I love spending time outdoors with my sons, especially now that the weather is cooling off and the leaves are beginning to change. During the summer there are pools and parks, sweat and sippy-cups. But during the fall there are orchards and pumpkin patches, sweaters and hats!
Fall weather makes me want to spend as much time outdoors as possible. I want to soak up as much good weather as I can before the first snow fall. I know that once the snow starts coming it will be a very long winter. My favorite family friendly outdoor activity is going to an orchard with my boys.
This last weekend my family took a trip to Champaign Illinois where we spent the afternoon playing at Curtis Apple Orchard. It was like Disney World for my toddler. There were bounce houses, pony rides, a miniature golf course, an obstacle course, a corn maze, goat feeding, and more. There seemed to be an endless supply of fun right at our fingertips! We simply couldn’t decide what to do first.
Upon entering the orchard, my family scouted out all of the available activities and decided which ones we had to do before we left. There were quite a few activities on our to-do list. The very first one was to feed the goats. For the price of a quarter, I got to hear squeals and peals of laughter as my son held out his hand for the goats to eat out of. I believe that is money well spent.
Next up on the to-do list was pony riding. My toddler loves ponies and horses. We have family in Indiana that owns both, so William has had prior experience being around these animals and riding them. He loves sitting in the saddle! One of his favorite things to yell when riding a pony is “Yee Haw!” It is hilarious.
After the goat feeding and pony rides we hit the bounce houses to run off some steam. My husband, my son, and my nephew could not get enough of the obstacle course bounce house. In and out, up and down they bounced all around. In between all of this outdoor fun we grabbed some apple cider slush and a package of apple donuts to re-fuel. Then it was time to move on to the corn maze and the miniature golf course.
We were full of giggles and yawns as we departed the orchard. We talked about our favorite activities as we piled into the minivan to head for home. Spending a day running around outside playing with my family is my favorite way to spend the day.
There was so much to partake in at Curtis Apple Orchard that we simply didn’t have time to do it all. By the end of the day we realized that we didn’t actually get to go apple picking. I can’t wait for out next family trip to visit an apple orchard; maybe we will actually get to pick some apples. It is definitely not a hardship for my boys to spend the day outdoors picking apples and running through obstacle courses.
Feel free to leave a comment sharing your favorite fall outdoor activities.
Written by: Laura Andry
Http://MomMart.blogspot.com
