Berry Picking

WOW! What a day! After waking up late (thanks for takin' care of the kids, Brode) and having my coffee brought to me (thanks again Brodie), Norah, Harvey and I headed off to a farm on Sauvie Island to gather some fruit. Sauvie Island, just fifteen minutes from downtown Portland, is filled with farms where residents of the area go to pick their own fruit.

There was something so good about getting my kids closer to their food source, closer to the land that feeds them. Deeply satisfying. Upon arrival, I popped Norah and Harvey into one of the wagons provided by the farm and we headed to the far end of the property where all of the berries grow. I was most excited about taking home some local berries and figured if we couldn't make it to the veggies because of a meltdown that we would at least come home with some fruity treats. Boy did we! We went deep into the raspberry bushes (as instructed) and came upon berry after yummy sweet-smelling berry. Norah had an outrageously good time picking them and Harvey had that same good time eating them.
After leaving the raspberries, we wagoned over to the blueberries. Had I ever truly taken the time to think about the labor involved in picking fruit, I would have enjoyed every berry I ever ate that much more. I planted myself in front of one blueberry bush and hadn't cleaned it of its fruit by the end of the 45 minutes I spent there. Now, granted, I am an inexperienced picker and I was also chasing down two toddlers but still!

The berries were such a hit with my kiddos that we even had time to pick some zucchini for dinner! Ah, yes, this is our kind of place.