Until this summer I had never been any kind of fruit picking. In June I went strawberry picking with Carlos and a bunch of friends. We managed to pick a large box of soft, ripe, sweet strawberries on the verge of going bad. It was hard work especially under the hot summer sun. No need for the gym that day as I got in numerous sets of squats and then some. I left with stained red hands and a new appreciation for farmers. We certainly take for granted what it involves getting fresh fruit and vegetables to the table.

On Thursday we had the opportunity to go blueberry picking. Four adults and six children let loose in the blueberry fields at Birdhaven Blueberry Farm…watch out! It was a gorgeous afternoon. The kids were reeling with energy after a long day of camp at the YMCA. Our guide, John, showed us which bushes were the best and then we were on our own with plastic buckets attached to our waist. The kids had smaller containers that they were supposed to fill and then empty into our larger buckets.

Carlos in the blueberry bushes

The blueberries were delicious. It was difficult not to eat them all, but eventually my bucket accumulated quite a bit of the luscious berries.

Bucket of Blueberries

We picked, we talked, we laughed and we ate. The girls took the blueberry picking quite seriously and managed to fill up their little containers. The boys ran around the bushes hiding on each other and us. They picked a few blueberries in between and ate more than we could count.

Serious blueberry picking

It was a fun afternoon. I made out with about 2.5 pounds of blueberries for only $6. The owners of the farm were so gracious especially considering the number of kids with us.

I resisted the urge to buy one of their homemade blueberry pies because I knew that I would probably be the one to eat most of it. They sure were pretty though.

Blueberry pie