>Baby’s First Field Trip
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Not to mention her first bus ride.
In time-honored tradition, our destination was a local apple orchard.
The parents rode separately and when we arrived before our class, we were greeted with a scene from a horror movie.
As we approached the orchard from the parking lot, we saw a group of about 20 kindergartners from another school standing in a huddle, screaming and hysterically crying. Some of them were shirtless. Bees were still swarming around them.
“They were all picking apples over there,” one mom told us, pointing at a section of the orchard. “And then all of a sudden, everyone started screaming and teachers and kids and parents just all started running.”
Apparently, someone had stepped on a bee’s nest.
I can’t tell you how traumatic the scene was to watch. Some of the kids had been stung many times, and no one really seemed to be doing anything about it. The bees were still stinging them as we watched and it took the adults several minutes to realize that it might be better for them to move farther away from where the bees had attacked them. Even children who hadn’t been stung were crying, from sheer shock of seeing their classmates in pain and fear. As a mother, my heart broke thinking that the class could have easily been my daughter’s, and imagining how horrible I’d feel if I couldn’t even have been there to comfort her. I have no doubt that those children will always remember their first field trip, and not in a good way.
What bothered me was that we couldn’t do a single thing about it. We didn’t know the kids or the parents and there was literally nothing we could do except stand there and feel awful for them and worry about our own children, who’d be arriving any minute.
And guess who the class photographer is for the year? I think I scared people with the amount of photos I took, but that’s just how I roll.
After learning all about apple peeling and apple coring and bee pollination and how apple cider is made, it was time to look for some apples to pick.
The apples, though? Didn’t look so hot. I wasn’t exactly surprised, seeing as how it’s been raining here for what seems like 100 days straight.
The kids were a little disappointed with the apples. They were “squushy” and wormy and blackened and gross. Some of the children didn’t even want to touch them.
But Punky had spent the week learning about apples. I had read her a book that demonstrated the proper apple picking technique, she had been practicing it, and goldarn, she was going to pick an apple before she left, no matter what.
And that’s exactly what she did.
Afterward, the children put all of their apples in a bushel and went back to class, where we all had lunch in the classroom and my daughter and her friends demonstrated to me exactly what they’ve been learning in kindergarten.
I know you’re impressed.
Foodwise, I made these New Orleans-style pancakes for breakfast this morning- They’re always delicious and a nice change from traditional pancakes.
Last night, my 18-year-old came home for the weekend and I made Chicken Oporto, which is probably our favorite family chicken recipe. It’s amazing! Give it a try.
Tonight, I’m excited to try this Southern Living recipe for Shrimp Enchiladas, which has gotten rave reviews on the website. I’ll let you know tomorrow how it was.
UPDATE: I thought it was slightly saucy but very good and flavorful- my family, though, LOVED it. LOVED IT. It’s definitely the best enchilada dish I’ve found yet. Also, my grocery doesn’t carry cream of shrimp OR cream of onion, so I substituted two cans of cream of celery (as some reviewers suggested) and it worked great.
This is a totally disappointing day because we were planning to go to Harvest Days at the zoo, but it’s pouring rain outside. This whole rain thing is really starting to annoy me.
Hope it’s drier where you are!
above ground swimming pools…
I would really like you to become a guest poster on my blog.**;~…