Blueberry Picking


Have you ever done an activity with your kids where you wonder, is this even worth it? Is this worth the time, money, or effort I'm putting into it?

I had one of those experiences the other night. My dad had asked me if I wanted to meet him with the kids and pick blueberries after he got out of work. About 10 minutes before I left, he called and told me he was hitting traffic and wondered if I should reconsider. But I had three kids already prepared for what they considered the highlight of their day, so I said we'd come anyway. 

Well, the traffic added about 45 minutes to our trip. It was frustratingly slow to take that long to move four miles. Plus the kids were playing some game in the backseat that involved cheers, protests and arguing two feet from my ears. Not what you want to hear caught in traffic for 45 minutes...after your husband has been out of town for four days...in the summer...when all the kids are home 24/7. Wow! Dark mood alert!

I must have wondered a million times if this was even worth the hassle for some blueberries. I was totally ready to stop by Sam's Club, buy a big bag of frozen blueberries and be done with it!

When we finally pulled into the field, one of my daughters yelled with pure delight, "There's Papa! I'm going to go kiss him to death! I just love him so much!" and raced out of the van. Right then and there, I knew it had been worth it.


My kids had a blast picking berries and they must have thanked me a dozen times for taking them. Even my 11 year old son declared he LOVED picking blueberries. Who would have thought?


Sure, I could have skipped blueberry picking that night. I was very close to throwing in the towel a few times, but I'm glad I didn't miss out on these smiles!

I ended up coming home with a big pail of fresh blueberries and three very happy kids. We won't choose rush hour to go picking next time, but we'll definitely make another trip to the blueberry patch with Papa again this summer!



43 comments:

  1. Awww, that just warms my heart! Aunt Kim

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  2. It looks like you guys had fun. I've got berry picking on my summertime bucket list. Happy Monday.

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    1. Thanks, Leslie! Berry picking is definitely one of those "must do" summertime activities!

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  3. That's so sweet Marie. It's amazing how one hug, kiss, or thank you can change your whole day. So happy it turned out great for you and your family!

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    1. You're right! One little thank you or hug can make it all worth it! :)

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  4. Way to push through! So what I'm getting from this is that the feeling that EVERY activity might not be worth it will continue even when my kids are older and can all fully dress themselves? Oh man. :) That's great that they loved it so much though. And the pictures are so cute!

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    1. Yes, I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news! :) You'll always be wondering if certain things are really worth it. That's why I treasure all the thank you's and hugs and kisses so much! :)

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  5. What a fun experience for your kids - and great photos too!

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  6. My boys loved going berry picking when they were younger. This year we planted two blueberry bushes in our yard, so I don't have to go far for fresh blueberries!

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  7. My daughter has been begging me to take her fruit picking, it's always the highlight of her summer, though we always seem to find the one day of the year that is so hot that it is unbearable for the adults!
    Isn't it great that you stuck with it, didn't crack with the temptation to buy some store bought blueberries instead?!

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  8. Love your stories, Marie. They are like little slices of your real and beautiful life. xo

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  9. I can't put into words how much this means to me or what joy your family and the grandkids bring. It will make the berries taste so much sweeter. Fishing tonight- the fun never ends!
    Papa

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    1. That's really sweet! You bring joy to us too! Love you, Dad! :)

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  10. Sounds like a fab activity that everyone enjoyed :) Must get out fruit picking this summer with my little ones!

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  11. My kids love doing this, too! Foraging for blackberries in the autumn's probably our favourite :)

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    1. Blackberries are delicious! I don't know of a place to go picking around here though!

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  12. So sweet! We love to do blueberry picking. And my girls adore their Papa, too! :)

    Blessings to you. Thanks SO much for stopping by my place and sharing your thoughts. It is a joy to meet you! Oh...and just so you know, summer plus three girls together 24/7...the mood can shift quickly around here, too. ;)

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    1. Thanks, Kimberly! I imagine you have plenty of summer emotions at your house! :)

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  13. This looks great fun. My two are a bit too little for fruit picking at the moment but we'll definitely have to give it a go in a year or two. I remember strawberry picking when I was young!

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  14. Dear Marie,
    Oh my goodness! This looks like so much fun!
    I've taken my kids strawberry and blackberry picking, but not blueberry yet.
    I think it's so neat that your kids had so much fun! Now we need to find a few good blueberry recipes for you :0) Come by and grab my recipe for blueberry lemonade. Its fast, easy and soooo good!
    Suzanne :0)

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    1. I will have to check that out! Sounds so refreshing!

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  15. Looks like you had fun. And this is a great way to spend time together!

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  16. Despite your bouts with traffic, it looks like blueberry picking was worth the wait. What a great time to spend with your family!

    Maria
    cmntsblog.wordpress.com

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  17. This was really touching! I really need to take my girls berry picking.

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  18. Oh what a beautiful moment and I think we have all been there when we question is this worth it all. But so glad in this situation it was so worth it. Family time is amazing and can't be bought and what a great activity to do with papa as blueberry picking. The happy smiles at the end tell you the traffic was all worth it!!! lovely post. Thanks for linking up to #sharewithme

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  19. My grandmother used to plan these big, all-day blueberry picking trips for our family. She would pack a fabulous picnic and off we would go, hunting for a picking patch.

    She died a few months ago and these are my fondest memories of her. How she, a woman of little money, would plan these simple outings, and would bless us with her love and serving spirit. These outings allowed us to connect as a family, to enjoy nature, and to appreciate the simple things in life.

    It looks like you all had a lovely outing... so glad you hung in there.

    Thanks for sharing (and for linking up to the #SHINEbloghop).

    Wishing you a lovely day.
    xoxo

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  20. I completely know how you feel. On both ends. The moment where you're just in a sour mood and just want to send the kids in another room away from you and then the moment where you're doing something memorable with them. Your kids will remember that memory as a happy part of their childhood. We just took our girls to pick strawberries, and they loved it. Following you on bloglovin now.

    Angela @ Time with A & N (http://glennbabies.blogspot.com)

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    1. Thanks, Angela! It does seem like moods can change in a moment. I'm glad your girls had fun berry picking, too!

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  21. I have seen so many bloggers post about blueberry picking! Clearly I need to find a place and go try it out!!!

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  22. What a joy it is to live close enough to your parents that your children get to know them well and make these splendid memories together! Totally worth the traffic! Beautiful post!
    Marie, I've added you to my list for the link-up over at http://theeangelproject.wordpress.com/. Just check back on Sunday the 20th to see who else is participating. Welcome!

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  23. My kids and I met a couple of other families at a u-pick earlier this week where we got strawberries and saskatoons. (No blueberries, unfortunately.) We spent the whole day there and by the end of the day I had very happy but tired kids :) We spent the next day making yummy treats with our strawberries. It was a lot of work, but definitely worth it! Thank you for sharing about your blueberry picking!

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  24. The simplest activities sometimes turn out to be the best~! Glad your day worked out so well!

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  25. The simplest activities sometimes turn out to be the best! Glad your day turned out great!~

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  26. I love blueberries, we have been strawberry picking but I wish I knew where to go for blueberries. Popping over from Magic Moments but please do join me for Country Kids too, a perfect outdoors post and lots of fun.

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  27. what a fab activity to all do together

    thanks for linking up with #Magicmoments

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  28. Aww! It looks like you all had a wonderful time!!

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  29. I used to go strawberry picking with my kids when we lived in GA. Such a fun activity! Now we have pears, cherries, apples, and grapes in our own backyard. :)

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  30. Wow to be be able to pick blueberries would be great, this looks like so much fun and well worth it. We've all had moments where we think it would be easier to just not bother but you do it anyway and usually enjoy it ;) #magicmoments

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  31. Nice to have one of those moments where you're glad you didn't turn around and go home. Glad it all worked out so well.

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  32. So true anything to get those smiles is so worth it! Thanks for sharing =) #magicmoments

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  33. That's so lovely, you have inspired me to take our little man fruit picking this summer-thank you! xxx #magicmoments

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Thanks for taking the time to comment. I love hearing from you!