Giving Our Kids a Summer to Remember – Part II

This is the second in a three-part series. Click for Part I.

There are still a few more weeks of summer. Sure, we can use some of that time at the pool, playgrounds, or play dates, but these are often short-lived activities that leave us scratching our heads about what to do next. Here’s another great way to spend a day without spending too much money and to bring the experience home with more activities.

With just a short drive up to Westminster, you can find a beautiful respite from the hustle and bustle of our daily lives. The destination is Baugher’s Orchard (pronounced Baw-gers) and Farm Market. Upon arrival, you’ll immediately see a great assortment of locally grown fruits and vegetables, fresh pies, pastries, homemade fudge and ice cream available in the market. However, these provide just a glimpse of the potential of the farm as a family destination.

You see, Baugher’s isn’t just a great market – it can be an experience. Be sure to pack a picnic lunch and set aside a couple of hours to explore. For the kids, there is an open petting zoo with friendly livestock including goats, sheep, chickens, peacocks, a pig, a donkey, even a llama and a few alpacas. Bring some quarters to buy some feed and you’ll see just how friendly the animals are.

Once you’ve strolled through the grounds, hop aboard the tractor-driven wagon for a scenic ride into the orchards. Depending what is in season, you’ll have the opportunity to pick your own fruits and vegetables. When we got off the wagon, we were shown what qualities make each piece ripe for picking and set loose into the 200 acres of dedicated pick-your-own orchards. For example, we left on Sunday with a bounty of fresh peaches and nectarines that the kids chose and picked, right from the trees.

If you’re wondering what such an afternoon might cost, that will simply depend on how much fruit you want to bring home with you (and whatever else looks irresistible at the market). The fruit is as fresh as it is reasonably priced, and you only pay for what you take home. Throw in a few quarters for animal feed at the petting zoo and you’ll realize the value of spending an afternoon with your family far outweighs the pocket change you may have spent. As an added bonus, for those concerned about your carbon footprint, you’ll realize further value in buying high-quality produce from a locally owned and operated farm.

Aside from spending a nice day outdoors with your family, there are additional lessons to be learned by our kids. They’ll learn and appreciate where their food comes from while thoroughly enjoying their own hunt for the perfect piece to pick off a tree in the orchard. For the finicky eater like my daughter, who claimed to hate nectarines, even she couldn’t resist the urge to eat one that she had just picked off the tree. Once we got home, instead of reflexively saying she doesn’t like them, she got excited as we looked through recipes we could make using all the fruit we brought home. To take it a few steps further, we all discussed and considered recipes, checked our pantry for what we’ll need to get at the store, and then added those items to our grocery list. Such a gratifying result would have been worth a much higher cost, though again, we only spent a few dollars. We’re already looking forward to the next picking period (apples in September, for instance) and for the Fall Harvest Festival and hayrides.

Paul Katz is a freelance writer based in Owings Mills and a stay-at-home dad with four-year-old twins. You can see his local contributions on Patch, and you can follow his parenting blog at http://stuckwithdad.com or on Twitter @stuckwithdad