Back in the beginning of September we went apple picking in the 90+ degree heat. We came home with the most amazing Honeycrisp apples I’ve ever tasted. But it just didn’t feel like fall. Apple picking is one of my favorite fall activities so I knew I wanted to try again when it was cooler outside.
Last weekend we were invited back to Eckert’s for apple and pumpkin picking. Instead of sweating, we were shivering. It felt much more like fall and we loved it so much! We had never visited the Millstadt location so we were excited to check it out. But we made a quick stop over at their Belleville location to see their fun pumpkin house!
We typically don’t get family photos while we’re out and about because I don’t love asking strangers to take our picture. But my friend, Maggi, and her family came along with us and I made her promise to snap a family photo for us at some point. She ended up taking multiple photos for me and I am so grateful! The majority of our family photos are just taken with a tripod and remote. So it was a nice to have her take a couple for us!
We obviously loved the pumpkin house!
But everyone was anxious for apple picking so we drove over to the Eckert’s in Millstadt. I immediately fell in love with the small town country feel. And even though it was a busy Saturday with tons of people there, it didn’t ever feel overly crowded because of how big and spread out everything is.
Once you pay to get inside, almost all the rides/activities are free! There was seriously so much to do that we couldn’t even fit it all in…even after spending 5 hours there. There was a little petting zoo with a few different animals. Clementine loved feeding the kangaroos carrots. She typically shies away from most things so it was sweet to see her trying to interact with the kangaroos.
But we did manage to fit in 2 viewings of the pig races, per Kai’s request. And actually, he would have preferred going to all the races that day. But I feel like 2 was probably pretty sufficient haha.
Poor Clementine was so cold that day! It had been nearly 90 degrees a few days before so we were totally not used to cooler weather yet. And every fall I just forget how to dress for cold weather. I mean, it was 50 degrees. So it wasn’t freezing. But when you’re used to 85-90, it feels pretty cold.
I mean, look how cute this place is!!
Desmond and Clementine (my two kids who are scared of so many things) were obsessed with the pony rides. I wish I would have gotten a good picture of Clementine. She was giggling the whole time.
We eventually managed to pull the kids away from the rides so we could go pick apples. And I’m pretty sure every time we go apple picking, our bags are just about completely filled within the first few minutes. And then half empty a few minutes later as the kids are eating them.
The weekend we went picking, they had a new apple called Evercrisp (a combo of Honeycrisp + Fuji.) Honeycrisp are still my favorite but I think everyone in my family liked the Evercrisp!
This picture of Kingston pretty accurately sums up every apple picking outing we have ever had. He always eats more than everyone else. Even on the way home, he asked for another apple haha.
Two nearly identical family photos because sometimes I just go back and forth between pictures so many times and can’t decide which one I like more.
One of our favorite things about Eckert’s is the abundance of ripe, unblemished apples. In the past, we’ve really had to search hard to find good apples. But at Eckert’s, we had no trouble filling up our bags.
I had to include this picture of Desmond with Primrose. Because even though it’s not the best picture, it shows how much he adores his baby sister.
And I’m certain it doesn’t get any sweeter than these two cuties eating apples together. I got a few questions about their outfits on Instagram so I’ll just go ahead and link here too. The sweater rompers are from Target (currently out of stock but they have randomly restocked multiple times in the past so I recommend signing up for notifications.) And Primrose’s bonnet is from Yarn Republic.
We also hit up the pumpkin patch in search of the perfect pumpkins. But all the kids/husbands were cold and tired so we cut that visit short. We’re actually going to try going again today because the weather is supposed to be perfection! If my kids are as indecisive about pumpkins as they are about everything else in life, I’m predicting this will be a long day out 😉
We are so grateful to Eckert’s for inviting us to spend a day at their farm! The Millstadt farm is now officially one of our favorite places for fall activities and we are so hoping to have the chance to visit again!
One more thing before I go–if you’ve been apple picking recently and need some good apple dessert recipes, this apple crisp that I made for my family this week was pretty amazing. And Maggi raved about these apple cheesecake bars so I’m thinking they may need to be next on our dessert lineup!
Have a great week!!