Lunchie Munchie Crunchie

That's a pretty corny post title, but I can still hear my 6th grade teacher saying that before lunchtime each day. So there it is.

A few weeks ago, one of my old post-college/pre-marriage roommates, Andrea, contacted me to see if I'd like to get together. And today was the day. We headed out to Denica's, a local cafe, at 11 for an early lunch that bled into the afternoon. There was much eating (mostly of cheese-related products, since my kids and Andrea's all chose either grilled cheese or quesadillas -- go figure!) and then much playing for the little peeps and chatting for us ladies.

Here are the short people --Jacob, Annabelle, Abby, Isaac and Brady-- after they did a bang-up job of cleaning up the play area:

...and us moms:

Great seeing you guys!

Berry Fun

I blink and bam, it's mid-July. Or at least that's what you might guess based on how well I've kept up with my little project here! Oh well -- it's the way life is sometimes. Stuff happens, days pass, you roll with it.

To get back on track, I'll start with today's activity and then try to work backward. Or at least that's my pipe dream. :) We'll see how it all plays out in reality.

I've had this idealized little notion for a while now that I'd like to go berry picking in Brentwood, home of lots and lots and lots (did I mention there are lots?) of U-pick farms. So that's just what we did this morning. I got up, got dressed, retrieved Brady from his crib, mozied downstairs, poured cups of milk and bowls of cereal, divvied up the last apple strudel pastry that'd been teasing me on the counter (ha! I win, you calorie-packed baked good, you!), and then asked Abby and Isaac if they'd like to go berry picking. (But not Brady. Because it's not as if he had a choice anyway.) The question was met with an enthusiastic YES! so we headed out at about 10.

After stopping at the uber-convenient Starbucks drive-thru (hey, it was along the way...), we started off in earnest for our destination: Enos Family Farm. I'd never been there before, but their website said they still had U-pick fruit, and the Yelp reviews were good ones. I quickly realized that I don't like driving on Vasco Road, but I persevered through the ups and downs and we arrived to secure some succulent fruit!

The strawberries were pretty picked over, which was a major bummer. But it's not exactly peak season, and it IS Monday, so I guess it makes sense that they'd have limited supply of ripe, juicy berries. That didn't stop us from picking a few pounds' worth. (And it definitely didn't stop Brady from snacking. A lot. More than I'd care to admit. But I'll deny it. Berry thief? My boo? No way!)

We left the strawberry patch after 30 minutes or so of scrounging. Some of us were less amused than others.

Then we moved over to the U-pick apricot trees. I may have possibly sampled one to get a notion of whether or not they were any good, and fortunately, they were! While I monitored Brady, Abby and Isaac filled a bucket. Part-way. But more-way than I'd planned, so we now have plenty of very small but very tasty apricots.

And with that, we hit the road, bound for home with a bag of berries and a box of apricots in tow.