Here are a few snaps from one of our favorite adventures so far this summer -- blueberry picking at Beatson's Blueberry Farm in Virginia Beach. We went on a truly hot day (the temp was in the high 90s) and as a result, didn't get quite as many berries as we'd planned but we had a great time picking and talking and singing silly songs together as a family. Anouk thought it was super cool that we were acting out the plot line from one of her favorite story books (sans bears, thankfully). She also thought it was pretty impressive the way her dad could throw a berry up in the air and catch it in his mouth, every single time.

The berries were so delicious -- and interspersed within the blueberry bushes were occasional blackberry brambles so of course we had to test some of those out, too (also delicious). Beatson's is open from Monday through Sunday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and u-pickberries are $2.50 a pint. We heard from a staff member that they will probably have berries for another month or so, so there's plenty of time left if you want to pick a basket of your own.

Happy Monday!

On the first day of December, my true love gave to me -- a mini-road trip out to Back Bay to cut down our own Christmas tree! Specifically, we headed for Bright's Christmas Tree Farm, which is pretty much an evergreen-lover's paradise. The weather was unseasonably warm (we didn't even need coats) but the smell of pine in the air was enough to make up for that and things felt all exciting and extra-Christmas-y.

Turns out picking a Christmas tree is pretty complicated, especially when you're two. And your parents keep telling you to pick a BIG Christmas tree -- all of them look pretty big when you're just about three feet tall. Anouk fell deeply in love with a few Charlie Brown trees and threw her arms around their scraggly little bodies and did not want to let them go.

After some quick talking, we were able to persuade her that a nice 6-foot white pine was more the way to go. We alerted the Brights that we were ready to cut by waving a huge bendy white stick in the air until they found us in the sea of trees. This might have been the best part -- we all took turns waving it. The tree was cut and loaded on the top of our car, and then we took him (Anouk says it's definitely a boy) home and set him up in our living room, which is now the best-smelling place on earth.

Bright's is open Saturday and Sunday, from 8 to 5, and has all sorts of wreaths, garlands, ciders, jams and jellies besides their trees ($6 per foot for long needles and $8 per foot for short-needle varieties). It's a hike if you're coming from Norfolk or the peninsula, but worth the drive if you can make it. I promise.

Have you put up your Christmas tree yet?

Nothing says summertime is almost here! in Virginia Beach more than strawberry picking down in Pungo. I've been dreaming about it since the cold gray days of February and so when James asked me what I wanted to do for Mother's Day, that's what I picked (get it???). On Saturday, we (finally!) got our chance and drove down to Cullipher Farms to pick to our hearts' content.

We chose Cullipher Farm for a few reasons: first, they use organic growing practices, and with strawberries heading the list of fruits with high pesticide residues, that was a big deal for us. Second, they have two locations, one at the farm stand near Pungo Village and one a few miles away, which cuts down on crowds. We chose the farther-away berry patch, and as soon as we stepped out of the car we could smell the scent of berries warming in the sun.

We picked and picked and picked. In Anne's case, I should say we ate and ate and ate. By the time we finished, her white shirt looked like it had been dunked in a vat of red dye. I know some people were looking at us and thinking, who's the crazy mom who dresses her kid in white for berry picking? To which I say, there is a method to my madness. I dunked the whole shirt in a bucket of hydrogen peroxide as soon as we got home and today, it's good as new. (That's why they crowned me the Queen of Stain Removal. It's a glamorous job, being a mom.)

All in all, we picked two gallons of berries for $22, which is a great bargain considering that a pint of organic berries can go for as much as $4 or $5 in stores. We immediately put up one batch and saved the rest to eat this week -- and boy, have we been eating them as hard as we can. Even so, I'm still not sure we'll be able to work our way through them this week, so...let the baking commence!

This has been kind of a funky strawberry season so far -- the cool weather in April meant the berries set late and with the temperatures fluctuating, it's hard to say how long the season will last. Which means: go this weekend! Click here for Cullipher Farm's hours.







^^ My little strawberry girl, all tuckered out. I feel so lucky to be her mom, on Mother's Day and every other day of the year.