Only pick the red strawberries

Loralynn loved picking strawberries with Andrew and Kristin.

Loralynn taught Kristin and Andrew S. to pick only the red strawberries. She is an expert by now since she's been to the strawberry patch three years in a row and she is only 3 1/2 years old. She had a grand time with Kristin and Andrew and really enjoyed their attention.

Dan was still vacationing in Finland/Russia, so I really looked forward to hanging out with friends while picking strawberries.

Tana sat contentedly in the stroller at the patch as I used every maneuverability skill I had to push her down the row. I was about to give up but knew that time would probably be limited once I let her loose in the patch. The poor cheap stroller wheels couldn’t stay straight.

Crystal and Mike C. came with us, too, with baby Cassie in tow. We all picked a load of strawberries. Loralynn's cuteness attracted an older German man that started to put ripe berries in her bucket as well for "teaching me new English words". I actually appreciated the help and I'm sure Loralynn liked his compliments.

Once Tana was freed from the stroller, she enjoyed tagging along with Kristin and Andrew as well. After dumping Loralynn's bucket in mine, we amassed nearly 2.5 kilograms (5.5 pounds) of strawberries for a grand total of 8 euro ($10.80). Loralynn and Montana still have yet to develop a taste for strawberries (or any fresh fruit for that matter).

My berries were almost immediately doomed to mashing for freezer jam and blended for fresh homemade ice cream. Unfortunately, we had to freeze the remaining third because we’re going on vacation this week. They will eventually be made into pie, cake, and smoothies. I love picking fresh strawberries!