Field Trip to Bauman Orchard

Today, the boys and I went to a local apple orchard with the two morning classes at their preschool. Ben got to ride a school bus for the first time ever. Unfortunately, Xavier and I had to drive there ourselves because there was no seating "up to code" for him on the bus. I just wanted to hold him on my lap, and let him bounce down the road along with the other kids. Call me a risk taker, I guess! HA! Anyway, once there, our collective entourage of 24 kids and about 15 adults thoroughly enjoyed the grey soggyness that defined our morning. :-) (Because OF COURSE, the ONLY day this week that called for rain is today, of all days...the rest of week 70* and sunny!)

First up was a hay ride. It was pouring down rain, and we were wedged onto that wagon with not an inch to spare, but Xavier laughed at the bumps, and Ben was just happy to see all the apple trees, ladders, and machinery here and there. Please excuse the blurriness of this photo, bouncing up and down in the rain does not lend itself to clarity :-)

Believe it or not, all 40 of us got down and picked apples, again, in the rain. Xavier is getting heavy! I had carried him, there was no room on the wagon for his stroller. Part of the difficulty lies in the fact that as he gains weight and gets taller, his movements are less controllable, so as he lounges this way or that, it gets tiresome and unruly. I suspect I've got another year or two of carrying him around with me, but after that, picking him up will probably be limited to transferring him from one chair or position to another. (Sad.)

Here's Ben, complaining that, "this apple is dirty." Doesn't he look fabulously disgusted?


We also got to tour the building where storage, sorting, packing, and cider pressing were done. I've never seen so many apples at once. And the smell was delicious - took me back to picking apples when I was a little girl with my family.

Each child got a little goodie bag from the orchard.

Then onto the very small petting zoo. Goats like Xavier. This has always been a fact - I'm not sure why. Anyway, this one was particularly interested in him, and was intent on taking a piece of X with him. :-) Can you see Xavier's right arm on the goats neck? He was gently whacking on him, as the goat was pulling on his name tag. Just look at the expression on Xavier's face. "Whatchu doin', Goat?" hehe

Hay maze!

Xavier's watching the kids come down a slide at the end of the hay maze.

Ben's turn!

Xavier sacked out after a long, wet, chilly morning. Its so nice to be warm and dry again :-) I thought it was so cute that he kept touching the apple hand stamp he got there.

Bennett warming up with his buddy Stewy.