Apple Orchard

Earlier this week Harper asked me when we could go to an apple orchard. I didn't even know she knew what an apple orchard was, but she said her music teacher told them about it because they were learning a song about apples.  Our fall weekends stay really busy so we have never been, but I promised Harper we would try to make time for it.

Robby had to attend a convention today all day so I decided that wasn't going to stop our fun.  This morning we got ready and made the hour drive to the popular Hillcrest Orchards in North Georgia.  The drive up seemed long and when we arrived at the orchards I was not prepared for how busy they were going to be.  I assumed that by this point in the fall most people were busy at pumpkin patches, but that wasn't the case.  It was hot and really crowded and could have been a recipe for a disaster since I was solo with the kids, but it turned out to be the best day and we all had so much fun!

After standing in a long line just to buy arm bands to get inside we were all hungry, so I stood in another long line to get us lunch.  We grabbed seats in the shade and had our lunch while we listened to the bluegrass band play.  The kids were really entertained and loved the apple cider almost as much as they loved the cute little apple cups they came in.

After finishing up lunch we set out to have some fun.  First up was the giant jumping pillow. I don't even know how to describe this except that it is a giant inflatable pillow that looks like it is half buried in the ground.  The kids had a blast on it though and Hudson was really disappointed when their five minutes were up. I had to get Handley to climb up on the pillow and drag him off.  We could have stood in line again to jump (since our armbands gave us unlimited access to all the fun) but we decided to move on and check out some of the other activities.

The kids all tried out the tractor looking tricycles on the track...

And then we decide to go pick some apples - the real reason we were there.  There were tons of other activities (petting zoo, tractor rides, pig races, etc.) but the crowds made it hard to navigate and everything had a line. I think if we go back next year we will definitely get there when they open instead of waiting until afternoon.

We bought one of the small bags to fill and headed off through the rows and rows of apple trees.  They had a lot of different varieties, but we just sort of picked when we saw one that looked good.

On our way out we stopped in the market store for an apple cider slushie and poured them in their apple cups.  The slushie was delicious and the perfect way to cool off and end our day.

Back at home the girls ate several apples and they really were quite tasty.  They are both excited to take apples in their lunch boxes for school tomorrow!  I was really tired after todays big outing and I had a pounding headache the way home, but it was all worth it because we made the best memories today and started a new tradition I'm sure we will continue every year.