apple picking.

I have mentioned in previous posts that we are lucky to have three fruit bearing trees in our German back yard! Every summer, we enjoy cherries and plums and in the autumn, apples. The weather this year has been perfect for big, juicy apples! I thought they might be ready for eating, so we went to explore the tree. We found numerous ladybugs and tons of perfect looking apples. I thought they tasted great, if a bit tart and perfect for baking! Iris had different thoughts, and I captured the range of her experience in photographs. 

She perked up again when I asked her to draw me a hopscotch! 

strawberry fields forever.

the cherry tree.

When we first moved into our home, our landlady told us we had an apple, plum and cherry tree in our yard. She said they only bear a great harvest every two or three years. Boy, was she right! Last year, our cherry tree was slim picking, and by the time we realized the cherries were fully ripe, the birds had stolen much of the fruit. 

This year, however, it was impossible not to notice the cherries. They are bright fire-engine red and there are TONS of them. Together with our friends, we have been picking buckets full and snacking on them for three days and there is still no shortage! We also have wild strawberries peppering our yard - a delicious treat! 

Here are the pictures I took of Iris picking cherries last year!

a little taste of summer.

Summer in Germany is punctuated by an abundance of fresh fruit. I don't mean to say that the markets are stocked with fruit (although that is usually the case.) The fruit relevant to this post is grown right in our own backyard. Most yards and other open grassy areas boast at least one fruit tree. 

Our home has three fruit trees growing out front - yellow plum, apple and cherry. It's really quite a wonderful feeling to pick fruit that grows right outside your door. The convenience of supermarkets has taken that simple pleasure away from many of us and it feels good to get back in touch with nature. It was especially nice to show Iris exactly where fruit comes from - she loved this experience!

We even picked these on the side of a back road in our town!