Julian Apple Picking {1st time!}

So many firsts when becoming a parent. The obvious ones of course...but even small things like 'apple picking' - something I never really gave any thought or interest in doing until now....because I know how much fun my daughter will have - and thus the cherished memory of such 'small things' we will have forever as a family.

My mom, youngest sister, Kapri & I decided to go up to Julian the last weekend of apple season (definitely going a week or two earlier next year!). James stayed home to watch his beloved football, haha! It was a perfectly crisp, sunny day when we arrived...K just really couldn't wait to eat the apples she was about to pick herself! The place we chose to go was one of the few that had apples left, and it was all organic...huge plus. Next year I hope to go to one of the organic orchards that offer both apples and pears (my fav!)....AND next year we'll also have our missing piece to the puzzle, my middle sister Chelsea (or Auntie SiSi as K calls her)...yay!!

However since they are organic, that means they do not have chemicals sprayed on them to protect them from little intruders that like the taste as well. So 9 times out of 10, each apple we found had a little hole or two in it - which meant WORM LIVES HERE. Nope. On to the next one...

Soooooo many apples. My favs were yellow-ish and K's favs were the red...she loved to find a good (none-hole-y) one, and clean it up with her shirt to make it super shiny & pretty before she indulged. There were also a bunch of more 'tart' ones that are much better suited for baking.

After we worked up quite a sweat walking around the orchard and picking as many apples as we could fit in our bags, we headed into the main part of town. We. Were. STARVING! After lunch we browsed though awesome little stores & boutiques, took a horse-drawn carriage ride, then HAD to stop at Julian Pie Co., and stand in a crazy long line to wait for some AHmazing apple pie!

To end this already perfect day, we of course had to stop by Dudley's Bakery... to pick up some fresh baked bread - my fav is the Rosemary...gah, heavenly. Next to the bakery was a huge field with some grazing cows in the distance... my mom/sister captured these beautiful pics of K & I...in love.