made me realize it was time to go…

Use what you pick! H was just so excited to tell her Mum that she picked these blueberries that we were eating. We had them in our oatmeal and pancakes, and even a cobbler for Memorial Day weekend. This trip made me realize how important it is for H and her learning right now to know where food comes from. When things get too busy, we tend to rely on foods in bags or packages. What a reminder that toddlers pay attention and sometimes it’s good to slow down and eat some food grown with love in our community.

Summer break still seems like a long 3 months, but I’m determined to find some good activities to fill the time. And I can’t wait to go pick fruit during the fall growing season when it’s not 100 degrees here anymore. What kind of fruit picking adventures have you all taken your little ones on?

Homemade blueberry popsicles at the farm!