Sunday, October 14, 2007

The Apple of My Eye

When I was a kid, one of my most favourite fall activities was getting into the family car and driving out to apple country. We'd load up on about four ten-pound bags and see how many apples we could eat right off the tree before heading home. My parents would always joke that there was a weigh-in on the way out so that we could pay for the apples we consumed. A year without apple picking just never felt complete. To this day I love it. So it was great to get out of the city today and pick apples.

Usually September is prime apple time. But most of September felt a lot like August. So we waited for the cooler temperatures to prevail. Lucky we didn't wait much longer because the orchard we went to, about an hour out of the city, was just about picked clean. There were Red Delicious, Yellow Delicious, Empire and Mutsu apples to choose from. We picked 12-pounds worth making sure we had some of each. A pumpkin and big jar of honey also made it into the trunk of the car.

With so much fresh fruit and other tasty products to choose from, one has to get creative about transportation. I'm happy to report my four-year-old managed just fine. Just look at that technique. She takes after me. She truly is the apple of my eye. I hope she'll look back on days like today with the same fondness I have for them. Here's to a great Ontario tradition.

2 comments:

Connie said...

Apples are the essence of Fall! So glad you could pick some.
BTW, Your little "apple" is a cutie. :-)

Iowa Gardening Woman said...

Yummie apples, we made a trip to Wisconsin to purchase apples, we bought Honey Crisp, Courtland and McIntosh, your daughter looks like she is enjoying the apples, cute girl.