Fall flavors and barnyard fun!
This past weekend we went out to Quinn Farm for the first time and it was a wonderful day out with activities for the whole family. They had live music, barnyard animals, tractor rides, seasonal fruit and vegetable picking and a store with all kinds of home baked goods and preserves, and a variety of local products including fresh eggs, cheese and crafts. The farm itself is a little far from us, but I really wanted the LO to see all of the different animals she has learned about from her books. And, being fall, we had the bonus of apple picking, which inevitably means... baking!
Our first stop was to the barn where the LO saw a huge sow gobble up some sweet corn, some sheep in need of a shear, chickens and lots of goats big and small. She giggled and squealed every time she got to pet the goats; she is definitely my child, after all we were both born in the Chinese Year of the Goat!
Then we headed over to the tractor ride and they brought us out to the orchards. While apple picking we were able to try all the apples we wanted. DH and I each had one, but the LO had at least 2 all on her own! We skipped the pumpkin patch this year, but maybe when she is older we will go and choose one to decorate for Halloween.
Afterwards we went over to the snack bar and had a comfort food lunch of pulled pork, vegetarian chilli, corn dripping in melted butter and an apple blossom to share for dessert. Since the shop was right next door we wandered in and I picked up a fresh pumpkin pie and some bread too.
Last stop… pony rides!
After dropping everything off at the car, we headed over to the pony rides. The line was quite long as they had just come back from lunch as well, but I really wanted to see if our LO would enjoy it so we waited (mostly patiently). Some kids really seemed happy, while others cried while kicking and screaming to get off. Which experience would we have? I stayed with her as she is too small to ride on her own and, to my delight, she absolutely loved it! She smiled and laughed as the ponies walked round and round. She reached forward and pet the mane all on her own and even held on to the saddle properly. This girl is full of surprises! And then the ride stopped and she looked at me, confused. And then it happened. As I took her off the pony, cue the meltdown! She threw herself on the floor, pointed at the ponies and balled her eyes out. That is MY little girl! Apparently I was the same way and I can't wait to go horseback riding with her when she's older.
Now, as for those apples... early Sunday morning I decided to make apple crisp using a new recipe. And, I have to say, I have never made a better apple crisp in my life! Even after cutting the sugar in half, the crumble was like perfect buttery shortbread melting in your mouth. I doubled the cinnamon and topped it off with some King Arthur Flour's Sparkling Sugar and voila! Thank you Betty Crocker! If you want to try and make it yourself, please download the recipe.
Our first stop was to the barn where the LO saw a huge sow gobble up some sweet corn, some sheep in need of a shear, chickens and lots of goats big and small. She giggled and squealed every time she got to pet the goats; she is definitely my child, after all we were both born in the Chinese Year of the Goat!
Then we headed over to the tractor ride and they brought us out to the orchards. While apple picking we were able to try all the apples we wanted. DH and I each had one, but the LO had at least 2 all on her own! We skipped the pumpkin patch this year, but maybe when she is older we will go and choose one to decorate for Halloween.
Afterwards we went over to the snack bar and had a comfort food lunch of pulled pork, vegetarian chilli, corn dripping in melted butter and an apple blossom to share for dessert. Since the shop was right next door we wandered in and I picked up a fresh pumpkin pie and some bread too.
Last stop… pony rides!
After dropping everything off at the car, we headed over to the pony rides. The line was quite long as they had just come back from lunch as well, but I really wanted to see if our LO would enjoy it so we waited (mostly patiently). Some kids really seemed happy, while others cried while kicking and screaming to get off. Which experience would we have? I stayed with her as she is too small to ride on her own and, to my delight, she absolutely loved it! She smiled and laughed as the ponies walked round and round. She reached forward and pet the mane all on her own and even held on to the saddle properly. This girl is full of surprises! And then the ride stopped and she looked at me, confused. And then it happened. As I took her off the pony, cue the meltdown! She threw herself on the floor, pointed at the ponies and balled her eyes out. That is MY little girl! Apparently I was the same way and I can't wait to go horseback riding with her when she's older.
Now, as for those apples... early Sunday morning I decided to make apple crisp using a new recipe. And, I have to say, I have never made a better apple crisp in my life! Even after cutting the sugar in half, the crumble was like perfect buttery shortbread melting in your mouth. I doubled the cinnamon and topped it off with some King Arthur Flour's Sparkling Sugar and voila! Thank you Betty Crocker! If you want to try and make it yourself, please download the recipe.
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