A Trip to the Apple Orchard

Last Thursday when they got home from school, the boys called and asked if we could go to the apple orchard. We have done this since they were toddlers and they look forward to it each year. It is what Brandon calls a tradition.

I went and picked them up and drove to an apple orchard a few miles away. The first thing that greet us was this odd looking creature.


We had seen him at the Apple Festival but the photo I took there didn't turn out. Just as I snapped it a group of people walked in my path. I didn't realize it until I uploaded the photos to my computer. I'm glad I got the photo. It is large, round balls of straw made into a scarecrow type creature.


Each year the owner of this particular apple orchard decorates for autumn and Halloween. He has a corn maze and other fun things to do during the fall season. Closer to Halloween there will be a haunted barn and a haunted hayride. Brandon has never wanted to take part in those, but he does this year. He is gaining more self confidence, which makes everyone feel good.


Just after the straw scarecrow and the welcome sign, we saw this skinny scarecrow. He sure could use something good to eat before his straw all disintegrates and leaves his shirt front touching its back.

Oh, and if you don't pay at this particular apple orchard, this is what happens to you. We all thought this was rather cute and got a good laugh out of it.

Just as I took the photo, the owner came along on the tractor and asked me what kind of apples we were looking for. I told him Courtlands, as they are best for cooking and baking. He told us they were behind the barn, which we knew from visiting previous years.

Here is the sign that marks the Courtland apples. Look at those beauties on the tree behind it.

There are lots of apples and the ones above were high in the top of the trees.

Jordan did a fine job of picking the apples. Of course he wanted the ones from the highest branches because they were nicer. LOL They were all beautiful. He just wanted to climb the trees, which is against the rules.

Brandon is tall - 5' 7" now and could reach higher than I could, so he got some of the apples that were up high for Jordan.

Here is Jordan looking down the row to see if there are bigger apples down there. He always likes exploring.
Brandon is admiring the apple that he just picked. It was completely red and when he rubbed it on his shirt it sparkled like a ruby. They were definitely nice apples.

We filled our bag that was given to us in the store at the front of the property where we prepaid and started to head back to the van.

Jordan spotted this cedar tree and was awed by the amount of seeds on it. It was like this from the tip to the ground. Another sign that we won't get a lot of snow this winter. I hope the pines and cedars are correct in their predictions. At my age lots of snow equals lots of shoveling and that is not high on my agenda.

Jordan really loved this cedar. There is kind of a hollow where a boy, or girl for that matter, could have a little cave back under there. I remember doing this when I was a kid. It was fun to have a secret place to go.

I asked Brandon to have his photo taken with Jordan and the cedar and before I realized what was happening, the boys had ran along this path between the trees and were almost back to the van - hence no photo of them together.

This does look like a place where a kid could have a lot of fun, so being a kid at heart, I went the same way as the boys.

As we got in the van, we noticed a maple that had turned color. The colors looked brighter to the eye than they do in the photo, but I love the colors against the red barn.

We had a lot of fun at the apple orchard and the boys took the bag of apples home to their parents to make pies. I'm waiting for spies (a type of apple that comes later and is exquisite in pies) to make my pies.

I hope you enjoyed coming along with us to the apple orchard. Both boys said they had a lot of fun and I did as well. We were making memories.

Be sure to take time to make memories with your loved ones. We never know what the future will hold. ~Blessings, Mary~

What I've Been Doing

I haven't posted since Friday night when I posted Saturday's article What a weekend! On Friday afternoon, I picked the boys up from school and had them until just after 6pm. We went to Wal Mart to pick up a sheet set that they had on sale. I got Queen sized sheets for a bargain. Only $24.99. I'm not sure what a sheet set costs in your part of the world but here they are usually $40 and up. They didn't have much color choice, but I figured a bargain is a bargain, so I just bought beige ones.

I had the boys all day Saturday as their parents both had to work. We grabbed the baseball and bats and went to the park. We met some kids there that the boys knew from school, so we had fun playing baseball. After about an hour, it started to rain and that was a good excuse to head home for lunch. LOL This old Grandma can't play baseball like she used to and with the arthritis in my legs, I couldn't run. Jordan enjoyed being my pinch runner. When I hit the ball he would take off for first base. I actually got a couple of runs without moving away from home plate. All the kids thought this was rather fun and seemed to understand that I needed Jordan to run for me.

After lunch, Brandon and I worked on the autobiography that he has to hand in for school this morning. The specifications weren't too bad to follow. Minimum word count was 200 and maximum 600. He came in around 470. After that we added a bit about his ancestry and a couple of his accomplishments. We had the rough draft done and then Michelle will help him type it. I can't believe these kids aren't learning keyboard skills in elementary school. However, I just looked up the grade 8 cirriculum for our school board and it is choked full of all kinds of things these kids have to know to graduate. I have no qualms about Brandon meeting the qualifications but the load is fairly heavy. I guess they are preparing the kids for high school.

Brandon received an award at an assembly on Friday and this Grandma was as proud as can be. It was for achievement in the first month of school and for working hard and listening. He received the award in front of the entire student body and was the only grade 8 child to receive and award. He was a little embarrassed at being centered out but it made him feel good too.

Jordan is doing better in school so far this year. He has a spelling average of 100%. He and Brandon are both good spellers. Jordan has more trouble with math. Brandon usually does well in math.

This morning I awakened by the ringing of the phone. Seems that Michelle had forgotten she had to work today and so I had the boys again. I was supposed to go to Mom's this afternoon as a lady was coming to show her how to put a quilt on the quilting machine that she bought. I took the boys with me and she taught them how to quilt with it. They were both quite good at running the sewing machine along the lines and making their own designs. It was a learning experience for all of us and quite enjoyable. I will try to get photos of the quilting machine so you can see exactly what we are doing. Mom has over a dozen quilt tops made for all family members and she's wanting to get them quilted.

And an update on Aunt May...

Friday Aunt May went to the cancer hospital for her routine checkup. They are disappointed now that they gave her chemo as they think the radiation would have done more good. She had four x-rays that she hasn't got the results from yet and she has to go to our local hospital for an MRI. Her cancer doctor is confident he can get her in quickly.

I noticed that Aunt May is having a lot of trouble with her short term memory. She can remember things from her childhood and we had fun reminiscing on Thurday. She told me a couple of stories about the things she did when she was a kid. It was nice hearing her memories.

Now that I have you caught up on all the news, take care and have a great week. ~Blessings, Mary~

Saturday Fishing Fun

The boys' parents both had to work on Saturday. I went and picked them up just after 10am and picked up their fishing poles. Since I didn't have my fishing license, we then headed to the bait & tackle shop where I picked up a Conservation License. Then we headed to the fishing hole on a small lake not far from here.

We were there quite a while and I didn't get much fishing done. Instead I was busy putting worms on the hooks of two boys who were all excited about catching something. There were lots of bites and some fish got to dine on some nice juicy worms, but the boys had no luck. Then, Brandon got a bite and had a fish on his line. He said, "Grandma, it is heavy and feels like a whale."

Brandon reeled it in and to my amazement it was a 12 inch smallmouth bass very similar to the one above. We usually catch rock bass, catfish and sunfish at this spot, but have never caught a smallmouth bass there before. The fish was nice and clean and a good size for Brandon.

Jordan didn't have any luck until we were on our last couple of worms. Then he got something on his line. It was a 4 inch rock bass. He was delighted just to catch anything.

It was hot and by the time we had fed the fish a dozen worms, we were ready to come home. We had a fun time and made a few more memories.

If you have a chance, take a child fishing this summer. It is an enjoyable sport and it's a great way to bond with kids. ~Blessings, Mary~

Well, it's the start of another week. So much to do, so little time. We did take Sunday off because that is a day of rest. Now that Monday has arrived, we will be once again working on the apartment. Jack said he would come today to give a hand. We have to get the old bath tub out and it is a heavy one - old as the hills - and then we can get the new sub floor laid and the wallboard up. It's coming, slowly but surely.

If you haven't had time to visit Deena at Can I Be Pretty in Pink, be sure to do so. She hosted a garden tour and it's continuing throughout the week. There are a lot of beautiful gardens on the tour and I've only seen about half of them. This was such a great idea and we have all put the click for a free mammogram on our blogs. Please click to help women get free mammograms.


Brandon phoned yesterday and asked me if we could do something today. I was exhausted and thought of trying to get out of it. Then it dawned on me that life is too short not to spend time with our loved ones. I told him we would talk in the morning and just before 9am, Jordan phoned. He wanted to know if we were going to spend the day together. Nothing was confirmed but I talked to Michelle an hour or so later about taking them to see Kung Fu Panda. They have been wanting to see it. However, while we were talking they asked if we could go swimming. I do know that water helps with relaxation, so I talked hubby into going with us.

I cannot swim, so am fussy about where I go. I enjoy floating down a lazy river on a tube. So we headed out to do just that. Here is a photo of a lazy river. It is not the one we go to, but very similar. They have the same yellow tubes that are free for the taking. If all the yellow tubes are gone, you can rent colored ones for $5.00 and then you get $2.00 back when you turn them in. We used the yellow ones. Free is best. LOL


We got there about 2pm and there were only a few people there. It wasn't crowded like it is sometimes. The boys went right in. I started in after them but as soon as my feet got wet, I stopped. The water was cold. I finally edged my way in and it was nice once you got used to it. Hubby took a while to get in to. The boys took about two seconds.

After a while they decided they wanted to go into the regular pool. Hubby and I sat on the sidelines beneath a shade tree. There was a nice breeze and we enjoyed watching.

When it was almost time to go, I gave the boys a heads-up that we would be leaving in fifteen minutes. Brandon said he'd like to leave then. He was tired. He hasn't been sleeping very well and so we left. On the way home, hubby stopped and bought them ice cream sundaes.

All in all it was a nice family outing. Everyone enjoyed themselves and everyone was tired. I was talking to Michelle about 7pm and the boys were already in bed. Of course they are getting excited because this is their last full week of school.

I hope all of you enjoyed a nice Father's Day with your families. The boys will celebrate with their Dad next weekend, as he had to work this weekend. They did give him a gift and enjoyed a nice supper with him before he had to go to work for a 12 hour shift.

Have a great week. I'd best get off of here as thunderstorms are moving in. ~Blessings, Mary~