Year 3, September 28th, 2018: Second to Last Apple Picking Day

Well, we got it done, but not without some grumpy kids.  I thought it was going to be a little rough and I know it could have been worse, but, it was very rough taking all 4 kids today.  Sigh.  Honestly, I just wanted to get the trip checked off the list this year.  And it counted for the pumpkin patch, too.  We did both trips in depth last year, so I wanted to go easy this year.  We went to our basic little orchard 10 minutes away that we've used probably 10 out of 16 years of Benaiah's life, Pleasant View Orchard, formerly Anderson Orchard, in Fairland, IN.  We are mid season on apples and you can tell there's been many a field trip out to the farm already, as well as storms that have come through.  Lots and lots unusable fruit on the ground, pockets of mud and standing water, tree limbs heavy with apples, snapped off of the trees, and trees a bit picked over.  I'm sure it's not easy to keep up with it all during the busy season, and I also know that the farm changed hands a few years back, but, the trees definitely took a hit this year or last and they need a little TLC.  Hopefully the current owners can do that or seek help and the trees and fruit will be better in years to come.  I won't say that we wouldn't go back because it's our traditional spot to go apple picking, and they do have wonderful apple cider slushies, but, if you're picky, try a different orchard this year. 

Anyway, we got our apples, we saw a pumpkin patch, we sat on pumpkins, we got our pictures, we ate our slushies, we played on the playground and we came home.  One and done.  As you'll see though, I forgot to clean the lens before we started and the first couple of photos have some dust spots on them.  Whoops!  So definitely not a perfect day, but we managed.  Abishai did have fun and was very excited to go apple picking.  He knew exactly what we were doing this year!  He even recognized the muddy ground and avoided it and all the mushy apples there.  He saw pumpkins and started talking about Halloween, ugh! Stupid TV shows corrupting my child! So when we got home I pulled out our Christianized pumpkin patch story book that compares the guts of a pumpkin to our sin and how God cleans it out of us like we clean it out of a pumpkin.  And then the farmer cuts out a face in the pumpkin and puts a light in like the light of Jesus that shines bright for all the world to see.  It also talks about different sized and colored pumpkins, just like human diversity.  There's Scripture throughout it, too.  Anyway, it was good to see Abishai so engaged today and he not only told Daddy about how a storm knocked over the tree branch and all the apples fell to the ground but how the skid steer picked up skids and put them on a truck and they closed the door.  He remembers a ton of stuff and makes up a ton of stories, too.  He even ate most of his slushie today without spilling.  He will be 4 in February, but I think he's pretty smart for his age.  He even went over to Benaiah, who was sitting on a swing, after yelling, "Miah!" like it was the first time he really saw him all day.  Then he sat next to Benaiah to comfort him.

Benaiah was tired, and still a bit sore from his fall yesterday.  His lip is a bit swollen and he can't pronounce all his letters clearly.  However, there's no pain and no teeth are loose or discolored.  His shoulders and back are also sore from the fall and from doing those lazy man pull ups.  Benaiah also woke up to his siblings arguing, which would make me irritable, too.  So, when he played the part of a parent today, I just let it go.  He woke up when he was asked to, he smiled for pictures when asked, and he did go.  I can be content with that. Today was the second to last official time to the apple orchard with all four of them, so it was good enough.  Next year, though, I will have Jared go and we will take the time to make sure it's done better.  Sure Benaiah might still be at home if he skips a year between high school and college, and maybe he'll be home on fall breaks, but there's no guarantee he will be there.  Cue the tears because well, with it being a Howell tradition as well.  Sigh. It makes it that much harder to let go of.  But you better bet your boots that I will be doing it still with the three, then two, and then just one kid until the grandkids come and then I will do it with them, too.  Always and forever one of the best, most consistent Howell traditions we have.  And the most positive memories, too, because as most people know or have in their families, there are some not so good memories as well.  But apple picking was and is and always be a highlight and must do annual tradition for me.  Always.

The rest of the day was spent resting and catching up on schoolwork.  The kids did well this week and I have talked myself into taking things a bit slower so we can actually enjoy our life even if it means we don't finish books by the end of the school year.  I just read another article encouraging me to keep lessons short, and to give space for the lessons to sink in and be assimilated into the brain.  You can't just throw fact after fact to them.  They need time to process it, too.  And they need free time for their own non screen pursuits.  So, I need to convince myself to use loop scheduling and be ok with pushing things off.  I'm thinking of doing a hard stop at 3 or 4pm depending on when we started and how distracted we got.  There's always tweaking to be done, always.  But they truly are working very, very hard to keep up with my demands and expectations.  Keturah and Justin have both matured over the summer and it shows in their efforts in their schoolwork.  Poor Keturah can't draw worth anything, but that's why we are doing it.  Just practice, practice, practice.  And Justin has so much to memorize and he's past the prime age where memory work is easy, but he's still trying.  So I'm trying not to expect perfection out of them on all of this.  Did they work hard? Yes.  Did they improve from the last time I tested them?  Yes.  Then let the rest go.  It will be ok.  Really.  Sigh.  Oh, but Abishai is letting me read to him again, so I told him to pick out books and I'll stop whatever I'm doing and read to him! Yeah! I'm bound and determined to share all the books in our personal library which means no more boxes in front of bookcases!  That's the goal anyway.  We have so much good stuff right here! Use it or lose it, right?  And some of the baby board books will never be read by them again and it makes me sad.  I don't want to miss the opporutnities to share the fun stories we have and that Keturah has read a million times or miss out on all the fun preschool activities I've been saving all these years.  All of that is so much important than so much other stuff.  And that's where my heart is.  So let's keep at it!

I like the smiles in this one, although the sun glare/dust smudges blur it a bit.  Imperfect picture like the day was imperfect and I'm strangely ok with that.  I had all 4 of them with me, that's what matters.

We played for a bit on the playground first, but there were a couple of preschool/kindergarten field trips there, so we didn't linger too long.

This was when Abishai went to check up on his 'Miah.  Oh so sweet.

Getting so big!

Sweet tunnel in the hay bale mound.

Ow, Mom, this hurts!

So big! And yet, still loving the slide.

The only picture I have of Abishai climbing the hay mound.  He could get up the first layer, but not the second.

Simple but fun.  We are going to a field trip at a dairy farm in October and there will be more fun things like this.

Abishai knew exactly what to do.

These two are pros as well.  Twist and tug.

"Mommy, it's MY size tree with MY apples on it!"

Babies and apples.

"Aw, look at the baby apples!  Aren't they cute! Aww!" (Abishai really did say that and used his cute voice!"

Nice photographer's shot!  Sweet!

Bags were easily filled!

A drowned out pumpkin patch.

Abishai did recognize it, too.  Pumpkins!

It was fairly warm, but definitely NOT as hot as it was last year or the year before when we came in late August/early September.  I was just afraid there weren't going to be any apples last year, but this year I realized that different varieties ripen at different times and my favorites ripen later in the season.  And here's the proof I wore my plaid today in honor of my Dad's plaid shirt he always wore that my sister Stefanie has and uses for her apple picking trips.  Plaid plus apples equals apple picking trip completed!

Again, the contrast between these two crack me up.  Their personalities are also pretty different as well.  I'm wondering because we call Abishai a mini Gary, if it will be like having Gary and Jared together.  Who knows but it's fun to watch!

Red delicious apples, my favorite.  Or these might be the ida reds.

Lots of pumpkins!  I'm wondering if they have other pieces of land where they plant their crops like pumpkins and I saw turnips come into the store today as well.

There's one pumkin patch!

Traditional picture with the sign.  The one thing I do love about this orchard is that you just pay for the apples you pick.  There's no extra entrance fee.  Maybe that's why it's more low key than other places like Tuttle's Orchard where we went last year for our actual field trip with our friends.

He loves these things!

And one more group shot with the pumpkins!  Reminds me of the pile of pumpkins my siblings and I would clamor over right outside that orchard's store.  My parents would take our pictures there and they would get their pumpkins there as well.

Aw, hug a pumpkin!  Just don't kick it!

Apple cider slushie time!  My favorite treat!  They have lots of other things like caramel apples and fudge, hot apple crisp, hot dogs, nachos, etc.

Abishai wanted to play in the sand/rock pit but there were a bunch of kids there not playing well, so I tried to discourage him from getting in there.  He wanted to take off his shoes and socks and I didn't let him this time because of all the kids buzzing around.  They were also throwing the sand, too.  The teachers were trying to handle the situation but I'm sure it's difficult to keep track of everyone.  I have a hard enough time handling my 4 kids, never mind a dozen or more.

The sandbox that Abishai likes.  Actually, I think he was mumbling and babbling about wanting want of these at home.  Benaiah was trying to convince Abishai to go home because he wanted to eat lunch before work and the wasps were not leaving our slushies alone.  Thankfully, Abishai didn't throw a fit about it.

One of the highlights for Abishai was seeing the skid steers working!  One brought product up to the store.  One more brought some things into the store.  And the other took it to the truck.  Then Abishai told us that they were going to close the door of the truck and drive away.  Very smart kid!

The largest pumpkins they had.

Time to climb those as well!

Last picture at the apple orchard.  I didn't even have to ask them to pose.  They just did.

Abishai couldn't WAIT to wash and eat his own apple that he picked!  So grown up!  And the apples were sprayed heavily with pesticides, grr.

He loved arranging the apple pieces before he ate them.

Hey, I have a dimple!  And yes, I was at the orchard, too.

Using a Norwex scrub sponge to clean his apple.  And yes, I am very impressed with Norwex products, although I only have this sponge so far.  Cleaning with just water and no chemicals is awesome!

Somebody was very exhausted today from staying up too late last night because Mommy was the one putting him to bed and he wouldn't settle.  Then we went to the orchard today, and Daddy's office where he ran around in circles, and then the library, where he peed his pants and got mad that somebody had played with HIS duplose and ruined HIS house.  He had a full blown tearful tantrum and rolled around on the grass, too.  He was playing with Justin's Lego BB-8 and other Star Wars Lego mini figures and we figured out that Abishai IS BB-8 because he rolls around so much just like BB-9 does!  And then Justin is the Po Dameron (sp?) who is the X-Wing pilot that is buddy to BB-8.  Makes sense to us!  But 3 1/2 yr olds can get overstimulated and exhausted, too.  Good night, wittle buddy! (He insists that he's still little and not a big boy yet.  Yes, he's the baby of the family and he KNOWS it and uses it to his advantage!  And we let him sometimes because, well, he's the baby!  Boss Baby!)  Night, night, 'struction sight, night, night, little one.