The Blackberry Injury


It was a cool summer day (only 94 degrees as opposed to the seemingly normal 100 degree days of late), so Anna and her parents loaded up the car and headed for the mountains for some early morning peach and berry picking. The loading of the car took longer than anticipated, largely because Theresa decided to take the bikes along for a short bike ride on one of the bike trails in the area. It may have taken longer to load the bikes than to actually ride them, but it was worth the effort.

Apparently several others had the same idea today as Mcintosh Fruit Farm in lovely Berryville, Virginia was hopping at 10 AM on Sunday morning. After having a homemade muffin for breakfast, we grabbed the radio flyer wagon and walked through the peach groves where we proceeded to pick WAY more peaches than we will ever eat. Before we got very far into the peaches, we found the blackberries. After testing several of them, we began picking berries. This proved tricky as we soon discovered the thorns that surround the blackberries. Anna was having a grand time picking/eating berries and didn't even notice the scratches on her ankles from the thorns until we had moved on to the next grove of peach trees. As soon as she saw blood, she began to cry and declared she could not go any further because "I'm injured." After some bribery with a bite of a doughnut peach, she discovered that she was well enough to continue the day. Anna and Theresa picked a bunch of zinnias to take home while Joe found some fresh vegetable before loading up the car for the next stop: biking.

The biking portion of the day was rather short given the fact that 1) It was 90+ degrees in the shade and 2) Anna is still getting the hang of biking. We might have rode 2 miles, but Anna is getting the hang of it and had a good time. Anna rode her bike, which was attached to Theresa's bike while Joe rode behind ringing his bell. This made Anna pedal faster since she thought her Dad was chasing them, which worked out well for Theresa, who is not use to riding a bike towing an additional 50 pounds. The ride was short, but worth it.

The day concluded with a couple of hours at the pool (very welcome after a hot morning) and a nice dinner at home. It was a lovely summer weekend in the mountains. We will looking forward to returning to pick apples in the fall.

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