My preschooler and I had such a fun adventure last week! We were invited to take a tractor tour at a local farm, mainly to pick and eat our own strawberries, but I ended up learning so much more. First off, I had no idea until I was on the tour that this specific farm was certified organic! I nearly jumped out of my seat when I found out.

Why? Well, I try to buy all organic fruits and vegetables from our local grocery store, but sometimes the products are shipped in from extremely far distances, even other countries! To me, eating organic isn’t the only issue. It’s eating locally. I’ve written in the past about the other environmental and monetary costs involved with not eating locally,** so when I realized that I could drive 10 minutes to buy all sorts of organic fruits and vegetables, as well as support a local farm, I was thrilled.

As we took our tractor ride around the farm, I tasted carrots, celery, lettuce, bok choy, radishes, onions and of course, strawberries. The difference in flavor was huge! The celery had a saltiness from the soil, the carrots were undeniably flavorful and I wanted to smack myself in the head from denying my preschooler these wonderfully fresh and local fruits and veggies. When we finally stopped at the strawberry patch and hopped out to pick our own, I think my son ate at least forty strawberries within 10 minutes. He was in heaven. (I think the photo says it all.)

All in all, it was a lovely day full of good fun and great produce. I’ve made it my personal goal to buy most of our weekly fruits and veggies from the farm’s produce stand from here on out. Not only will I be feeding my family the best, but I will be supporting a local business. Plus, I hope my son will have memories of visiting the produce stand regularly and instilling the same values within him. It’s a win-win!

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